Noun
Information, examples, and exercises related to nouns, which are words that denote a person, place, thing, or idea.
一 (yī)
a
In Chinese, '一' is used to represent the English word 'a'. It is commonly used in front of a noun in Chinese language to indicate a singular quantity, just like 'a' in English.
Example sentences with 一 →一刻 (yī kè)
quarter
In Chinese '一刻' means quarter, usually used to refer to a quarter of the hour. It can also be used to describe a portion or sector, but it is less common. Similar to English, '一刻' can also mean a moment or a brief period of time.
Example sentences with 一刻 →一半 (yībàn)
half
一半 (yībàn) translates literally to 'one half' in English, and its usage is pretty identical to English. It can be used to refer to half of an object, an amount or a quantity, time, etc. It can be used in both a literal and a figurative context. It can also be combined with other words to create different meanings. For example, 一半天空 (yībàn tiānkōng) refers to 'half the sky', a phrase often used to emphasize the importance of women in society.
一堆 (yī duī)
bunch
The Chinese word '一堆' is used similarly to how 'bunch' is used in English. It refers to a group or collection of things, or sometimes, people. This could be a bunch of flowers, a bunch of keys, or even a bunch of people. The concept hinges on the idea of multiples combined together.
Example sentences with 一堆 →一对 (yī duì)
pair
In Chinese, '一对' is used to refer to a pair or a couple of something. It is often used in contexts where items come in twos. For instance, a pair of shoes would be '一对鞋'. Just like in English, it can be used in both a literal and abstract sense.
Example sentences with 一对 →一旁 (yī páng)
aside
The Chinese word '一旁' translates to 'aside' in English. This word is generally used the same way as in English - to indicate that something is to the side or NOT the main focus. For example, you could put your bag '一旁' or to the side. The word can be used in both formal and informal contexts and it doesn't have any particular connotations that learners need to be aware of.
Example sentences with 一旁 →一致性 (yīzhìxìng)
consistency
The Chinese word '一致性' refers to the state or quality of always acting or behaving in the same way, or of always happening in the same way. It's often used in daily conversation, academia, programming languages, documentation among others, where uniformity or coherence is needed.
一般 (yībān)
general
The Chinese word '一般' is an adjective that is commonly used to describe that something is ordinary, common, general, or usual. It can be used in various contexts such as describing an object, a situation, or a person. For example, '一般人' means 'ordinary people' and '一般情况下' means 'usually' or 'generally.',
丈夫 (zhàngfu)
husband
The Chinese word for husband is 丈夫. It is often used in the same context as in English, to refer to a married man considered in relation to his spouse.
三明治 (sān míng zhì)
sandwich
The Chinese word for 'sandwich' is '三明治'. It is often used in the same context as it is in English. It can refer to a meal consisting of two pieces of bread with meat, cheese, or other fillings between them, or to express this dish in places like restaurants, menus, food-related conversations and writings.
Example sentences with 三明治 →三月 (sān yuè)
march
The Chinese word '三月' is used to denote the third month of the year, which is March in English. Similar to its English counterpart, it can be used in various contexts where reference to this particular month or timeframe is necessary. It neither denotes a verb such as 'moving forward' nor a type of music as in English context.
Example sentences with 三月 →上升 (shàng shēng)
rise
The word '上升' in Chinese is used to describe an upward movement or an increase in something, similar to how we use 'rise' in English. It could be used in various contexts, like rise in temperature, rise of a phenomenon, or even metaphorically like rise to power.
上帝 (Shàngdì)
god
The Chinese term for 'god' is '上帝' (Shàngdì). It is used across different religions to refer to a supreme deity or divine power. It is often used in Christianity to refer to God. As with English, the use of the term can vary greatly depending on religious and cultural context.
上诉 (shàng sù)
appeal
The Chinese word '上诉' is used in the context of law and order for referring to an application to a higher court for a decision to be reversed. It can also be used to describe a serious or urgent request.
