Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
David: Welcome to Chineseclass101.com. I’m David.
Amber: 大家好,我是安伯。(Dàjiā hǎo, wǒ shì ān bó.)
David: And, we’re here today with Upper Beginner, Season 1, Lesson 17 – “How to get your vegetables in China”.
Amber: 对,这个在中国非常有用。(Duì, zhège zài zhōngguó fēicháng yǒuyòng.)
David: Right. So, we’ve got a dialogue, that takes place in a restaurant, right?
Amber: 在饭店里。(Zài fàndiàn lǐ.)
David: Right. It’s between two friends who are deciding what to order. And, of course, they’re trying to pick a vegetable option.
Amber: 没错。(Méi cuò.)
David: So, useful dialogue, really common Chinese in here. And, it’s casual as always. Let’s get to the dialogue. So, this is the famous compound chicken.
DIALOGUE
A: 来一个宫爆鸡丁吧。(Lái yīgè gōngbàojīdīng ba.)
B: 我们已经点了鱼香肉丝。(Wǒmen yǐjīng diǎnle yúxiāngròusī.)
A: 两个都好吃。(Liǎng gè dōu hào chī.)
B: 都是酸甜的,我们来个蔬菜吧。(Dōu shì suāntián de, wǒmen lái gè shūcài ba.)
A: 宫爆鸡丁就算蔬菜,有大葱。(Gōngbàojīdīng jiùsuàn shūcài, yǒu dàcōng.)
B: 拜托......(Bàituō......)
A: Let's have a Gongbao Chicken.
B: We've already ordered fish-flavored shredded pork.
A: Both are delicious.
B: They are both sweet and sour, let's get a vegetable.
A: Gongbao Chicken is a vegetable, it's got onion in it.
B: Oh please...
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
Amber: 没错, 宫爆鸡丁, 最有名的老外菜。(Méi cuò, gōng bào jī dīng, zuì yǒumíng de lǎowài cài.)
David: Yeah, Chinese people think this is the 老外菜 (Lǎowài cài), and I’m happy with this because it’s a good dish. So, actually…
Amber: 挺好吃的。(Tǐng hào chī de.)
David: Is so, actually, the 鱼香肉丝 (Yú xiāng ròu sī), which we see here too. Anyway, we’re going to talk a bit about food. But, first we’ve got our vocab to get to.
Amber: 没错,点。(Méi cuò, diǎn.)
VOCAB LIST
David: To order.
Amber: 点, 点, 宫爆鸡丁。(diǎn, diǎn, Gōngbàojīdīng.)
David: Compound chicken.
Amber: 宫 爆 鸡 丁, 宫爆鸡丁, 道。(Gōngbàojīdīng, Gōngbàojīdīng, dào.)
David: A measure word for dishes.
Amber: 道, 道, 鸡肉。(dào, dào, jīròu.)
David: Chicken.
Amber: 鸡 肉, 鸡肉, 花生。(jīròu, jīròu, huāshēng.)
David: Peanuts.
Amber: 花 生, 花生, 大葱。(huāshēng, huāshēng, dàcōng.)
David: Chinese onion.
Amber: 大 葱, 大葱, 鱼香肉丝。(dàcōng, dàcōng, Yúxiāngròusī.)
David: Shredded pork in chili sauce.
Amber: 鱼 香 肉 丝, 鱼香肉丝, 好吃。(Yúxiāngròusī, Yúxiāngròusī, hǎochī.)
David: Delicious.
Amber: 好 吃, 好吃, 酸甜。(hǎochī, hǎochī, suāntián.)
David: Sweet and sour.
Amber: 酸 甜, 酸甜。(suāntián, suāntián.)
VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE
David: Ok, Amber, it’s time to talk about food. Right? The first dish is the one you famously call the
老外菜. (Lǎowài cài.)
Amber: 没错, 宫爆鸡丁。(Méi cuò, gōng bào jī dīng.)
David: “Compound chicken”.
Amber: 宫爆鸡丁。(Méi cuò, gōng bào jī dīng.)
David: And, this is a, it’s a Sichuanese dish.
Amber: Ah, 没错。(Méi cuò.)
David: It’s a bit spicy and it’s chicken and peanuts.
Amber: 唔,对,也有人说它是宫爆鸡丁。(Wú, duì, yěyǒu rén shuō tā shì gōng bào jī dīng.)
David: Right. So, somehow you get the third tone there instead of the fourth tone. But, yes, in the States this is known as compound chicken. It’s delicious.
