A Manual of the Foochow Dialect In Twenty Lessons/Lesson IV

by C. M. S. and A. E. Champness

LESSON IV.

多 dŏ̤

more

少 ciēu

less, few

子 cṳ̄

son

船 sùng

boat, ship

章 ciŏng

chapter

排 bà̤

a stanza of a hymn

両 liōng

an ounce

節 cáik

a festival

節 ciék

a joint, verse

⿰亻西 sâ̤

many

第 dâ̤

series, order

事 sê̤ṳ

business, deeds

代計 dâi-gié

business

唱 chióng

to sing

零 lìng

a fragment, fraction

查 cǎ

to search

欲 ó̤i

to want

㑚 nâ

only, if, but

買 mā̤

to buy

賣 mâ̤

to sell

千 chiĕng

thousand

萬 uâng

myriad, ten thousand

緣故 iòng-gó

reason

一首讚美詩 siŏh-siū cáng-mī sĭ

a hymn

做 có̤

to make, do

去 kó̤

to go

來 lì

to come

正是 ciáng-sê

Yes!

伓是 ng sê

no! it is not

就是 cêu-sê

namely, that is

做厨 có̤-diò

cook

生意 sĕng-é  生理 sĕng-lī

trade, business

一頭驢 siŏh-tàu lè̤

a donkey

一塊石頭 siŏh-dó̤i siŏh-tàu

a lump of stone

一張勸世文 siŏh-tiŏng kuóng-sié-ùng

a tract

一位上帝 Siŏh-ôi Siông-Dá̤

one God

鬼 gūi

devils

The Numerals

1. The numerals from ten to twenty place the tens first and the units after, as 十一 sĕk ék eleven, 十九 sĕk gāu nineteen.

2. The ordinal numbers are formed by prefixing 第 dâ̤ to the cardinal numerals, 第五 dâ̤ ngô the fifth, 第三 dâ̤ săng the third. In the case of “one” and “two” the secondary forms ék and nê are used for “first” and “second”. Ék and nê are also used in the numbers eleven and twelve. Eleven 十一 sĕk ék, twelve 十二 sĕk nê.

They are also used in the “tens” as follows:—Twenty-one nê sĕk êk, thirty-two săng sĕk nê, one hundred, however, is 一百 siŏh báh, a thousand is 一千 siŏh chiĕng, and ten thousand, or a myriad is 一萬 siŏh uâng. 頭 Tàu head, is used to denote the first in order. The first verse 頭一節 tàu siŏh ciék

3. Multiples of ten are formed as in English. Twenty-two n̂ê sĕk nê. 一十 Ék sĕk is often used for numbers between ten and twenty, but not invariably. It must, however, be used in numbers above a hundred. One hundred and nineteen, 一百一十九 siŏh báh ék sĕk gāu.

4. We may speak of indefinite numbers in several ways. 幾 Güi and 零 lìng are frequently used for this purpose. 十幾 Sĕk gūi ten odd, 百零 báh lìng a hundred odd. 幾隻 Gūi ciáh is a few (units). 幾百 Gūi báh several hundreds. 二百幾十本 Lâng báh gūi sĕk ¨buōng, over two hundred volumes; 幾十件毛 gūi sĕk iông nó̤h, several tens of things. Three or four, 三四隻 săng sé ciáh; thirteen or fourteen 十三四 sĕk săng sé; forty or fifty 四五十 sé ngô sĕk; seven or eight hundred 七八百 chék báik báh. Five or six men 五六隻𠆧 ngó lĕ̤k ciáh nè̤ng. Eleven or twelve books 十一二本書 sĕk ék nê buōng cṳ̆.

5. 零 Lìng corresponds to the cipher or ciphers found between the digits of such numbers as “one hundred and four”. Two hundred and five 二百零五 lâng báh lìng ngô. One thousand five hundred and five, siŏh chiĕng ngô băh lìng ngô. Ten thousand five hundred and three siŏh uâng ngô báh lìng săng.

6. In Chinese, such terms as “fifteen thousand”, “eighteen hundred” and “eighty thousand” are not used. The correct words for “thousand” “myriad” and multiples of the same must be used in full. A million is in Chinese “one hundred myriads,” and so is expressed as 一百萬 siŏh báh uâng.

7. When we speak of such numbers in English as 120, 3,800, 890, we give them in full, ending with the last denomination, but in Chinese in such numbers as the above (if numbers only are spoken of) ending with ten or any multiple of ten, the last denomination: is understood, and does not need to be stated. Three thousand eight hundred 三千八 săng chiĕng báik; eighty thousand eight hundred and ninety 八萬零八百九 báik uâng lìng báik báh gāu.

