Yoyo Chinese Top 10 Mistakes

8/10/2019 Yoyo Chinese Top 10 Mistakes

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Table of Contents

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

Mistake #1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Assuming to be = sh ()

Mistake #2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Assuming and = h ()

Mistake #3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Ignoring Chinese measure words

Mistake #4. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Using ma for non-yes-or-no questions

Mistake #5. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Using b () to negate the verb yu () - to have

Mistake #6. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Using b () to negate past action

Mistake #7. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Confusion about verb + default object verbs

Mistake #8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Forgetting to insert de () in between adjectives and nouns

Mistake #9. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Using le () to indicate past tense for all verbs

Mistake #10. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Putting time and location at the wrong place

About Yangyang Cheng. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Yoyo Chinese Courses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
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Introduction

Hi there,

Im Yangyang, the founder of YoyoChinese.com.

I have been teaching Chinese for many years both at college level and as a private tutor.

Throughout the course of my Chinese teaching, Ive encountered many mistakes made by

my English-speaking students. Some of these mistakes are very specic to the individual,

but lots of them are repeated over and over again and share the same patterns.

Over the years, Ive accumulated a collection of them. Now, Id like to share with you these

top 10 mistakes.

Please note that awareness of these mistakes should NOT scare you away or prevent you

from speaking Chinese. Instead, it should give you more condence because you will be

more aware of how to say things correctly.

In this book, I will:

Show you the top 10 Chinese mistakes made by English-speakers

Explain why these mistakes are made

Break down 10 related Chinese grammar concepts and explain them in detail

Explore how you are affected by your mother tongue as an English-speaker

Teach you quick and easy tips to avoid these mistakes in the future

I will use lots of practical examples, easy-to-understand tables and charts to help you

reinforce important language concepts. Also, all the examples are written in Pinyin, Chinese

characters (simplied, followed by traditional when there is a difference between the two

versions), and English.

I sincerely hope you enjoy this ebook and learn a lot from it!

Thank you and happy studies!

Yangyang Cheng

YoyoChinese.com


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Mistake #1 Assuming to be = sh()

Examples:

When people ask how are you, how would you answer in Chinese I am good?

w sh ho () I AM GOOD?

Wrong.

One of the first things you learn in Chineseis that the verb to be is sh (). So youautomatically assume that whenever you needto say is, am, are, were, was, you should usesh ().

This assumption is wrong.

In Chinese, adjectives such as beautiful, smartand funny function as verbs, so beautiful isalready to be beautiful, smart is already to be smart and funny is already to befunny. Therefore, you dont need to say She is beautiful. You only need to say She,beautiful. Is is assumed.

Also, you need to add the word hn () before adjectives to provide rhythmic balance.

hn () means very,but its meaning is weak here. It might sound like a weird conceptto you, but do take the trouble to add hn () each time you say She is pretty,orI am happy,or He is smart.

So I am good in Chinese should be w hn ho ().Here are a few more examples.

English

She is pretty.(lit. She verypretty.)

I am glad to meet you.(lit. I veryglad know you.)

I am tired.(lit. I verytired.)

Pinyin

t hnpio lian

w hno xn rn shi n

w hnli

Chinese

In Chinese,adjectivesfunction as verbs,so is is assumedand shouldbe dropped.


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Mistake #1 Assuming to be = sh()

I just mentioned although hn () means very,its meaning is very weak. If you wantto express the meaning that I am VERY tired,use the word fi chng () instead ofhn ().

The usage of sh()

Remember, in Chinese, we use sh () a lotLESS OFTEN than we use the verb to bein English.

In Chinese, sh () is used when talking aboutsomeones profession, identity or nationality.

To simply put, you can think of sh () as theequal sign =.

English

I am verygood.(lit. I very good.)

She is verypretty.(lit. She very pretty.)

I am verytired.(lit. I very tired.)

I am very verybusy.(lit. I very very busy.)

Pinyin

w fi chnho

t fi chnpio lian

w fi chnli

w fi chn fi chnmn

Chinese

English

I amMary.

She isa student.

We areAmerican.

