We will learn some simple phrases about why it’s important to reduce the use of plastic, especially single-use plastics – because it’s my birthday today!

(Because I did not refer to a textbook for this, please forgive me if there are any mistakes!)

 

 

Lesson 5 ບົດຮຽນທີ5

 

 

ເປັນຫຍັງເຮົາຈໍາເປັນຕ້ອງຫຼຸດໃຊ້ພາລາສຕິກ?

 

我们为什么需要减少使用塑料？ Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	我们 Wo3 men2	为什么 Wei4 she1 me4	需要 Xu1 yao4	减少 Jian2 shao1	使用 Shi3 yong4	塑料 Su4 liao4
English	We / us	Why	Must / need	Reduce	Using	Plastic
	ເຮົາ	ເປັນຫຍັງ	ຈໍາເປັນຕ້ອງ	ໃຊ້	ໃຊ້	ພາລາສຕິກ

 

 

ເພາະວ່າຂີ້ເຫຍື້ອພາລາສຕິກສາມາດສົ່ງຜົນກະທົບຕໍ່ສັດໄດ້

 

因为塑料垃圾会影响动物Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	因为 Yin1 wei4	塑料 Su4 liao4	垃圾 La1 ji1	会 Hui4	影响 Ying3 xiang3	动物 Dong4 wu4
English	Because	Plastic	Rubbish / litter	Is able to	Affect (to)	Animals
	ເພາະວ່າ	ພາລາສຕິກ	ຂີ້ເຫຍື້ອ	ສາມາດ…ໄດ້	ສົ່ງຜົນກະທົບຕໍ່	ສັດ

 

 

ເພາະວ່າການຈູດພາລາສຕິກ ສາມາດກໍ່ໃຫ້ເກີດສານທ໋ອກຊິນ ທີ່ຢູ່ໃນແວດລ້ອມເປັຍເວລາຍາວນານ; ສານທ໋ອກຊິນສາມາດເຮັດໃຫ້ເກີດມະເລັ່ງໄດ້.

 

因为燃烧塑料会释放毒素 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	因为 Yin1 wei4	燃烧 Ran2 shao1	塑料 Su4 liao4	会 Hui4	释放 Shi4 fang4	毒素 Du2 su4
English	Because	Burning	Plastic	Is able to	Release	Toxins
	ເພາະວ່າ	ການຈູດ	ພາລາສຕິກ	ສາມາດ	ກໍ່ໃຫ້ເກີດ	ສານທ໋ອກຊິນ

 

这些毒素会长时间留在环境中 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	这些 zhe4 xie1	毒素 du2 su4	会 hui4	长 chang2	时间 shi2 jian1	留 liu2	在 zai4	环境 huan2 jing4	中 zhong1
English	These	Toxins	Will	Long	Time / duration	Stay	At	Environment	middle of the, within
				ເປັຍເວລາຍາວນານ			ຢູ່	ແວດລ້ອມ	ໃນ

 

而且可以导致癌症 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	而且 Er2 qie3	可以 Ke3 yi3	导致 Dao3 zhi4	癌症 Ai2 zheng4
English	And / Moreover	Can	Lead to / result in / cause	Cancer
		ສາມາດ…ໄດ້	ເຮັດໃຫ້	ເກີດມະເລັ່ງ

 

 

 

ເພາະວ່າພາລາສຕິກໃຊ້ເວລາດົນໃນການຍ່ອຍສະລາຍ, ຊຶ່ງມັນບໍ່ເປັນຜົນດີຕໍ່ກັບທໍາມະຊາດເລີຍ

 

因为塑料需要很长时间才能降解Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	因为 Yin1 wei4	塑料 Hen2	需要 Hao3	很 Xie4 xie4	长 Ni3	时间 Ne1	才 cai2	能 Neng2	降解 Jiang4 jie3
English	Because	Plastic	Need	Very	Long	Time / duration	Then	Able to / can	Biodegrade
	ເພາະວ່າ	ພາລາສຕິກ			ດົນ	ເວລາ			ການຍ່ອຍສະລາຍ

 

 

因此对大自然不好Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	因此 Yin1 ci3	对 Dui4	大自然 Da4 zi4 ran2	不 Bu4	好 Hao3
English	Therefore	To (someone, something)	Nature	No, not	Good
	ຊຶ່ງມັນ	ຕໍ່ກັບທໍາ	ທໍາມະຊາດ	ບໍ່ເປັນຜົນດີ

 

Today’s lesson will cover some useful phrases that you can use if you meet a friend after many days of not seeing him/her, because of self-imposed social distancing or because of a lockdown.

