similar words (slight difference)

[lockdoc]

During my study of Chinese, I recently came across a couple of words, which mostly translate into the same meaning (in English),

but in Chinese I cannot figure out the difference. Maybe you could tell me what is the difference or maybe they are just synonyms.

... I don' really know if it is OK, to put so many questions into one thread. I was not sure if it is better to separate each of the 8 questions into single threads or not. So please if I did it wrong tell me, so I know it for future questions ...

Verbs

(1.) to think

a) 觉得

b) 感到

c) 感觉

d) 认为

e) 以为

(2.) to understand

a) 了解

b) 理解

c) 明白 / 明白了

d) 懂

(3.) to remember

a) 记住

b) 记得

c) 记

d) 背

e) 想起来

(4.) to change

a) 变

b) 变成

c) 变化

d) 改

e) 改变

f) 转

g) 换

h) 转换

i) 转变

Noun

(5.) Idea

a) 注意

b) 意见

c) 意思

d) 想法

Prepositions

For those prepositions it seems especially hard to figure out the difference (if they even have one),

and in what occasions to use them.

(6.) after

a) 后

b) 然后

c) 后来

d) 以后

e) 之后

(7.) torwards

a) 朝

b) 往

c) 向

(8.) according to

a) 以

b) 按

c) 根据

d) 按照

[renzhe]

Uh-oh.

Threads like this are a minefield because there are subtle differences between these things, which are often difficult to illustrate on concrete examples, and depend on the context. It's also an excellent opportunity to look like an idiot after giving wrong advice. Native speakers are your best bet with these issues. It also helps to look at usage examples in context, for example on nciku.com.

Having said that, I'll give it a go, hoping to be corrected. Keep in mind that there is plenty of overlap between many of these words

a) 觉得 - think

B) 感到 - to feel or sense something (it's an event)

c) 感觉 - to feel, have an emotion

d) 认为 - to have an opinion about a topic

e) 以为 - to believe something (often used for believing things which are wrong)

a) 了解 - to understand, as in getting to know somebody and what they are like

B) 理解 - to understand somebody's feelings or position

c) 明白 / 明白了 - to figure something out, which was unclear before

d) 懂 - often used when there is some technical barrier, such as (not) understanding a language or a script, not the actual idea behind it

a) 记住 - to remember (memorize) something

B) 记得 - to remember (have memory of) something

c) 记 - remember in a general sense, not used alone often nowadays, but as a part of a phrase

d) 背 - to learn by heart (memorize by brute force)

e) 想起来 - to suddenly remember (think of) something, especially if you had trouble remembering it before. Like, somebody's name which suddenly pops into your mind

a) 变 - change, in a general sense, including turning into something else

B) 变成 - to turn into something (成 indicates completion here)

c) 变化 - the change, it's a noun

d) 改 - to alter something existing

e) 改变 - like 改

f) 转 - to turn

g) 换 - to exchange something for something else, to replace

h) 转换 - to convert

i) 转变 - to transform

a) 注意 - to pay attention, you probably mean 主意 idea. Also N.B. 主义 = ideology

B) 意见 - opinion, or it can also mean objection

c) 意思 - meaning, but beware many phrases where it means other things, like 有意思.

d) 想法 - opinion, or a way to view or approach a particular problem.

a) 后 - means "after" in general

B) 然后 - following a previous event

c) 后来 - afterwards (not directly following an event, but related to its outcome)

d) 以后 - (much) later

e) 之后 - afterwards, or (if following a phrase), after a certain event. It's a version of a)

[马盖云]

Very good advice from renzhe above! I would give one other suggestion... if you are familiar with Chinesepod (www.chinesepod.com) who happen to be based in Shanghai, they have a podcast series called "Qing Wen". This series, unlike their regular podcasts are not the usual dialog/translation format, but a panel discussion about write-in questions about grammar and vocab usage. Many of the word groups you mentioned have been discussed in past episodes. They will typically explain in detail the subtle differences between the close-but-different words and give example sentences.

[lockdoc]

Hi everybody,

thank you very much! @renzhe, very detailed, thanks for the effort, it makes a lot clearer now.

@马盖云: also thanks for this advice, I will 马上 go for it

[gato]

You might be interested in this Chinese synonym dictionary:

http://www.chinese-forums.com/index.php?/topic/30319-chinese-synonym-dictionary-study-book-%E5%95%86%E5%8A%A1%E9%A6%86%E5%AD%A6%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD%E8%BF%91%E4%B9%89%E8%AF%8D%E8%AF%8D%E5%85%B8/

Chinese Synonym Dictionary / Study Book (商务馆学汉语近义词词典)

[LucyxLucy]

I would suggest rather than studying these words that you're not sure how to use yet out of a book or dictionary, go listen to people who talk in Chinese. If you can't find people to speak Chinese with, I always recommend cartons or any kind of shows for children because they use simple language, the content is easy to understand, and there's visual to help with your learning.

Before you know it, you'll start to get this 'feeling' for what word to use in what context, and you'll just know naturally the differences between all these synonyms.

[lockdoc]

I am still trying to figure out the exact differences for "think"

I put my own examples below (I not quite sure if they are correct).

a) 我觉得/认为他是一位很好的老师。

B) 我今天感到/感觉不太好。

c) 我今天感到/感觉不太好。

d) 我觉得/认为他踢足球踢得很好。

e) 我总是以为他是中国人， 出来了他是韩国人。

I still cannot figure out the difference between a+d and b+c. Maybe someone can come up with a good example that makes it more clear.

The same for "understand" there are also 2 slightly equal terms. Can you please check if my examples are correct.

我现在了解到怎么用电脑。

我能理解他的爱情。

[renzhe]

I'd say that 觉得 means that you think that he's a good teacher, it doesn't mean that you're sure. 认为 is stronger: you are putting down your opinion.

感觉不太好 sounds odd. I'd rephrase it, like 感觉不舒服. 感到不舒服 is when you suddenly feel bad, like if something really nasty happens to you. 感觉不舒服 means that you're feeling bad. You may be feeling lousy the entire day, because you ate something bad.

我现在了解到怎么用电脑 is wrong. 了解 takes an object, either a person or a situation: 了解你 or 了解情况.

了解 is about knowing. You get to know somebody or some situation and learn to understand it. It's a process of figuring out how things are 我了解你 = I know what you're like, know you as a person. 了解情况 = get acquainted with the situation

理解 is about understanding something or somebody. 我理解你 = I can understand how you're feeling. 理解公式 = understand an equation.