Pinyin

w shMary

t shxu shn

w men shmi u rn

Chinese

Mary

sh is useda lot LESS OFTENin Chinese thanto be is used in

English.


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Mistake #2 Assuming and = h()

English speakers often assume that the Chineseword h () is equivalent to the Englishword and.

This assumption is wrong.

The English wordand can connect words(e.g. I like apple and oranges ), phrases(e.g. I like playing soccer and watching movies),and sentences (I am John and I am American).

However, the Chinese wordh () canonly connect words or phrases. It CANNOTconnect sentences.

For example, its wrong to say I am John h () I am American. h () cannot be usedto connect the two sentences I am John and I am American.

Now youre probably wondering which word you should use when you want to sayI am John and I am American.

There are two ways to do this:

First, its okay if you ONLY say I am John. Period. I am American. Dont use anythingin between the two sentences. Thats how I would say it in Chinese. We omit theword and.

If you think about it, its actually a bad habit to use and all the time because andis merely a filler word here that contributes almost nothing to the meaning ofthe sentence.

Second, if you feel compelled to use the word and, use the Chinese wordhi yu (). hi yu means in addition, also.

Again, its really unnecessary. If you have to find a word to say some sentence + and +some sentence,use hi yu instead of h.

Unlike inEnglish, in Chinese,h()- and -cannot connect twosentences.


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Mistake #3 Ignoring Chinese measure words

Measure words or classifiers might be one ofthe most foreign concepts for English speakers.

A student of mine once tried to joke with hisChinese friend by saying, w yu s ti ti(). Hed meant to say I have fourwives, but since he omitted the crucialmeasure word ge () in the sentence, nobodycould understand what he was trying to say andthe joke completely fell flat. The correct way ofsaying four wives is s e ti ti ().

The concept of measure words or classifiersshouldnt be entirely foreign to you.

In English, you have something similar:a sheetof paper, a barof soap, a setof furniture, a schoolof fish, etc. Here,sheet, bar, set, and school can be considered measure words or classifiers.

Whats different between English and Chinese is not so much the existence of measurewords or classifiers, but rather the extent to which measure words are used. In Chinese,we use measure words all the time.

Heres a summary when measure words have to be used.

1. When a quantity is involved you must insert a measure word in between the

NUMBER of the object and the NAME of the object.

In Chinese,

you must insert ameasure word inbetween the numberof the object andthe name of theobject.

English

One hamburger

Two younger sisters

Three people

Four books

Five tables

Six chairs

Pinyin

y ehn bo bo

lin emi mei

sn ern

s bnsh

w zhnzhu zi

li by zi

Chinese

/

/

/

/

/

/


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EnglishThis chair

That person

Every book

Pinyinzh by zi

n ern

mi bnsh

Chinese /

/

/

EnglishWhich book

How many people(number usually < 10)

How many people(number usually > 10)

Pinyinnbnsh

j ern

du shorn(*du sho is an exception.It doesnt need a measureword.*)

Chinese /

/

(* is an exception.It doesnt need a measureword.*)

2. When you want to specify a noun. In other words, if you use zh - () - this, n - - that and mi - - every.

3. When the question words n - - which and j - () - how many are used.


Classifiers

Measure words are also referred to as classifiers because some measure words actuallyhave the additional function of classifying nouns along some physical dimensions, suchas size, shape and so on.

Different measure words are used for different kinds of objects.

flat objects such as tables or paper are counted with the measure word zhng () long, thin objects such as ropes use tio () objects with volume such as books or magazines use bn ()

Dont be overwhelmed yet! For now, just remember this: in Chinese, you must insert ameasure word in between the numberof the object and the nameof the object.

Number + Measure Word + Object


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The Generic Measure Word - ge (/)

The most widely used and the most generic measure word is e (/).You can

generally get away with using e (/) when youre not sure what measure word touse for a particular noun, so until you learn new specific measure words or classifiers,you should use e (/) to save yourself some trouble.

You can also think of it this way: maybe a good English word that can be used todescribe measure words is unit. For example, y e hn bo bo () islike saying one unit of hamburger.sn e rn () is like saying three unitsof people.