 

 

Lesson 4 ບົດຮຽນທີ4

 

 

ສະບາຍດີ

 

你好！ Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	你 Ni3	好 Hao3
English	You	Good
	ສະບາຍດີ

Recall from previous lessons: how do you say ສະບາຍດີ in Chinese to an older person?

 

 

ບໍ່ໄດ້ພົບດົນນານແລ້ວ ຄິດຮອດເຈົ້າຫຼາຍ

 

好久没见面了，很想念你。Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	好久 Hao3 jiu3	没 Mei2	见面 Jian4 mian4	了 Le4	很 Hen2	想念 Xiang3 nian4	你 Ni3
English	Very long	Did not	Meet	Already	Very	Miss	You
	ດົນນານ	ບໍ່ໄດ້	ພົບ	ແລ້ວ	ຫຼາຍ	ຄິດຮອດ	ເຈົ້າ

For “好久” (hao3 jiu3), it can be broken up into its two words to understand its meaning better. “好” (hao3) means ‘good’, whereas “久” (jiu3) means ‘a long time’. So, literally the meaning of “好久” (hao3 jiu3) is ‘a good length of time’. You can also achieve the same meaning by saying “很久” (hen2 jiu3) which also means ‘very long time’ Listen here:

 

 

ຫວ່າງມໍ່ນີ້, ເຈົ້າສະບາຍດີບໍ່?

 

近来，你的身体好吗？  Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	近来 Jin4 lai2	你的 Ni3 de4	身体 Shen1 ti3	好 Hao3	吗 Ma1
English	Of late / recently	Your	Body	Good	(normally used at the end of a yes-or-no question)
	ຫວ່າງມໍ່ນີ້	ເຈົ້າ	ສະບາຍດີ		ບໍ່

 

 

ດີຫຼາຍ, ຂອບໃຈ. ເຈົ້າເດ?

 

 很好，谢谢。你呢？Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	很 Hen2	好 Hao3	谢谢 Xie4 xie4	你 Ni3	呢 Ne1
English	Very	Good	Thanks	You	(used to express the meaning of ‘what about?’)
	ຫຼາຍ	ດີ	ຂອບໃຈ	ເຈົ້າ	ເດ

 

 

ດີຄືກັດ, ຂອບໃຈ.

 

同样好，谢谢。Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	同 Tong2	样 Yang4	好 Hao3	谢谢 Xie4 xie4
English	Of the same	Type / form / category	Good	Thanks
	ຄືກັດ		ດີ	ຂອບໃຈ

 

 

ຮັບສາສູຂະພາບດີດີເນີ.

 

多多保重Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	多 Duo1	多 Duo1	保重 Bao3 zhong4
English	Many	Many	Take care

 

 

ພົບກັນໃໝ່

 

再见Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	再 Zai4	见 Jian4
English	Again	See / meet
		ພົບກັນໃ

 

 

 

Question: In your opinion, which of the above Chinese phrases is the most useful during this period?

 

Feedback needed: what do you want to learn next? How can these lessons be improved?

The weather is Laos has become warmer and we are hoping for some good rain when the rainy season arrives. So, for this lesson, we will learn some words about the weather.

 

Lesson ບົດຮຽນທີ3

 

 

ມື້ນີ້ອາກາດດີຫຼາຍ

 

今天天气很好 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	今天 Jin1 tian1	天气 Tian1 qi4	很好 Hen2 Hao3
English	Today ມື້ນີ້	Weather ອາກາດ	Very good ດີຫຼາຍ

 

 

 

ມື້ນີ້ອາກາດເອົ້າຮ້ອນ，ເບິ່ງຄືວ່າຝົນຊິຕົກ

 

今天天气闷热，看来会下雨 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	今天 Jin1 tian1	天气 Tian1 qi4	闷热 Men1 re4	看来 Kan4 lai2	会 Hui4	下雨 Xia4 yu3
English	Today ມື້ນີ້	Weather ອາກາດ	Hot (in the sense of hot and humid) ເອົ້າຮ້ອນ	Looks like ເບິ່ງຄືວ່າ	Will ຊິ	Rain ຝົນຊິຕົກ

 

 

 

ເມື່ອກີ້ນີ້ຝົນຕົກ ແຕ່ວ່າດຽວນີ້ຝົນເຊົາແລ້ວ

 

刚才下雨， 但是现在雨停了 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	刚才 Gang1 cai2	下雨 Xia4 yu3	但是 Dan4 shi4	现在 Xian4 zai4	雨 Yu3	停 Ting2	了 Le4
English	Just now ເມື່ອກີ້ນີ້	Rained ຝົນຕົກ	But ແຕ່ວ່າ	Now ດຽວນີ້	Rain ຝົນ	Stop ເຊົາ	Already ແລ້ວ

 

 

ມື້ອື່ນ ອາກາດເປັນແນວໃດ?

