The Paraphrasing/Definitions Game!

[Gharial]

When I was TEFLing in China I'd sometimes use a bit of Chinese to elicit Chinese words from my students, to show them that apparently not knowing a word shouldn't prevent them from trying to communicate the meaning (though in their case they'd be using English to elicit ultimately English words from me, or from team mates who might know 'em when doing it as a team-based competitive game*).

 

Anyway, I thought it might be fun to try something like it on the forums, as it could provide a bit of additional practice or light relief from more "serious" study.

 

Here then are two items that I came across when browsing the E-C half of the CCD3 (online version here, though unlike the CCD3 without Pinyin beyond head entries, not that these definitions have Pinyin even in the CCD3! http://dictionary.reverso.net/english-chinese/ ):

 

1) 为学习语言而住在当地人家里并提供家政服务的外国年轻人

 

2) 私人租用的， 用于种植植物或蔬菜的小片土地

 

If you think you know what the word being defined is in English (if not Chinese too**), you can simply check in the online dictionary rather than needing to get the answer here from me (though I'm happy to answer PMs, if that really becomes necessary LOL).

 

Better dictionaries for the purposes of this game however might be the E-E-C (i.e. fully "bilingualized") versions of advanced learner dictionaries like the OALD, CALD, and LDOCE. The online version of the CALD certainly has an E-C translations option: http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english-chinese-simplified/yeti

 

 

*For example, a card from a stack prepared earlier might have say 雪人 written on its underside, and the person reading the card would thus need to say something like "a big hairy man-like creature reputed to live in the Himalayas" (cf. a ?!"snowman") to elicit 雪人 and hopefully 'yeti, the abominable snowman' (bonus points if anyone in the team actually knows the specific English item!).

 

**In both cases there is no actual Chinese equivalent provided in the CCD3/Reverso E-C, only the English definition translated into Chinese, though other dictionaries may provide actual equivalent (that is, more idiomatic) Chinese terms.

[Demonic_Duck]

Got it! The answers are...

 

1) Au pair and 2) allotment

 

I'm going to write definitions myself rather than taking from a dictionary. Can answer in Chinese or English (both have cultural significance but commonly known Chinese and English ways of saying them).

 

一、情人节常送的一种花。茎有刺，花瓣茂密。陈奕迅很喜欢。

 

二、春节时期为了吉祥而放在大门两边和上面的三条长纸条，上有金或黑字。

[Gharial]

Ooh yes, hidden spoilers, that's a good idea (though I'm not quite sure how to insert 'em meself!). You'll be pleased to know you got them both right, DD!

 

As for yours, I'm pretty sure I've got the first one right , but although I understand the second definition "well enough", my mind's drawing a blank regarding the actual vocab in question. Let's leave it to others to put me out of my misery though!

[Demonic_Duck]

To insert spoiler tags:

[spoiler][/spoiler]

[Shelley]

Roses

 

New year door couplets

[Gharial]

Ah, so just like most other bb or whatever tags. I should've guessed. Thanks DD!

 

Man, I'm terrible at cultural stuff. You know those carp streamers they have in Japan for such-and-such a festival? If I were asked what they were called in Japanese (beyond koinaninani) I'd probably have to make something up and call them wobbegong wobblers or something. What a tour guide I would be LOL.

 

Similarly, I have no idea how exactly in Chinese to say the second of your items,

"New year door couplets"

, though if the Chinese is more or less the same as the English I'd certainly get the meaning easily enough.

[TheBigZaboon]

A fly in the ointment might be caused by the fact that Americans and Brits are two people separated by a common language.

 

For the original questions, the first is pretty straight-forward, although more common in Europe. But although I guessed the second one correctly too, I used another word completely. And most Americans would attach a totally different meaning to the word provided in the Duck's spoiler (with a meaning possibly something like (给军人，受赡养者或小孩的补助金 from CC in PLECO).  

 

Just my two kopecks...

 

TBZ

[Gharial]

Good point, TBZ, I didn't even think of that, what with all my reveries of farming mutant marrows on my grandparents' lil plot. What was the completely different word that you used? And does the CC-CEDICT in Pleco have C-C definitions? (I've got just the free version of Pleco, and it only has quite sparse English glosses in the CC-CEDICT sections).

[Demonic_Duck]

@Shelley: Correct! that means it's your turn to post the next ones.

For completeness, the Chinese answers are 玫瑰 and 春联.

[TheBigZaboon]

To keep the thin tissue over a spoiler, I used XXXXXXX ==> hint: New Jersey is known as the the XXXXX State on its auto license plates.

 

Also, for the second one, I think I just back-used the word the Duck provided, and to double check, I used the word for what a kid gets from his or her parents, and tracked that in PLECO.

 

If you want, I'll give up the spoiler pretense and tell you outright in the morning. I'm going to bed. 

 

Good night all...

 

TBZ

[Gharial]

春联

 

Hmm, wonder if that appears in PCR.

 

I'm loving all the hidden Spoilers in this thread. It's like discussing The Sixth Sense even after all these years with somebody who hasn't yet seen it.

[Shelley]

@Shelley: Correct! that means it's your turn to post the next ones.

 

Oh um well oh. I will try but it won't be quick

[Shelley]

Okay sorrry if they are rubbish

 

来势猛如狮，临去温和如羔羊。   当心十五号。

 

四月一号，作弄某人

 

 

[Shelley]

oh have I killed this topic?

[Gharial]

Don't worry Shelley, it wasn't much of a topic to begin with! I found your first definition or clue a bit cryptic, but I know what your second is referring to LOL.

[Demonic_Duck]

Think I know both, though I'm a bit doubtful about the first.

1st one: March 15th... The Ides of March?

2nd one: April fool

[Shelley]

Demonic_Duck you are right. I tried really hard to find a chinese translation for them, but failed. Maybe someone knows?

[Gharial]

Came across this from searching Google for '

beware the ides of march

chinese translation':

http://www.malaysia-today.net/ides-of-march-jottings/

 

There is a link to a Chinese translation at the end of the above article, but I'll paste it in here for those in a hurry for the Hanyu:

http://ccliew.blogspot.co.uk/2010/03/blog-post_17.html

 

The translation (at least the one chosen in the above) for the less literal (i.e. non-三月十五日) meaning seems to be 弑父日 shìfùrì, "patricide day".

[Demonic_Duck]

Weird, I was sure I replied before Gharial's last one, but seems it got deleted or didn't post properly.

April Fool's Day = 愚人节

Couple of new ones:

一、儒家思维里为卑鄙的、无道德的人。与君子相反。

二、加拿大唯一大部分居民的母语不是英语的省。

三、游乐园里常见的一种机动游戏。乘客各有一辆小车子（或两人一车），目标是撞别的乘客的车子，同时也要尽量避免自己的车子被撞到了。

[Shelley]

#2 Quebec

#3 bumper cars

 

#1 has me stumped.