[2024-09-26] Dive into Chinese: Flow, Life, Smiles & More!

流

liú

In Chinese, '流' (liú) captures the essence of how things move smoothly and continuously in a certain direction, just like 'flow' in English. It is widely used in various contexts, such as '流星' (liú xīng) meaning 'shooting star', with the flow referring to their rapid movement across the sky. Another example includes '流感' (liú gǎn) referring to 'flu' delineating how rapidly and widely the disease can spread.

Here's how to use it:

• 江水不断地往东流。
  Jiāngshuǐ búduàn de wǎng dōng liú.
• 这首歌流传了很久。
  Zhè shǒu gē liúchuánle hěn jiǔ.
• 汗流浃背。
  Hàn liú jiā bèi.

活着

huó zhe

The Chinese word '活着' is used to depict a state of being alive or living. It is often used in sentences to describe that someone or something is living, similar to the English word 'alive'. It is more common in conversational Chinese.

Here's how to use it:

• 活着这是一种生活方式。
  Huózhe zhè shì yī zhǒng shēnghuó fāngshì.
• 每一天都要活着得有意义。
  Měi yītiān dōu yào huózhe dé yǒuyìyì.
• 对我来说，活着就是为了音乐。
  Duì wǒ láishuō, huózhe jiùshì wèile yīnyuè.

微笑

wēi xiào

In Chinese, '微笑' is often used to describe a gentle or slight smile. It's a common word and can be used in various contexts, like when talking about people smiling, using it in greeting, or describing a person's demeanor. It is a positive word that often conveys a sense of happiness and pleasantness.

Here's how to use it:

• 我喜欢她甜美的微笑。
  Wo xi huan ta tian mei de wei xiao.
• 她的微笑总是那么温暖。
  Tā de wēixiào zǒng shì nàme wēnnuǎn.
• 微笑给我力量。
  Wēixiào gěi wǒ lìliàng.

羞耻

xiū chǐ

In Chinese, '羞耻' expresses the feeling of embarrassment, humiliation or disgrace – similar to its English counterpart 'shame'. It can be used in a variety of contexts, often relating to a personal feeling of guilt or dishonor due to one’s own or another’s actions.

Here's how to use it:

• 这是个羞耻的秘密。
  zhè shì gè xiūchǐ de mìmì.
• 羞耻让他们保持沉默。
  xiūchǐ ràng tāmen bǎochí chénmò.
• 我们不能让羞耻控制我们。
  wǒmen bùnéng ràng xiūchǐ kòngzhì wǒmen.

养老金

yǎng lǎo jīn

The Chinese word for 'pension' is '养老金' which, in the context of employment, refers to the income an individual receives after retirement. It is a social security system where workers accumulate pension during their working years and receive it after retirement. This term is widely used in both informal and formal context.

Here's how to use it:

• 我的养老金将不足以维持生活。
  Wǒ de yǎnglǎojīn jiāng bùzúyǐ wéichí shēnghuó.
• 养老金调整后，她的生活变得更轻松。
  Yǎnglǎojīn tiáo zhěng hòu, tā de shēnghuó biàn de gēng qīngsōng.
• 我们不应只依赖养老金来生活。
  Wǒmen bù yīng zhǐ yīlài yǎnglǎojīn lái shēnghuó.

A tiny improvement which brings me joy 😊