 

 明天天气怎么样？Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	明天 Ming2 tian1	天气 Tian1 qi4	怎么 Zhe1 me4	样 Yang4
English	Tomorrow	Weather	How / in what way	Type / form / category
	ມື້ອື່ນ	ອາກາດ	ເປັນແນວໃດ

 

 

ບໍ່ໜາວປານໃດ ແຕ່ວ່າມີລົມ

 

不太冷，但是有风 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	不 Bu4	太 Tai4	冷 Leng3	但是 Dan4 shi4	有 You3	风 Feng1
English	Not / no ບໍ່	Too ປານໃດ	Cold ໜາວ	But ແຕ່ວ່າ	Have ມີ	Wind ລົມ

 

 

 

ປີນີ້ຮ້ອນກວ່າປີກາຍ

 

今年比去年热Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	今年 Jin1 nian2	比 Bi3	去年 Qu4 nian2	热 Re4
English	This year ປີນີ້	(Comparison word) ກວ່າ	Last year ປີກາຍ	Hot ຮ້ອນ

 

 

 

ຢູ່ລາວ ຕະຫຼອດປີແບ່ງເປັນ 3 ລະດູຄື: ລະດູຝົນ ລະດູແລ້ງ ແລະ ລະດູໜາວ

 

在老挝，全年分为三个季节： 雨季，旱季和冬季Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	在 Zai4	老挝 Lao3 wo1	全年 Quan2 nian2	分为 Fen1 wei2	三 San1	个 Ge4	季节 Ji4 jie2	雨季 Yu3 ji4	旱季 Han4 ji4	和 He2	冬季 Dong1 ji4
English	At	Laos	The whole year	Divide into	3	(counter)	Season	Rainy season	Dry season	and	Winter
	ຢູ່	ລາວ	ຕະຫຼອດປີ	ແບ່ງເປັນ			ລະດູ	ລະດູຝົນ	ລະດູແລ້ງ	ແລະ	ລະດູໜາວ

 

 

Test your understanding: how do you say “Tomorrow the weather will be very good” in Chinese?

Today we will be learning how to say good wishes and say thanks, because the Lao New Year is about 2 weeks away. (Hopefully, the covid-19 situation will improve by then! )

 

Lesson

 

ສະບາຍດີປີໃໝ່ can be said in Chinese in 2 ways.

 

新年好 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	新 Xin1	年 Nian2	好 Hao3
English	New	Year	Good

 

Or 新年快乐 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	新 Xin1	年 Nian2	快乐 Kuai4 le4
English	New	Year	Joyful / happy

 

 

ຂໍໃຫ້ທ່ານຈົ່ງໄດ້ຮັບຜົນສຳເລັດ

 

祝您成功 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	祝 Zhu4	您 Nin2	成功 Cheng2 gong1
English	Wish	You (respectful)	Successful

The second word, “您”, is a respectful way of saying in English “you”. If you recall from the last lesson, English “you” is “你” (ni3). The word gains its respectful form from the addition of the word “心” (xin1) – which means “heart” – at the bottom:

你 + 心 –> 您

 

 

ຂໍອວຍພອນໃຫ້ທ່ານຈົ່ງມີໂຊກດີ

 

祝您好运 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	祝 Zhu4	您 Nin2	好运 Hao3 yun4
English	Wish	You (respectful)	Good luck

In Laos, people normally only say “ໂຊກດີ” to each other, as the shorter form of the sentence. Likewise in English, you can only say “Good luck” instead of “Wish you [have] good luck”. However, in Chinese, it will be very strange to only say “好运” (hao3 yun4)! You should say the full sentence “祝您好运” (zhu4 nin2 hao3 yun4) (or “祝你好运” (zhu4 ni3 hao3 yun4) if you do not need to use the respectful for of the English “you”).