8. In such numbers as sixty thousand five hundred, where lìng is required in the first three figures, or immediately before them, each denomination must be stated in full, as 六萬零五百 lĕ̤k uâng lìng ngô báh. Numbers followed by a noun must also be stated in full. One-hundred and twenty pencils 一百二十本筆 siŏh bâh nê sék buōng bék. Five hundred and eighty people, 五百八十𠆧 ngô báh báik sĕk nè̤ng.

9. When “many” is used predicatively, the verb to be is not expressed. His things are many, 伊其乇⿰亻西ĭ gì mó̤h sṳ̂. Adjectives used in this way do not take 是 sê. That man is good, 那𠆧好 hiā nè̤ng hō̤.

10. “More” and “less” come in English at the end of such sentences as “sing two verses more”, “read a chapter less”, but in Chinese 多 dŏ̤ and 少 ciēu come at the beginning of the sentence. Sing two stanzas more 多唱二排 dŏ̤ chióng lâng bà̤. Read a chapter less 少讀一章 ciēu tĕ̤k siŏh ciong.

11. In the numeration of several objects, English idiom usually places number first and names last, but Chinese idiom reverses this, e.g. The two characters Ia-Su 耶穌二字 Ià-Sŭ lâng cê.

12. 位 Ôi literally meaning “a seat”, is used as the N. A. introducing persons to be regarded with respect, and in Christian phrases to introdueé the Deity. One God 一位上帝 siŏh ôi Siông-Dá̤. Who is this gentleman? 只一位先生是俤𠆧 cī siŏh ôi Sĭng-săng sê diê-nè̤ng?

EXERCISE IV.

急 gék

urgent, hurried

奇特 gì-dĕk

strange

自來火 cê̤ṳ-lài-huōi

matches

肉 nṳ̆k

meat

麵粉 miêng-hūng

flour

凌辱 lìng-ṳ̆k

insult, disgrace

〓 tá̤

drawer

棉花 mièng-huă

cotton wool

耳仔 ngê-giāng

ear

痛 tiáng

ache

⿰貝康 kaúng

put in (drawer)

謙虛 kiĕng-hṳ̆

humble

Translate into English:—

1. Ĭ có̤ sié-nó̤h?
2. Nâ ô siŏh-ôi Géu-Cīo, cêu-sê Ià-Sŭ.
3. Ĭ lâng-ciáh nè̤ng ô niŏh-uâi cièng?
4. Chiāng Sĭng-săng că cê-diēng káng.
5. Hiā siŏng siŏh ciáh mâ̤ niŏh-uâi cièng?
6. Nṳ̄ că sié-nó̤h cê?
7. Ĭ ô gūi-buōng Séng-Gĭng? O Săng sé buōng.
8. Ĭ có̤ sié-nó̤h sĕng-é? Ĭ mâ̤ iē dó̤h.
9. Nṳ̄ muóng diê-nè̤ng gì dâi?
10. Cuòi sê gì-dĕk gì dâi; nè̤ng-gă káng Lī Sĭng-săng sê mâ̤ kuóng-sié-ùng. Ciáng-sê, ĭ sê mâ̤ cṳ̆ gĭ nè̤ng.
11. Nè̤ng-gă ngê-giāng tiăng.
12. Có̤-diò ô m̄ā̤ cê̤u-lài huōi, miêng-bău, lièng miêng-hūng. Nè̤ng-gă nâ ó̤i mā̤ dà-niŏh.
13. Cī siŏh-tàu lè̤ mâ̤ niŏh-uâi cièng? Ng sê mâ̤ gì.
14. Bĭng ô lĕ̤k-chiĕng lìng miàng.
15. Chiāng tĕ̤k sĕk-chék ciŏng, nê-sĕk-ék ciék.

Translate into Chinese:—

1. What does he want? He wants to look at these books.
2. He only wants two pencils.
3. 3,070 children. 47,309 lumps of stone. 760 ounces of tea.
4. Jesus acts as our Savior.
5. I want to buy bread and meat
6. The Lord Jesus is the Son of God.
7. He travels by boat. I ride in a chair.
8. The business is urgent.
9. How much is this cotton wool? I want to buy an ounce.
10. Where does this man come from?
11. Please sing the two hundred and forty-fourth hymn.
12. I want to buy six or seven horses.
13. Where are those ninety odd cash? 4005 men. 56,387 books. 280 pieces of silk.
14. I have three donkeys and four horses for sale.