Measure words are so important. If you use the generic measure word ge foreverything, its okay. It just shows that youre not a native speaker, but Chinese peoplewill still understand you. However, if you skip measure words, Chinese people will NOTunderstand you at all. So its better to use a less-than-perfect measure word than notto use one at all.

From now on, I suggest you seriously consider getting into the habit of adding ge toyour daily English conversations, e.g. saying four ge apples, three ge people, and 10ge hamburgers.

The following table is a summary of common measure words. If you want to sound likea native speaker, memorize them. If not, it s okay to simply use ge to replace all thefollowing measure words and you will do just fine.

Measure words used in a similar way in English

Examples:

English

bo

bi

h

/ kui

pn

Used with

Pack

Cup of, glass of

Box of

Piece of(cake, soap, land)

Bottle ofsomething

Examples

One packofcigarettes

One cupofcoffee

A boxofchocolate

One pieceof cake

One bottleofbeer

y boyn

y bik fi

y hqio k l

y kuidn o

y pnp ji


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English

qn

/ shun

to/ zhn

Used with

Crowd, group,

herd, flock,pack of(cows, bees, sheep)

Pair of (shoes,chopsticks, gloves)

Set of (furniture,stamps)

Type of, kind of

Examples

One packof

sheep

Onepairofshoes

One setoffurniture

One typeoffruit

y qnyn

y shunxi

y toji j

y zhnshuu

Measure words sometimes used ornot required in English

For example:

English

b

bn

chun

/ dn

fnfn

/ ge

/ jin

Used withObjects with ahandle such asknife, umbrella,toothbrush, andchair

Things withvolume, suchas books,magazines

Items joinedtogether,e.g. by a string

Hat

Used with itemsdistributed inportionsLetters, mail

Genericmeasureword that can beused with anything

Room(living room,bedroom, etc.)

Examples

One knife

One book

One bunch ofgrapes

One hat

One newspaper

One letter

One person

One bedroom

y bdo

y bnsh

y chunp to

y dnmo zi

y fnbo zh

y fnxn

y ern

yjinw sh


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English

jin

k

/

lin

pin

shu

ti

/ tio

wi

/ zhn

Used with

Items of clothing

(generally for theupper body),matters, affairs

Trees

Wheeled vehicles(such as cars,bicycles, trucks)

Essay, article,report

Passage oftext (such aspoems, songs)

Fairlylargeelectrical items(such as computers,washing machines)

Long and

winding objects(such as towels,streets, pants, rope)

People(a politemeasure word toreplace ge)

Flat surfaces(tables, sheets ofpaper, beds,photos)

Examples

One shirt

One matter

One tree

One car

One article

One song

One computer

One towel

One (pair) pants

One guest

One table

yjinchn shn

yjinsh

y ksh

y linch

y pinwn zhn

y shu

y tidin no

y tiomo jn

y tiok zi

y wik rn

y zhnzhu zi

zh

/

zh

zu

Fairly long, stick-

like objects suchas pens, pencils,cigarettes

Animals, birdsand insects

One of a pair

Large, relativelypermanent thing

One pen

One catOne handOne shoe

One mountain

y zhb

y zhmoy zhshuy zhxi zi

y zushn

///



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Mistake #4 Using ma for non-yes-or-no questions

Some students have this wrong notion:

Whenever you put maat the end of a

statement, you instantly change thatstatement into a question.

This is not an accurate statement.

The accurate statement should be:

Whenever you put maat the end of astatement, instantly, you change that statementinto a yes or noquestion.

Basically, for all questions that require specific answers other than yes-or-no,you

CANNOT add maat the end of the sentence.

For example, if you ask Who are you?What do you do?How do I say this inChinese?Why?Where is the bathroom?etc., you are looking for real answers suchas I am Mary,I am a lawyer,The bathroom is there,etc.

These are NOT yes-or-noquestions, so you dont add maat the end.

The only time you add maat the end of the sentence is when you are asking aquestion that requires a yes-or-noanswer.

For example, to ask Do you want coffee?you simply add maat the end of thestatement of You want coffee?because the answer the question requires is eitherYes, I do,or No, I dont.In this case, you can add maat the end.

