文法b

目的︱全字︱聲母︱韻母︱聲調

句子 ︱文法a ︱文

我也不會英文，請你不要問我，你去問張先生吧。

I don't know English either, so please do not ask me. Go ask Mr. Cheung. Note 1: The base pattern of the first sentence part is Ａ也不會Ｂwhere Ｂis something that Ａ is also unable to do. Though 也 can probably be interpreted in different ways, without greater context this appears to be the most appropriate interpretation. Note 2: The base pattern of the second sentence part 請Ｂ吧, where Ｂis something that the speaker asks the listener to do -- namely, that the listener not ask the speaker, but rather go and ask Mr. Cheung. Thus, the construction 請Ｂ吧 appears to be that of a suggestive command. Note 3: How to translate 要 in this context is problematic. Treating it as a modal verb meaning to want or ask is redundant. Perhaps it is better to think of 要問 as a double character that means 問.

方太太喜歡在吃飯的時候說話，所以吃一次飯要兩小時。

Mrs. Fung likes to talk while she is eating. As a result one meal takes two hours. Note 1: The base pattern of this sentence is Ａ喜歡Ｂ，所以Ｃ要Ｄ, where Ｃ requires Ｄ, because Ａenjoys doing Ｂ. Of course Ｃ要Ｄ in this context has a far more idiomatic meaning to spend time. Note 2: The expression 吃一次飯要兩小時 is of the form Ａ一次要Ｂ小時 where Ａ is an activity that performed once takes Ｂhours to complete. Important to note hear is the separability of 吃 and 飯 to make room for the adverbial modifier 一次. Under other circumstances they are written together as 吃飯. Note 3: The phrase 在吃飯的時候 is of particular interest because 在 is used in combination with an activity 吃飯 in order to indicate a special time Ｅ的時候. In other words it is while eating 在吃飯的時候 that Mrs. Fong likes to talk 方太太喜歡說話.

酒家裡有好幾個很高的美國人吃中國菜，喝英國酒。

Inside the restaurant there are quite a few very tall USAmericans eating Chinese food and drinking English wine. Note 1: The base pattern is 有ＡＢ，Ｃ where Ｂand Ｃ are activities performed by Ａ. In this case Ａare 好幾個很高的美國人 who are eating Chinese food 吃中國菜 and drinking English wine 喝英國酒. Note 2: The phrase 好幾 is used in conjunction with the counter for people 個 to describe the number of people 人. It is of the base pattern 好幾 + counter + noun. Also important to note is that it occurs before the adjective phrase 很高的 used to describe 美國人. This is different from Japanese in which the adjective phrase is often placed before a definitive noun. Note 3: The adverb of location 酒家裡 is placed before the verb 有 and appears to form another base pattern -- namely, Ｂ裡有Ａ, where Ｂ is the place where there are Ａ. The absence of 在 is noteworthy. Note 4: Once again, 酒 probably indicates a much broader category of alcoholic beverages than wine, but what English speaker would say "drinking English alcoholic beverages" or "drinking alcohol"?

請他們再等半點鐘，我一寫完信就來。

Please have them wait another half an hour. Once I have finished this letter, I will come. Note 1: The base pattern for this sentence is 請Ａ再Ｂ，我一Ｃ就Ｄ. In other words, please have Ａcontinue to do Ｂ, until I have performed Ｃ and can do Ｄ. Note 2: The phrase Ａ再Ｂmust be treated together as it is what the speaker would have Ａdo again, if he were to ask them directly. In this case the speaker wants that 他們 wait another half an hour 再等半點鐘. Note 3: The phrase 我一寫完信就來 contains the special phrasing pattern 一Ｃ就 Ｄ which means that Ｄ follows Ｃ as soon as Ｄ has occurred. In this case Ｃis the completion of a letter 寫完信 and Ｄ is my coming 我來. 我 is the understood subject of the second verb. One might wonder why 了 is not used in place of 完.

張太太請我跟她去買書，我不想去，你可以告訴她嗎﹖

Mrs Cheung asked me to go with her to buy a book, but I cannot go. Could you please tell her? Note 1: The base pattern Ａ請我跟Ａ去Ｂ，我不想去. In other words Ａhas asked the speaker 我 to go with Ａ and do Ｂ, but Ａ has no intention to do so. Ａ is replaced by the pronoun 她 in the second instance. Ａ wants to go and buy books -- namely, 去買書. Note 2: The base pattern of the second phrase is Ａ可以Ｂ嗎 where the speaker asks Ａ if he could perform Ｂ. In this case Ｂ means telling Mrs. Cheung on the speaker's behalf that the speaker will not be going -- 告訴她. What is to be told is understood. The phrase 可以 indicates permission, rather than ability. Also, notice that the person to be told is the direct object of the telling.

