这条裙子是新的

* * *

Notes

1. “王老师给我们两张票。” — “Teacher Wang gave us two tickets.”
   • “给” is here a verb.
   • Both “二” and “两” mean “2” comes before a measure word (or before a noun which needs no measure word before it), “两” is used instead of “二”, as in “两张票”, “两条裙子”. But in numbers larger than ten (12, 20, 22, 32, etc.), “二” is used irrespective of whether it is followed by a measure word, as in “十二个老师”.
   • The measure word “张” is used to apply to paper or anything having a smooth surface or top like paper, as in “一张纸”, “一张桌子” (table) or “一张报纸”.

2. “太好了！” — “Excellent!”

   “太...了” is an expression used to show satisfaction or admiration. The word “太” signifies a very high degree of such sentiments.

   Note that the adverb “太” is more often than not used to signify “excess” or something that goes beyond the accepted standard. “这条裙子太大” — “This skirt is much too big for me.” “不太”, the negative form of “太”, means about the same as “不很”.

3. “这条裙子不是我的。” — “This skirt is not mine.”

   When the demonstrative pronoun “这” or “那” function as an attributive, the noun it qualifies also takes a measure word before it, e.g. “那张̣票” or “这件̣衬衫”.

4. “是这条吗？”, “那儿还有两条。”

   “是这条吗？” means “Is this the skirt you are looking for?” “那儿还有两条” means “There are two more skirts there.” When a demonstrative pronoun plus a measure word or a numeral plus a measure word functions as an attributive, the noun it qualifies can be understood if the context leaves no room for doubt. E.g.: “我有两本中文书、一本（书）是新的、一本（书）是旧的。” — “I have two Chinese books: a new one and an old one.”

5. “妈妈、我穿哪件衬衫？” — “Mum, which blouse should I wear?

   In such interrogative sentences, when there is a limited number of objects, we use “哪” (with a measure word), and not “什么”.

   “这儿有几本词典、哪一本是你的？” — “Here are several dictionaries, which one is yours?”

Substitution and Extension

一

2.

5.

二

1. Looking for something
   

   A:

   喂、你找什么？

   B:

   我找我的笔。

   A:

   你的笔是新的吗？

   B:

   不是新的、是旧的。

   A:

   是不是黑的？

   B:

   对了、在哪儿？

   A:

   在那儿。

   B:

   谢谢你。

2. Seeing a guest off
   

   A:

   这是您的大衣。

   B:

   这不是我的、我的大衣是蓝的。

   A:

   是这件吗？

   B:

   对了、谢谢您、再见！

   A:

   再见！

3. Talking about books
   

   A:

   这是什么书？

   B:

   这是汉语语法书。

   A:

   这本书是英文的吗？

   B:

   不是英文的、是法文的。

   A:

   你有英文的吗？

   B:

   我没有。

   A:

   我去书店买一本英文的。

* * *

京剧票

Reading text

Grammar

❶ “是” sentences type (2)

A pronoun, an adjective or a noun plus the structural particle “的” forms what is called a “的” construction. In a sentence a “的” construction does the same work as a noun and can stand by itself. This type of construction often forms part of a “是” sentence. E.g.

❷ Object of the preposition “从”

The object of the preposition “从” is usually a word or phrase denoting place or time. In the case of a noun or pronoun not indicating place, “这儿” or “那儿” must be added to it before it becomes an object of the preposition “从”, forming a prepositional construction qualifying the predicative verb. E.g.:

The same is true of the object of the preposition “在” as well as the objects of the verbs “来”, “去” and “在” when they denote places. E.g.:

Exercises

1. Read out the following phrases and make sentences with them:

   新词典  新书  新画报  新地图  新图书馆

   旧宿舍  旧笔  旧车  旧杂志  旧衬衫

   绿裙子  白纸  大商店  大书店  大词典

2. Based on the texts of this and previous lessons, match the given nouns with an appropriate measure word.

   个、张、件、本、条
   1. 个 张 件 本 条 杂志、 个 张 件 本 条 大夫、 个 张 件 本 条 大衣、 个 张 件 本 条 书、 个 张 件 本 条 票、 个 张 件 本 条 老师。
   2. 个 张 件 本 条 裙子、 个 张 件 本 条 朋友、 个 张 件 本 条 上衣、 个 张 件 本 条 词典、 个 张 件 本 条 孩子。
   3. 个 张 件 本 条 地图、 个 张 件 本 条 学生、 个 张 件 本 条 画报、 个 张 件 本 条 裤子、 个 张 件 本 条 衬衫。

   

3. Change the following to sentences with “的” construction as the object of the verb “是”, paying special attention to the use of measure words:

