F2F Class Notes (Nick)

Check the notes and write a short story using talk, tell, say, and speak.

Check understanding of the distinctions between talk, tell, say, and speak.

Vocabulary

Driver’s License – 驾照

Triple – three times the amount
e.g. Japanese taxis cost triple what Chinese taxis cost.

Subway – 地铁
e.g. The Japanese use the subway to go everywhere.

Nervous – 紧张

分开 – divide, separate; to break something into two ore more pieces

句子 – sentence; a single thought, usually ended with a period “.”

Chinese Character – 汉字

Grammar

I want to travel to America in next year – I want to travel to America next year

X 比 Y ___adj____ (贵) – X is more ___adj____ than Y
e.g. The Japanese subway (system) is more expensive than the Chinese subway (system)
e.g. The Chinese subway (system) is cheaper than the Japanese subway (system)
Y 没有 X ___adj____ (贵) – X is less ___adj____ than Y
e.g. The Chinese subway system is less expensive than the Japanese subway (system)
e.g. The Japanese subway system is not cheaper

The Chinese thinking way is different than in other use-English countries for language
The Chinese way of thinking is different than the way English-speakers think
— In English, we usually describe verbs. In Chinese, we usually describe nouns.

Speak vs. Say
— To  speak is to make sounds to form words
— To say is express a meaning (表示)
When you use “speak,” you don’t talk about what the person said, only that they were speaking (making sounds).
DON’T SAY: He spoke blablabla
YOU CAN SAY: He said blablabla.

Tell vs. Talk
— To tell is to give someone some information       x —-> y
e.g. He told me that I need to get up at 10 o’clock.
— To talk is to 聊天 (talk or discuss)     x <——-> y
e.g. We talked about traveling.

Pronunciation

Arabic – A – ruh – bik