CLO_034: I can’t read their menu
Listen to this lesson, to learn what the following means:
Dialogue: Numbers
A: Wa, zhe4ge can1ting1 you3 hen3duo1 dong1xi1 ke3yi3 chi1.
B: Ke3shi4 wo3 kan4 bu4 dong3 ta1mende cai4dan1.
A: Mei2 guan1xi4. Wo3 ke3yi3 bang1 ni3 dian3 can1.
Dialogue: Tones
A: Wa, zhège cāntīng yǒu hěnduō dōngxī kěyǐ chī.
B: Kěshì wǒ kàn bù dǒng tāmende càidān.
A: Méi guānxì. Wǒ kěyǐ bāng nǐ diǎn cān.
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Can’t you also use the expression, “dian(3) cai(4)” as well as dian can? (Sorry, I don’t have the ability to type characters on this computer). Is there any big difference between the two?
Good point! My understanding is that ‘cān’ refers more to dining so “Wǒ kěyǐ bāng nǐ diǎn cān” could be translated as “I’ll help you order.” “Diǎn cài” refers more to a specific dish, so “Wǒ kěyǐ bāng nǐ diǎn cài” is more towards “I’ll help you order a dish.” I’ll confirm with Kirin. Thanks for bringing this up!
Adam, can you explain the difference between 可是 (ke3shi4) and the earlier introduced 但是 (dan4shi4)? It looks like there dictionary definitions are the same. I have a language partner, but she wasn’t able to explain; she just said they were a “little same.” She corrected me and said I should say “wo3 chi1 le wan3 fan4 dan4shi4 wo3 you4 e4 le” instead of using ke3shi4 (also I used zai4 instead of you4).
I’m thinking that maybe while they have the same meanings, there are certain situations where a native speaker uses one and others where they use the other, and if I use the wrong one they would probably understand me but just be able to tell that I am a foreigner (in a hypothetical world where everything else didn’t give it away). I know often in English there are constructions that are technically correct, but just sound odd to my native ear, so maybe the something similar is happening here.
Hopefully this is an okay place to post this. I’m at a much more advanced level in the course, but this I believe is the first time ke3shi4 was introduced (and dan4shi4 was introduced in one of the earliest levels).
That reminds me of another question. Is there some type of email notification setting for once a response is left at a lesson to which one has made a comment? If not, I recommend such a feature being added if feasible. Thanks!
Hi Anthony,
Good question. The difference is a more stylistic one. Just like you would mix up your English sentences with “but” and “however” you can do the same with ke3shi4 and dan4shi4. In older Chinese, ke3shi4 also had the meaning of hai2shi4 (or), but that isn’t seen in modern usage.
Regarding responses to comments, the easiest way is to look on the main page in the “Recent comments” listing to see if there any comments posted above yours. There is no email notification right now, but I could look into that if demand warrants it. Keep such suggestions coming!