Questions that need specific answers (Omit ma)

For questions

that requirespecific answersother than yes-or-no, you CANNOTadd ma at the endof the sentence.

English

Who are you?

(lit. You are who?)

What job do you do?

(lit. You do what job?)How old are you?

(lit. You how old?)

Wheres the bathroom?(The bathroom is where?)

Do you want coffee or tea?

Pinyin

n sh shi

n zu shn me n zu

n du d?

x shu jin zi n l ?

n yo k fi hi sh ch

Chinese

?


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Questions that need yes-or-no answers(add ma at the end)

Mistake #4 Using ma for non-yes-or-no questions

English

Can you speak English?

(lit. You can speak English ma?)

Does she have a boyfriend?(She has a boyfriend ma?)

Did you eat yet?(You ate ma?)

Pinyin

n hu shu yn wn ma

t yu nn pn yu ma

n ch fn le ma

Chinese


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Mistake #5 Using b() to negate the verbyu () - to have

Yu is a

VIP verb anddeserves itsown specialnegation word.

Before we continue, remember this: you shouldNEVER say b yu ()in Chinese.

The verb to have yu ( ) is verb with a VIPstatus. It deserves its own very special negationword which is mi ().To say not have,youshould say mi yu ().You should neversay b yu ().There is no such a thing!

Examples

English

I dont havesiblings.(lit. I not havesiblings.)

She doesnt havea boyfriend.

(lit. She not haveboyfriend.)

Pinyin

w mi yuxin d ji mi

t mi yunn pn yu

Chinese


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Mistake #6 Using b () to negate past action

To indicate that an action DID NOT happen inthe past, use the negation word mi ()ormi yu ().yu () is optional.

Since mi () is used exclusively to negateyu (),when you see mi () by itself, youknow that (yu) is assumed.

If you think about it, it DOES makes sense touse mi () or mi yu () to negate pastaction, because mi yu () literally meansnot haveand its the same in English, nothave done something.

Examples

For negating

past action, usemi or mi yu.For negatingpresent/future,use b.

English

I didnteat breakfast.

I have neverbeen to China.

Pinyin

w mi (yu)ch zo fn

w mi (yu) q uzhn gu

Chinese

()()

()()

For Present and Future Action

To indicate that an action DOES NOT happen now or WILL NOT happen in the future,use the negation word b ().

Examples

English

I dontlike him.

I dontwant to go.

I wontgo to Chinatomorrow.

It wontrain tomorrow.

Pinyin

w bx hun t

w bxin q

w mn tin bqzhn gu

mn tin bhu xi y

Chinese


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Compare these two sentences.

(1) wbchzo fn ()

It means I dont eat breakfast.

When you use b () to negate a verb, it means the action doesnt happenor will not happen. This sentence implies that I dont have the habit of eatingbreakfast. I just dont do that.

(2) wmichzo fn ()

It means I havent eaten breakfast or I didnt eat breakfast.

Maybe I forgot to eat breakfast or maybe I didnt have time to eat breakfast,the result is that I didnt have breakfast.

EnglishI donteat breakfast.

I didnteat breakfast.

Pinyinw bch zo fn

w mich zo fn

Chinese

Mistake #6 Using b () to negate past action


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Mistake #7 Confusion aboutverb + default object verbs

In Chinese, theres such a concept called verb + default object verb.

For example, the English word to readcan be either kn ()or kn sh ()

depending how you use it. kn sh () is a verb + default object verb.In English, you can say I like to read,butin Chinese, you have to say I like to read(something).To readhas to carry an object.

If you dont have anything specific to refer to,you have to assign a default object to the verbto read,which is book sh ().

So, simply put, if YOU dont specify, weregoing to specify FOR YOU by assigning an

obligatory object to your verb. So to readinthe sentence I like to readis (kn sh).We call verbs such as (kn sh)verb + default object verbs.

So in Chinese, when you say I like to read, you are literally saying I like to readbooks.However, if you have something specific to refer to, for example, if you wantto say I like to read newspapers,you should use that specific thing newspaperstoreplace the default objectbook - sh ().

Certain verbsmust have an objectfollowing it, orelse a defaultobject willautomatically

be assigned.