Amber: 没错。(Méi cuò.)
David: Sweet and sour, tastes great.
Amber: 对。(Duì.)
David: The two main ingredients are, of course, the chicken cubes…
Amber: 鸡丁。(Jī dīng.)
David: And, peanuts.
Amber: 花生。(Huāshēng.)
David: 宫爆鸡丁 (Gōng bào jī dīng) has chicken cubes and peanuts.
Amber: 对,宫爆鸡丁有鸡丁,还有花生。(Duì, gōng bào jī dīng yǒu jī dīng, hái yǒu huāshēng.)
David: “Compound chicken has chicken cubes and peanuts.”
Amber: 宫爆鸡丁有鸡丁,还有花生。(Gōng bào jī dīng yǒu jī dīng, hái yǒu huāshēng.)
David: Right. And, 鸡丁 (Jī dīng) it’s a cute way of saying it. 丁 (Dīng) means “cubes”.
Amber: 对,”丁” 就是切成小的一块一块的。(Duì,” dīng” jiùshì qiè chéng xiǎo de yīkuài yīkuài de.)
David: Yes, so it’s 鸡肉 (Jīròu), it’s chicken meat cut into cubes.
Amber: 没错。(Méi cuò.)
David: Right, additionally, it also does have a vegetable. It’s got the Chinese onion.
Amber: 大葱。(Dàcōng.)
David: This is not the Western onion, that’s a circle, this is long.
Amber: 对,哪个瘦长的。(Duì, nǎge shòucháng de.)
David: Yes. It’s really long, it’s round.
Amber: 没错, 大葱。(Méi cuò, dàcōng.)
David: Right. So, if you want a Western onion, you have to ask for?
Amber: 洋葱。(Yángcōng.)
David: Foreign 葱.(Cōng.)
Amber: 没错, 洋葱, 因为这个 ”洋” 一般就是 (Méi cuò, yángcōng, yīnwèi zhège” yáng” yībān jiùshì) Foreign 什么什么 …… 对。(Shénme shénme…… duì.)
David: Yes, yes. So, moving on, we have another Chinese dish here, which is delicious, too.
Amber: 鱼香肉丝。(Yú xiāng ròu sī.)
David: Fish flavored 肉丝.(Ròu sī.)
Amber: 肉丝, 对! (Ròu sī, duì!)
David: Yes, fish flavored meat slices.
Amber: 鱼香肉丝, 但是没有鱼。(Yú xiāng ròu sī, dànshì méiyǒu yú.)
David: Yes, there is no fish here. Done properly no fish. I don’t even think it tastes like fish.
Amber: 其实我也不觉得。(Qíshí wǒ yě bù juédé.)
David: Right. But, it is sweet and sour, just like compound chicken. Right? It’s got this sweet sauce in it, lots of, kind of chilies…
Amber: 只不过这里面的肉不是 “丁”,是 “丝”。(Zhǐ bùguò zhè lǐmiàn de ròu bùshì “dīng”, shì “sī”.)
David: Right. And, 丝 (Sī) means “shreds”.
Amber: 对。(Duì.)
David: So, one more time.
Amber: 鱼香肉丝。(Yú xiāng ròu sī.)
David: “I’ll have a compound chicken and shredded meat in chili sauce.”
Amber: 我要宫爆鸡丁和鱼香肉丝。(Wǒ yào gōng bào jī dīng hé yú xiāng ròu sī.)
David: Right. You can’t go wrong with these. But, Amber, a lot of Chinese people think they’re the same dish, basically.
Amber: 没错, 味道是一样的。(Méi cuò, wèidào shì yīyàng de.)
David: Right. Because the flavor is sweet and sour.
Amber: 酸甜。(Suān tián.)
David: “Sweet and sour”
Amber: 酸甜。(Suān tián.)
David: Right. Don’t let that stop you from ordering both, because they are delicious.
Amber: 好吧!我觉得是一样的, 反正我很少两个都点。 (Hǎo ba! Wǒ juédé shì yīyàng de, fǎnzhèng wǒ hěn shǎo liǎng gè dōu diǎn.)
David: Yes. People don’t usually eat both at the same time. So, that’s what’s happening in the dialogue.
Amber: 没错。(Méi cuò.)
David: People, they just know good food and they like it. So, that’s our vocab for today. You can use this in any Sichuanese restaurant and they’ll know instantly what you want. For now, though, let’s get on to our grammar point.