Example sentences with 上诉 →上面 (Shàngmiàn)
upper
In Chinese, the word 'upper' can be translated to '上面', which is used to describe something being on top or above something else. It can also be used as an adjective to describe the top part of an object or area. It is commonly seen in various contexts.
Example sentences with 上面 →下一个 (xià yī gè)
next
The Chinese word '下一个' means 'next' in English. It is commonly used to refer to the subsequent person or thing in an ordered sequence. For example, '下一个人' means 'next person', and '下一个月' means 'next month'.
下午 (xiàwǔ)
afternoon
In Chinese, '下午' represents the period of the day after midday (12:00 PM) and before evening, often regarded as the time after lunch until sunset. It's an integral part of expressing time of day in Chinese context.
Example sentences with 下午 →下沉 (xià chén)
sink
The Chinese word '下沉' is used to refer to the action of an object to sink or go down, similar to the English word 'sink'. It can be used in various contexts, including describing the sinking of a ship, the sun setting, or a feeling of sinking/dropping.
不可避免 (bùkěbìmiǎn)
inevitable
The Chinese word '不可避免' (bùkěbìmiǎn) means 'inevitable'. This term is typically used in conversations and writings to indicate something that is certain to happen and unavoidable. It expresses a similar sentiment to the English phrase 'it was bound to happen'. The word can be used in various contexts, especially in situations involving unavoidable or predetermined events or outcomes.
Example sentences with 不可避免 →专业 (zhuān yè)
professional
In Chinese, 'professional' is translated to '专业'. It is used in the same context as in English to describe someone who is an expert at his or her work or who currently engages in a specific specialist field. It can be used both as a noun and as an adjective based on the context of the sentence. For example, '他是一名专业的演员' means 'He is a professional actor'.
专家 (zhuān jiā)
expert
The Chinese word '专家' is used to describe someone who has a comprehensive and authoritative knowledge of or skill in a particular area. Just like in English, it is applicable to several contexts including academic, professional, and other specialized fields.
专注 (zhuānzhù)
focus
The Chinese word '专注' is commonly used in both spoken and written language. It can be used to refer to the act of paying special attention to something, concentrating on a particular task, or being deeply engaged in something.
世界 (shìjiè)
world
In Chinese, '世界' (shìjiè) is used to refer to the world in a general sense, encompassing all the Earth, humanity, and everything in it. It could be found in various contexts such as talking about global issues, nature, science, and so on.
东 (dōng)
east
The term '东' is used to refer to the cardinal direction east in Chinese. It is commonly used in various contexts such as geography, navigation, and daily conversations to refer to anything related to the direction east.
东西 (dōngxi)
thing
The Chinese word for 'thing' is '东西' (dōngxi). It can be used in various contexts to represent a physical object, a matter, or a situation, much like 'thing' in English. For instance, '好东西' would mean 'good thing', '买东西' would mean 'buy things'. It is a very commonly used word in daily conversations.
个人 (gè rén)
personal
In Chinese, '个人' is used to refer to an individual or personally related situations. It can be used in various situations similar to the English use of the word 'personal', such as in '个人信息' (personal information), '个人喜好' (personal preference), etc.
个体 (gè tǐ)
individual
In Chinese, the word '个体' is used to refer to an individual or a single entity. It can be used to describe both people and things. For example, in the phrase '每个个体都有其独特性' means 'Each individual has its uniqueness'.
个性 (gè xìng)
personality
In Chinese, the term '个性' is used to describe someone's unique set of characteristics, traits, or behaviors, much like the English term 'personality'. It is a common word used in conversations, and it often reflects a person's inherent and distinctive qualities.
Example sentences with 个性 →中 (zhōng)
middle
The Chinese word for 'middle' is used similarly to the English word. It can be used to express the middle of an area, object, or period of time. It is often used in conjunction with other characters to form compound words.
Example sentences with 中 →中心 (zhōngxīn)
center
The Chinese word '中心' is used mostly in the same way as its English counterpart 'center'. It can refer to the middle point of a space or shape, or to the hub of some activities or functions. Semi-formal in language level, it's widely used in various contexts.