Verb (English)

To read

Verb (Chinese)

kn sh

(read + book)

kn

English

I like to read.

I like to readbooks.

I like to readnewspapers.

I like to readnovels.

Pinyin

w x hun knsh

w x hun knsh

w x hun knbo zh

w x hun knxio shu

Chinese


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The following table covers some of the most common verb + default objectverbs.

Verb English

To sing

Verbs Chinese

chn

(sing + song)

chn

English

I like to sing.

I like to singChinese songs.

Pinyin

w x hunchn

w x hunchnzhnwn

Chinese

To eat

ch fn

(eat + meal)

ch

I like to eat.

Whatdo youwant to eat?

w x hun chfn

n xin chshn me

To drive

ki ch

(drive + car)

ki()

I driveto workeveryday.

What car doyou drive?

(lit. You drive

what car?)

w mi tinki chshnbn

n kishn mech


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Verb English

To run

Verbs Chinese

po b

(run + step)

po

English

I like to run( jog) in themorning.

I like to runmarathon.

Pinyin

w x hunzo shngpo b

w x hun pomarathon

Chinese

marathon marathon

To treat

qn k

(treat + guest)

qn()

My treat today.(lit. Today Itreat.)

I like to treatfriends tomeals.

jn tin wqn k

w x hunqnpnyou ch fn

To dance

tio w

(dance +dance)

tio

Can I invite youto dance?(lit. I can inviteyou to dancema?)

Can you dance

Cha Cha?

w k y qnn tio wma

n hu tioCha Cha ma

Cha Cha Cha Cha


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Verb English

To speak

(To talk)

Verbs Chinese

shu hu

(speak + remarks)

shu()

English

She likes totalk(speak).

I can speakChinese.

Pinyin

t x hunshu hu

w hu shuzhn wn

Chinese

To cook

zu fn

(cook + rice)

zu

Do you cookoften?(You oftencookma?)

Can you cook

Italian food?

n chn chnzu fnma

n hu zuy dl ci ma



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Mistake #8 Forgetting to insert de () in betweenadjectives and nouns

In English, you can use the same word prettyfor both Shes prettyand Shes a pretty girland nothing needs to change for the

word pretty.

But in Chinese, to use an adjective that containsmore than one syllable to describe a noun,you have to insert de () in between theadjective and the noun. Why? I dont know. Justmemorize this rule! :)

de () needs

to go between anadjective withmore than onesyllable andthe noun.

English

Shes pretty.

Pretty girl

This movie is interesting.

Interesting movie

This cat is cute.

Cute cat

Pinyin

t hn pio lin

pio ling den hi

zh e din yn hn yuy si

yu y si dedin yn

zh zh mo hn k i.

k i de mo

Chinese characters

English

Male student

Hot soup

Small house

Good person

Pinyin

nn xu shn

r tn

xio fn zi

ho rn

Chinese

/

/

However, for adjectives that only contain one character (syllable), you don t need toinsert de ().


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23/30

Mistake #9 Using le () to indicate past tensefor all verbs

The following table summarizes how to indicate past tense for adjectival verbs,stative verbs, and action verbs.

She wasbeautiful.(lit. She beforebeautiful.)

t y qinhn pio lian

English Pinyin ChineseAdjectival verbs Adding a past time marker previously or before

Early

Late

Tall/high

Big

Small

zo

wn

go

d

xio

To understand

To feel(physical oremotional)

To love

To want

To want to(do something)

mng bi

gn ju

i

yo

xing

To go

To sleep

To return to

To buy

To say

q

shu (jio)

hu

mi

shu

English

Good

Pretty

Handsome

Adorable

Smart

Pinyin

ho

pio liang

shui

k i

cng mng

English

To be

To have

To like

To think /to feel(expressing anopinion)

To know

Pinyin

sh

yu

x hun

ju de

zh do

English

To read

To watch

To cook

To dance

To sing

Pinyin

kn (sh)

kn

zu (fn)

tio (w)

chng (g)

Adjectival Verbs(functioning as verbs inChinese)

Stative Verbs(showing a state, not an

action, the way things ARE)

Action Verbs(relating to a processinstead of a state)

The following is a table of common adjectival verbs, stative verbs, andaction verbs.


