Jump to content
Chinese-Forums
  • Sign Up

Signese

  • entries
    357
  • comments
    1436
  • views
    1522019

Contributors to this blog

  • roddy 143
  • anonymoose 85
  • skylee 61
  • mungouk 11
  • abcdefg 10
  • StChris 8
  • Publius 8
  • Tomsima 6
  • jbradfor 5
  • ChTTay 4
  • xiaocai 4
  • somethingfunny 4
  • stapler 2
  • DrWatson 2
  • Flying Pigeon 2
  • js6426 1
  • murrayjames 1

Signs taken at hometown


xiaocai

1760 views

Now enjoying my 1 month break back to where I grew up, there are some pictures that I would like to share. Many things have changed, but sadly, some of those which need changes desperately may have not. I was surprised to see signs like what I took in the first picture (file 001.jpg) through out my trip. Hopefully I will see much less of this kind in the future. Well, question time:

1: What kind of message the first sign is trying to convey?

2: Can you think of one 成语 or 四字俗语 which is related to this sign?

To relax a bit after the somewhat heavy topic, please take a look at the second sign (file 002.jpg), and try to answer these simple questions:

1: I can think of at least two ways to interpret the sign, how about you?

2: There is a joke related to this sign, can you find it?

16 Comments


Recommended Comments

Outofin

Posted

The questions about the 2nd sign are too hard to me.

1 month break, how nice! How many public holidays and paid vacation days do you have in a typical HK company?

skylee

Posted

HK? Typical length of annual leave in HK ranges from 7 days (legal minimum) to 12/14 days, depending on the package. Usually you get more paid leave when you rise higher. In HK, there are 17 public holidays per year, not counting 52 sundays.

Why did you ask about HK?

xiaocai

Posted

Well I work for a small private firm so what I did was just working for one whole year non-stop (apart from a few short breaks and public holidays) and taking all my leave of the whole year at once... Not so much after all of you compare mine to many others here. As for non-paid leave, I can ask for as long as I want if the boss is happy! :P But my company is not based in HK. :)

creamyhorror

Posted

Sign 1:

重男轻女? 女生外向? 女婴勿弃? :P

Sign 2:

"Slide carefully," which is funny.

Outofin

Posted

Oh I thought the post was from skylee. Since when xiaocai has joined the blog too? Sign me up please!

HK has so many holidays. You guys celebrate both Chinese and Western holidays.

jbradfor

Posted

Sign 1:

Women hold up half the sky. [bTW, what's the original in Chinese?]

Sign 2:

My two readings were "careful, the floor is slippery" (what I presume is the intended meaning) and "careful, the floor goes gliding / skiing" (is that a valid reading?).

Since when xiaocai has joined the blog too? Sign me up please!

Just send a PM to roddy, and promise to buy him a sixpack some day.

skylee

Posted

haha, I have no hometown in China to return to. My hometown is HK.

889

Posted

【BTW, what's the original in Chinese?】

妇女能顶半边天。 It's by Mao.

Glenn

Posted

I was thinking 男尊女卑 for the first one. It's sad that there's a need for that sign anywhere.

889

Posted

There's also 重男轻女.

Glenn

Posted

creamyhorror said that one too. I guess that's probably what xiaocai was going for.

889

Posted

Forgot what was under that spoiler. Sorry.

Glenn

Posted

Haha, it happens. So I guess it just did its job! :D

xiaocai

Posted

It was meant to be an "open" question since the answer is obviously more than one because of the long history of this discrimination type in China. All of you have got the idea as I can see so far. I'm very grateful that my parents and grandparents treated all the kids equally in the family even though we all grew up in countryside, or my life now might have been completely different.

As for the second one, I think I have seen the answer I was expecting.

xiao3 xin1 de hua2 vs. xiao3 xin1 di4 hua2

But it can be an open question too. If you have any other way to read it, please do not be hesitate to share with us.

abcdefg

Posted

The second sign is one I see many places just cautioning people. I don't think it is intended as a pun at all.

jbradfor

Posted

I don't think anyone was saying it was intended as a pun. More a question about whether it is ambiguous, similar to signs in English such as "Slow children at play" or "runaway truck ramp" or "giant sofa sale".

×
×
  • Create New...