他唱的歌真好聽，明天他再來的時候，我請他再唱。

The songs she sings really sound good. Tomorrow when she returns, I will ask her to sing again. Note 1: The base pattern of the first phrase is Ａ的Ｂ真好Ｃ. Where Ｂare songs 歌 sung 唱 by someone 他,who is male and will return on the following day 明天他再來. The songs he sings are really good 真好聽. The word 真 is used as an adverb to describe the predicate adjective 好聽, which means good to hear. Ａ的 tells whose songs -- namely, the ones that he sings 他唱的. Note 2: The base patterns for the second phrase is 明天Ｄ的時候Ａ請Ｂ再Ｃ where Ｃis what Ａwill ask Ｂ to do again tomorrow at time Ｄ. Once again, the temporal adverbs are listed before the subject in order of greater to lesser specificity.

我的新表現在是四時五十分，是不是慢了一點兒﹖

My new watch says it is 4:50. Isn't it a little slow? Note 1: Either the phrase 表是四時五十分 is idiomatic and the base pattern is Ａ是Ｂ，是不是Ｃ, or the base pattern is more complex and the punctuation provided poor. Obviously a watch 表 is not the time it tells. 現在 (the present) is obviously a vague time that can be logically represented by the specific time 四時五十分. If this is the proper interpretation than a more proper base pattern would seem to be Ａ，現在是Ｂ，是不是Ｃ了, where Ａis the watch that has become Ｃ, and 現在 is the time which the watch indicates as 四時五十分. This latter interpretation is very Japanese in so far as 我的新表 serves as both a subject and introductory topic phrase for what follows. Note 2: The construction 慢了 appears very standard and is of the form Ａ了where Ａis an adjective describing a condition that is now but was not before. Note 3: 一點兒 probably is idiomatic for "a little bit". It follows the pattern 一Ａ兒, as in the expressions 一塊兒 and 一會兒.

我生日的時候，他送給我一個大鐘，可是不好看。

On my birthday he gave me a large clock, but it is not very handsome. Note 1: The base pattern of the first phrase is Ｃ，Ａ送給ＢＤwhere Ｃ is the time at which Ａpresented Ｄ to Ｂ. As Ｃ is quite long and the construction 他我... grammatically somewhat awkward, setting the phrase 我生日的時候 apart with a comma is probably wise. Note 2: The second base pattern is of the form （Ａ）可是不Ｂ, where Ｂis a predicate adjective describing the understood subject 一個大鐘. Notice that the direct object of the first clause, becomes the understood subject of the second clause. This dual grammatical use of single nouns is quite common in Cantonese.

每次我聽見高先生唱歌，就知道他喝了很多酒。

Each time I hear Mr. Goh singing, already I know that he has drunk alot. Note 1: The base pattern of this sentence is 每次ＡＢ，就Ｃ where Ｂ is something that Ａ does, that results inＣ. In this case 我 hears Mr. Goh singing 聽見高先生唱歌, and as a result 我 knows 知道 that Mr. Goh has been drinking 他喝了很多酒. The subject 我 of the second phrase is understood. Note 2: 每次 indicates each or every time. This is another case where a temporal adverb is placed in front of the subject as a means to introduce the sentence and probably place emphasis on the frequency of hearing by the speaker. Note 3: 聽見 is a curious way to express the notion of hearing, as what one hears is always followed by what one sees. It may be that hearing differs from listening in so far as one looks to see after one has heard, but when listening one has already seen or at least knows the source of what one hears. The pattern Ａ聽見ＢＣ, where 聽見is an action taken by Ａ with regard to Ｂdoing Ｃ, is quite common. In this case 我 hears 高先生 singing songs 唱歌. Note 4: The verb phrase 喝了很多酒 is in the past tense indicating that the drinking comes before the singing. That the past tense marker comes after the verb but before the direct object shows that the verb phrase 喝酒 is separable.

我喜歡坐船，不喜歡坐火車，可是坐船很慢，火車快些。

I like riding on boats, but not in trains. Nevertheless, boats are very slow, and trains are faster. Note 1: The base pattern is very simple Ａ，可是Ｂ, where Ａ is what 我 likes and does not like, and Ｂis the disadvantage and advantage of each respectively. In this case 我 likes to ride boats 坐 and does not like riding trains 坐火車, but boats are very slow 坐船很慢 and trains are faster 快些.

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