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Mistake #9 Using le () to indicate past tensefor all verbs

If a stative verb or adjectival verb is followed by le (),the meaning ischange of statusor new situationrather than completeness of an action.

She is no longer beautiful.

I am tired now.(lit. I tired le)

t b pio lian le

w li le

English Pinyin Chinese

Adjectival verbs

I dont love you anymore.

She is a mother now.(lit. She is mother le.)

Now I understand.(lit. I understand le.)

w b i n le

t sh m ma le

w mn bi le

Stative verbs

I hadlots of money.(lit. I beforehave lots ofmoney.)

w y qin yu hn duqin

I atethree hamburgers.

He wenthome.

I boughtlots of stuff.

w ch le sn e hn bobo

t hu ji le

w mi lehn dudn xi

Action verbs Adding le

Mary wasJohns girlfriend.(lit. Mary beforeis Johnsgirlfriend.)

I wasa teacher before.(lit. I befoream teacher.)

Mary y qinsh John de npn you

w y qinsh lo sh

MaryJohn

Stative verbs Adding a past time marker previously or before


25/30

Mistake #10Putting time and location at thewrong place

When it comes to simple Chinese sentences,such as I love you and You love me,the wordorder of a simple Chinese sentence is the same

as English.

You can simply translate the sentence word byword from English to Chinese and youll thenget the right Chinese sentence.

However, if a sentence has different elementssuch as when, where and how the actionhappens, you need to apply the Golden Rule ofChinese Word Order as follows:

When a sentence

addresses when,where, or howan action happens,the Golden Rule ofChinese Word Orderapplies.

Examples:

The following two sentences show the right sequence of a complicated Chinese

sentence. Both of them are correct. Now memorize them!

Subject When the actiontakes place

Wherethe actiontakes place

Howthe actiontakes place

Action+ + + +

SubjectWhen the action

takes place

Wherethe action

takes place

Howthe action

takes placeAction+ + + +


takes place

Wherethe action

takes place

Howthe action



takes place

Wherethe action

takes place

Howthe action


OR

wI

wI

mn tin

tomorrow

mn tin

Tomorrow

zi xu xio at school

zi xu xio at school

h Mary y q Mary Mary

with Mary

h Mary y q Mary Mary

with Mary

xu zhn wn study Chinese.

xu zhn wn study Chinese.


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Mistake #10Putting time and location at thewrong place

Note: Among time phrases or location phrases themselves, remember this:Think of Chinese as moving the focus from BIG TO SMALL.

Time:Year, month, week, day, part of the day (morning, afternoon, evening), oclock.Location:country, province (state), city, street, building, apartment

Examples:

I get up at 7:00am everyday.

See you at 9:00 pm next Thursday.

I studied Chinese in China for two years.

I am going go to China tomorrow.

Q: Where do you come from?

A: I come from China.

Q: How do you go to work?

A: I go to work by subway.

Q: Where do you work?

A: I work at IBM.

I everyday morning 7:00 get up.(7am everyday is WHEN the action takes place, so it

should go before the action get up. Among timing phrases,

the sequence is that big time comes rst, followed by

smaller time.)

Next Thursday evening 9:00 see you.(Big time rst, followed by smaller time.)

I in China studied Chinese for two years.(Two years here is the duration of the action, not when the

action TAKES PLACE.)

I tomorrow am going to China/

Tomorrow I am going to China(China here is the destination of the action, not where the

action TAKES PLACE, so go to China should be considered

as the action.)

You from where come?(Questions and answers should follow the same word order

and they mirror each other. See the answer abovefor mirroring.)

I from China come.(From China is HOW the action takes place.)

You how go to work?(Questions and answers should follow the same word order

and they mirror each other. See the answer above

for mirroring.)

I by subway go to work.(by subway is HOW the action takes place. It should go

before go to work.)

You where work?(Questions and answers should follow the same word orderand they mirror each other. See the answer above

for mirroring.)

I at IBM work.(at IBM is WHERE the action takes place. It should go

before work).

English Chinglish


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Yangyang Chengis the founder and on-camera

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