   Example:		这是我的书。
   	→	这本书是我的。

   (1)

   这是绿衬衫。

   (2)

   那是中文画报。

   (3)

   这是阅览室的杂志。

   (4)

   那是妹妹的裙子。

   (5)

   这是我们老师的地图。

   (6)

   那是我们学院的宿舍。

4. Put in an appropriate preposition (“从”, “给” or “在”) in each of the following sentences:

   (1) 安德烈 从 给 在 宿舍写汉字。
   (2) 她 从 给 在 丁云那儿来。
   (3) 我 从 给 在 我朋友买一本书。
   (4) 我们 从 给 在 宿舍去商店。
   (5) 你 从 给 在 哪儿看京剧？
   (6) 他 从 给 在 图书馆来这儿。

5. Change the following to questions with an interrogative pronoun, substituting suitable interrogative pronouns for the underlined words or phrases:
   

   (1)

   她给妹妹一条裙子。

   (2)

   他爱人从银行来。

   (3)

   王老师教他们汉语。

   (4)

   我穿绿衬衫。

   (5)

   他常常在他朋友那儿喝荼。

   (6)

   那个女学生从图书馆去书店。

   (7)

   他给我一本画报。

   (8)

   那本书的名字叫“汉语口语”。

6. Read the nursery rhyme below, maintaining a certain rhythm. Then read it again increasing the number of frogs (“一个青蛙”, “两个青蛙”, “三个青蛙” ...). Note that the number of mouths, eyes and legs must increase as the number of frogs increases.

   A:	一个青蛙 一张嘴 两个眼睛 四条腿
   B:	两个青蛙 两张嘴 … …

Pronunciation and Intonation

❶ Word stress (4)

The first syllable of a dissyllable formed with the suffix “子” is stressed, and “子” is pronounced in the neutral tone. E.g.

´			`			´			˘
裙	子		裤	子		孩	子		本	子
•			•			•			•

In “的” constructions formed of the structural particle “的” and a noun, a pronoun or an adjective, “的” is always pronounced in the neutral tone. E.g.

ˉ

`

`

ˉ

˘

新

的

旧

的

绿

的

他

的

姐

姐

的

❷ Exercises

1. Read aloud the following dissyllabic words, paying attention to the changes of the 3^rd tone and word stress:

   		˘	ˉ		˘	ˉ		˘	ˉ
   “˘” + “ˉ”		老	师		两	张		北	京
   			•		•				•
   		˘	´		˘	´		˘	´
   “˘” + “´”		两	条		五	层		很	忙
   		•			•			•
   		˘	˘		˘	˘		˘	˘
   “˘” + “˘”		语	法		口	语		九	本
   			•			•		•
   		˘	`		˘	`		˘	`
   “˘” + “`”		请	问		九	号		五	件
   			•					•
   		˘			˘			˘
   “˘” + “˚”		晚	上		本	子		姐	姐
   		•			•			•

2. Read the following word combinations of nouns and numerals with measure words, paying attention to the changes of the tone in the numeral “一”. Then do the same with “七”, “八”.

   一个本子
   一个书店
   一个孩子
   一个人
   一个词
   一件衬衫
   一件大衣
   一件上衣

   一张纸
   一张桌子
   一张报
   一张票
   一张地图
   一本书
   一本词典
   一本杂志

   一条裙子
   一条裤子
   一条河

3. Read aloud the following proverbs:
   

   Zhòng	zhì	chéng	chéng.
   众	志	成	城。

   Unity of will is an impregnable stronghold.

   Shībài	shì	chénggōng	zhī	mǔ.
   失败	是	成功	之	母。

   Failure is the mother of success.

Test exercises

Write the following sentences in Chinese characters adding tone marks above them:

1. Wǎnshang nǐ qù nǎr? — Qù jùchǎng kàn jīngjù. — Nǐ cóng nǎr qù? Shì bu shì cóng sùshè qù? — Bù, wǒ cóng gēge jiā qù. — Nǐ yòng bu yòng chē? — Yòng, wǒ yòng wǒ gēgede chē.
2. Wǎnshang nǐ chuān shénme? — Wǒ chuān yí jiàn bái chènshān hé yì tiáo hēi qúnzi, nǐ ne? — Wǒ chuān yí jiàn lán chènshān hé yì tiáo hēi kùzi, dōu shì xīnde.
3. Nǐ zhǎo shénme? — Zhǎo wǒde zázhì. — Shì yīngwén zázhì ma? — Shìde. — Shì zhè běn ma? — Bú shì, zhè běn bú shì wǒde, shì túshūguǎnde. — Nàr hái yǒu yì běn jiùde, shì bu shì nǐde? — Shì wǒde, xièxie.
4. Nǐ qù nǎr? — Qù shūdiàn mǎi cídiǎn, nǐ yě qù shūdiàn ma? — Bù, wǒ qù jùchǎng mǎi liǎng zhāng piào. — Shénme piào? — Jīngjù piào. Wǎnshang wǒ hé wǒde yíge péngyou qù kàn jīngjù. — Nǐde péngyou shì shéi? Wǒ rènshi tā ma? — Bú rènshi, tā shì yíge Zhōngguó liúxuéshēng, wǒmen cháng shuō hànyǔ.

