"let me think"

[bluemonkey]

If you're asked a question in Chinese and you need time to think about the answer, instead of just saying 'ahhh', 'umm' or 'hmm' can you say 'let me think' instead? If so, what would the translation for this be, and how commonly would it be used?

Thanks

[yersi]

怎么說呢？ zěnme shuō ne?

That's what I use, at least.

[bluemonkey]

Ok thanks - and is this acceptable in general conversation or does it sound a little weird?

ie:

jintian ni gan shenme le?

zenme shou ne..... jintian wo kan wo de pengyoumen

would that be ok?

[yersi]

Yes, it's a very common filler phrase.

In your example I think it sounds a bit out of place, though, 我想一下 wǒ xiǎng yīxià would be better here. I usually use "zěnme shuō ne" when somebody asks me something philosophical, academical or political, for everyday stuff like what I ate for lunch I use wǒ xiǎng yīxià.

[adrianlondon]

怎么说呢 would, I think, be translated as "How can I say this ..." or "What should I say ..."

I've used (because it was in my textbook when someone was asked if they were free at the weekend) 让我想想, followed by a pause while I tried to remember what plans I had, then my answer. In my case, as in my textbook example, I was thinking about whether I had any free time in the future.

The question you've been asked is "what did you get up to today?" but I reckon my response would still work, although it would imply you forgot what you were up to rather than were trying to work out how to say it in Mandarin, which is usually why I go silent for ages when asked a simple question in China ;)

[yersi]

Yeah, sorry about that, I was replying between adding vocab to Anki and listening to NPR. I thought he was asking about filler phrases in general but now I see he was more specific about "let me think".

让我想想 and 我想一下 could both be used here, the first is closer to the original meaning of "let me think".

[bluemonkey]

Ok that's great guys thanks!

Got a speaking exam coming up pretty soon and wanted to ensure I had something to fall back on if I stumble.

[renzhe]

怎么说呢 is something I would use if I knew the answer, but didn't know how to put it, or which exact words to use. For example, if somebody asks you how you liked the movie, and you don't really want to say "It was rubbish", so you say "怎么说呢", and say something nicer instead. You can use it to voice opinions on sensitive topics like that.

让我想想 is what I'd use if I had to think about something, and was the first thing that came to mind when I read the thread title. For example, someone asks you the quickest way to get somewhere, and you really need to think about it for a bit.

[chengwenzhao]

let me see "让我想想“ is the most widely used way of express the meaning of what you mentioned.

"umhhh' "errr' is acceptable,too.But not very common.

"让我看看” .That is quite bizarre,because when you look up a dictionary in Chinese,the word"看“ (sounds like"can") actually means "watch" or "see".In fact ,it is also quite popular .

[adrianlondon]

Don't mean to pick on you chengwenzhao, especially as you're new, but please stick with pinyin if you're going to give pronunciation. It'll confuse more people than it helps otherwise.