 

 

ຂໍອວຍພອນໃຫ້ທ່ານຈົ່ງມີສຸຂະພາບແຂງແຮງ

 

祝您健康 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	祝 Zhu4	您 Nin2	健康 Jian4 kang1
English	Wish	You (respectful)	Healthy / health

 

Or you can also say 祝您身体健康 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	祝 Zhu4	您 Nin2	身体 Shen1 ti3	健康 Jian4 kang1
English	Wish	You (respectful)	Body	Healthy / health

 

 

ຂອບໃຈນຳທ່ານທີ່ໄດ້ຊວຍເຫລືອ

 

感谢您的帮助 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	感谢 Gan3 xie4	您的 nin2 de4	帮助 Bang1 zhu4
English	Grateful (for)	Your	Assistance

 

Or, you can say 谢谢您的帮助 Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	谢谢 xie4 xie4	您的 nin2 de4	帮助 Bang1 zhu4
English	Thanks (for)	Your	Assistance

 

 

 

Now that we have learnt these, here is a question for you to test your learning: How do you say “Thank you” in Chinese to a close friend?

 

 

This is a first of a series of short Chinese lessons. Its purpose is to help my Lao friends better understand the language of their northern neighbour, and is suitable for Lao people who already have a good command of English. (Sorry, my Lao language is not good enough yet!) Please note that I am a Singaporean Chinese, so my pronunciation and teaching methods reflect what I have been exposed to in Singapore.

 

Understanding how to learn Chinese

 

1. Chinese (Mandarin) is a tonal language with 4 tones. Listen here:

    

In this series, we will use hanyu pinyin to help with the learning here. For simplicity, the tone will be denoted by the corresponding number after the phoneticized spelling of the word. For example:

 

Bu1:

Bu2:

Bu3:

Bu4:

 

2. Written Chinese is a pictorial language, not a phonetic one. Knowing this will help you to remember the written Chinese words and their meanings better. For example:

(Source: http://www.shenzhenparty.com/chinese-culture/photos/interesting-chinese-characters)

 

Lesson

Since the thing on our minds now is covid-19, let’s start with 6 relevant phrases:

 

ຂ້ອຍຮູ້ສຶກບໍ່ສະບາຍ.

我觉得不舒服。 Listen here:

ChineseHanyu pinyin	我 wo3	觉得 Jue2 de2	不 Bu4	舒服 Shu1 fu2
English	I	feel	not / no	well / comfortable

 

 

ເຈົ້າຮູ້ສຶກບ່ອນໃດບໍ່ສະບາຍ?

你觉得哪里不舒服？Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	你 Ni3	觉得 Jue2 de2	哪里 Na2 Li3	不 Bu4	舒服 Shu1 fu2
English	You	Feel	Where	not / no	well / comfortable

 

 

ຂ້ອຍຮູ້ສຶກເຈັບຫົວ, ໄອ ແລະ ປວດຄີງທັງຕົວ.

我觉得头痛，咳嗽 和 浑身酸痛。Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	我 Wo3	觉得 Jue2 de2	头痛 Tou2 tong4	咳嗽 Ke2 sou4	和 He2	浑身 Hun2 shen1	酸痛 Suan1 tong4
English	I	Feel	headache	Cough	and	Whole body	In pain (achy)

• 痛 (tong4) = pain Listen here:

 

 

 

ຂ້ອຍພາເຈົາໄປໂຮງໝໍກວດເບິ່ງ.

我带你到医院去检查一下。Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	我 Wo3	带 Dai4	你 Ni3	到 Dao4	医院 Yi1 yuan4	去 Qu4	检查jian3 cha2	一下 Yi1 xia4
English	I	Bring / take	you	To	hospital	To go to / for	check	For a little while / for a bit

 

 

ວັດອຸນຫະພູມຮ່າງກາຍເບິ່ງໄຂ້ຮ້ອນຫລືບໍ່.

量一下体温，看看有没有发烧。Listen here：

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	量 Liang2	一下 Yi1 xia4	体温 Ti3 wen1	看看 Kan4 kan4	有 You3 (pronounced as “ຢີວ”)	没有 Mei2 you3	发烧 Fa1 shao1
English	Measure	For a little while / for a bit	Body temperature	See	have	Don’t have	Fever

 

 

ລ້າງມືແລ້ວບໍ່?

洗手了吗？Listen here:

Chinese Hanyu pinyin	洗 Xi2	手 Shou3	了 Le4	吗 Ma1
English	Wash	Hands	Already	(normally used at the end of a yes-or-no question)

 

 

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