Write the following word combinations and sentences in Chinese characters and pinyin, lay tone marks:

hēi 雨伞; cóng túshūguǎn 借 xīnde 美国 zázhì; mǎi 德国 qúnzi; 北京 hé 上海 de 剧场；俄罗斯的剧场.

1. Zhè shì 公司的 电话.
2. Zhèr yǒu 英国 chènshān.
3. Zhèr méiyǒu 座位.
4. Qǐng 帮助 wǒ mǎi piào.
5. 姑娘, zhè tiáo chènshān nǐ chuān hěn hǎokàn.

③ Exercise on reading and understanding unfamiliar words, made of the characters you know:

太太；车票；文件；外衣；好看；剧院；位子；地位；借口；条件；大词典。

Translate the following sentences from English into Chinese:

1. — Here is (lit.: this place has) two shirts. Which one is yours?
   — My shirt is white, that green is my elder brother’s.
   
2. — Who has tickets to Beijing Opera?
   — Our Chinese teacher has.
   
3. — Where are you going to the theatre from?
   — We are going to the theatre from the Institute.
   
4. — Is this your shirt?
   — No, my shirt is white, not green.
   
5. I have two Chinese magazines: a new one and an old one. Which one do you need?
   
6. — Where are you going tonight?
   — Tonight we are going to teacher Xie (’s place) to watch Chinese cartoons.
   
7. — Where are you going to the library from? From the Institute?
   — I’m going from the dormitory, not the Institute.
   
8. — What are you returning to him?
   — I’m returning to him two dictionaries: one is English-Russian, one (another) is Chinese-French.
   
9. I’ll give him two coats: one is black, another one is white.
   
10. — Whose are these three coats?
    — Two coats are my friends’, and one is mine.
    — Which one is yours?
    — Mine is black.
    
11. — Where did you come from?
    — I came from the library.
    
12. — What will you give him?
    — I’ll give him two maps: the map of China and the map of Russia.
    
13. — Where is my letter?
    — Your letter is at teacher Zhang’s. He was looking for you. But you weren’t here.
    
14. Our Institute has three reading rooms: two new (rooms) and one old (room).
    
15. This book is not mine, it’s from the library.
    
16. — Come to my place tonight for tea.
    — Thank you.
    
17. He has many books in English. I often borrow his books to read.
    
18. I won’t wear this old shirt, I’ll wear this new one.
    
19. — What are you looking for?
    — I’m looking for my pen.
    — Your pen is here (lit.: at my place). I’m giving it back to you.
    
20. The book about English grammar is not in English, it’s in Russian.
    
21. I’m bying tickets to Beijing opera to my elder sister and my wife. They both love Beijing opera.
    
22. He lives not in Beijing, but in Shanghai.
    
23. Our seats are not here, (but) there.
    
24. This shop is not very big, here are no books in foreign languages.
    
25. — Who are you looking for?
    — I’m looking for a foreign student Wang.
    — He lives not on the twentieth floor, but on the nineteenth floor.
    
26. — How many students does your department have?
    — Our department has 36 students. 30 English students and 6 foreign students.
    
27. Their family has two people. The husband is an engineer, the wife is a doctor. Let me introduce them to you.
    
28. Please, sit. Here are several today’s newspapers. Read it, please.
    
29. My friend has three pens , five copybooks, four Chinese newspapers.
    
30. I'll take two dictionaries in the library: one is English-Chinese, another one is Chinese-English.
    

Do you know?

Beijing Opera

Beijing opera (jīngjù, 京剧) is a form of traditional Chinese drama with a history of about 150 years. It took shape in Beijing and became popular throughout the country. It is a comprehensive expression of the traditional Chinese drama, music, dance, boxing and fencing, and it has always been loved by the Chinese people.

Beijing opera is characterized by its symbolic actions, giving full play to the various artistic mediums of singing, acting, recitation and acrobatics accompanied by the rhythmic beats of gongs and drums. It has thus formed a perfect artistic system of its own.