Lesson focus

M2: It’s grammar time.
David: In today’s grammar section, we want to talk about a special usage of this word.
Amber: 拜托......(Bàituō......)
David: Please.
Amber: 拜托......(Bàituō......)
David: This is not your ordinary “please”, though. It can be, sometimes.
Amber: 对。(Duì.)
David: Let’s take a look at really simple sentence.
Amber: 比如说 拜托你帮我买饭。(Bǐrú shuō bàituō nǐ bāng wǒ mǎi fàn.)
David: Which would be: “Excuse me, please, help me buy some food.”
Amber: Uhmm, 拜托你帮我买饭, 可能是中午休息的是候。(Bàituō nǐ bāng wǒ mǎi fàn, kěnéng shì zhōngwǔ xiūxí de shì hòu.)
David: Yes, maybe someone it’s going out for lunch.
Amber: 没错。(Méi cuò.)
David: And, Amber, is stuck in the office, doing audio editing.
Amber: 没错, 所以我只能说 …….(Méi cuò, suǒyǐ wǒ zhǐ néng shuō…….)
David: And she say’s…
Amber: 拜托你帮我买饭。(Bàituō nǐ bāng wǒ mǎi fàn.)
David: Right. So, here, 拜托你 (Bàituō nǐ.) is like “Please, you”.
Amber: Yes.
David: Yes, I’m asking you., I’m kind of beseeching you, even.
Amber: 没错, 没错, 因为我觉得哎呀 …… (Méi cuò, méi cuò, yīnwèi wǒ juédé āiyā……)
David: Yes.
Amber: 太麻烦你了!(Tài máfan nǐle!)
David: So, it’s a bit stronger than “please”, but it has that meaning. Now, there’s a second meaning, too.
Amber: 拜托......(Bàituō......)
David: Which, is closer in English to the sense of: “Oh. For Heaven’s sakes.”
Amber: 对。(Duì.)
David: So, to use this, you really want to express the word with, with frustration and exasperation.
Amber: 对,你是这么说的, 拜托! (Duì, nǐ shì zhème shuō de, bàituō!)
David: Right. You don’t even need the rest of the sentence. That word, it says it all. It says: “What are you thinking?”.
Amber: 没错, 拜托! (Méi cuò, bàituō!)
David: And, that’s what we see in the dialogue, right? The second person is saying: “Oh, please. The Chinese onion, and 宫爆鸡丁 (Gōng bào jī dīng), it’s not a vegetable.”
Amber: 拜托...... 大葱不是蔬菜。(Bàituō...... Dàcōng bùshì shūcài.)
David: “Oh, please. The Chinese onion, and 宫爆鸡丁 (Gōng bào jī dīng), it’s not a vegetable.”
Amber: 拜托...... 大葱不是蔬菜, 中国人确实不把大葱当蔬菜。(Bàituō...... Dàcōng bùshì shūcài, zhōngguó rén quèshí bù bǎ dàcōng dāng shūcài.)
David: Yes, it’s a flavoring, it’s not a vegetable in Chinese eyes.
Amber: 没错。(Méi cuò.)
David: But, the important in here is, look at the way this is affecting our tone.
Amber: 拜托......(Bàituō......)
David: “I can’t believe this.”
Amber: 噢!拜托......(Ō! Bàituō......)
David: Right? Normally, if you’re at dinner and you do order 宫爆鸡丁 (Gōng bào jī dīng) and 鱼香肉丝 (Yú xiāng ròu sī) , you make it a Chinese person saying:
Amber: 拜托...... (Bàituō......)
David: “What are you doing? They’re both sweet and sour.”
Amber: 就是一样的, 拜托...... 它们都是酸甜的。(Jiùshì yīyàng de, bàituō...... Tāmen dōu shì suān tián de.)
David: “What are you doing? They’re both sweet and sour.”
Amber: 拜托...... 它们都是酸甜的。(Bàituō...... Tāmen dōu shì suān tián de.)
David: Final question. How rude is this?
Amber: 唔,在朋友之间没有问题。(Wú, zài péngyǒu zhī jiān méiyǒu wèntí.)
David: Right. Between friends, in casual speech, there’s nothing rude about it, at all.
Amber: 没错, 但是如果和老板在一起,或者是和比较年纪大的人在一起, 就不太好。(Méi cuò, dànshì rúguǒ hé lǎobǎn zài yīqǐ, huòzhě shì hé bǐjiào niánjì dà de rén zài yīqǐ, jiù bù tài hǎo.)
David: Right. Right. So, you don’t want to use this in a formal situation with your boss.
Amber: 唔,没错。(Wú, méi cuò.)
David: And, you don’t want to use it with people who are much older than you, to whom you’re supposed to give respect.
Amber: 没错。(Méi cuò.)
David: Right. And, that’s just, it’s not because the word itself is rude, it’s because the way of expressing it is maybe a bit disrespectful.
Amber: 没错, 就是不太尊敬。(Méi cuò, jiùshì bù tài zūnjìng.)
David: Yes. You’re assuming a casual relationship with people that maybe you shouldn’t.
Amber: 对。(Duì.)
David: Ok. That thing said, it’s a really great word.
Amber: 唔,拜托......(Wú, bàituō......)
David: And, when you know how to use it, you don’t even need to say anything else.
Amber: 只说两个字,你的朋友就知道是什么意思了。(Zhǐ shuō liǎng gè zì, nǐ de péngyǒu jiù zhīdào shì shénme yìsile.)

Outro

David: Right. And, with that, that’s the end of our lesson for today.
Amber: 没错, 今天时间就到这了。(Méi cuò, jīntiān shíjiān jiù dào zhèle.)
David: From Beijing, I’m David.
Amber: 我是安伯。(Wǒ shì ān bó.)
David: Thanks for listening and we will see you on the site.
Amber: 我们下次见。(Wǒmen xià cì jiàn.)

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