wardrobe; but süò8 peh4 tiu5, one web of silk; or, süò8 tòi7 tiu5, a small piece of silk goods. It is thus that these living words give clearness and precision to discourse.[1]
Compound Nouns.
Two or more words are often united to describe an object which has no simple name. They form regular compound nouns, and are of frequent occurrence. Kiang2, a child, or a small specimen of nay object named, is often affixed to nouns to form compounds; as nëng5 kiang2, a human child; ngu5 kiang2, a calf; huang kiang2, a foreign child, or a foreigner; chieng5 kiang2, a small coin; ie2 kiang2, a small chair, or a tool; sung5 kiang2, a boatman. Kiang2 may be joined to any noun in the same manner as a diminutive suffix. Sa ho7 signifies a leader, and is a term often applied to priests; but when preceded by the term for such substances as wood, earth, stone, silver, it signifies a worker in those substances; as ngüng5 sa ho7, a silversmith; t’u5 sa ho7, a mason; süò8 sa ho7, a stone-cutter; muh8 sa ho7, a worker in wood, a carpenter. Some other trades are designated in the same manner.
Chò3, to make or do; or p’a4, to beat out, or to fashion, prefixed to the name of a thing, or material of which it is made, designates the maker of those goods, or the worker in that material; as chò3 i siong5, maker of clothing, or a tailor; p’a4 t’ieh5, iron worker, that is, a blacksmith; p’a4 tëng5, a coppersmith, or a brass-worker; p’a4 ngüng5, a silversmith. Sa ho7, affixed to the above compounds, will give the additional idea of a master workman at any of those trades. We have chò3 mè2 mè7, to work at buying and selling, or chò3 seng li2, or chò3 seng e3, to be a trader, or a merchant; chò3 ch’eng5, to work at fields; that is, to be a farmer; chò3 cheng3 këü3, to bear testimony, to be a witness; chò3 këng ngie7, to be a mechanic of any kind; chò3 maëng3 would signify a maker of nets, but as the very
- ↑ In the use of nouns preceded by their classifiers, a numeral adjective must always precede the classifier. The numeral süò8, one, is, in such circumstances, commonly equivalent to a or an. There is no proper article in the Chinese language; its place is in part supplied by numeral and demonstrative adjectives.
Weights and measures, as classifiers, are used before nouns in the same manner as in English. In the Chinese money weights in common use as Fuh Chau,
10 Lie equal one Hung = 5.755 grains, Troy.
10 Hung equal one Chieng = 57.55 grains, Troy.
10 Chieng equal one Liong, or ounce = 575.5 grains, Troy.
16 Liong equal one Küng, or pound = 9208 grains, Troy.
100 Küng equal one Tang, or load = 13112 Pounds, Avoirdupois.
Six or eight other weights are in use at Fuh Chau, varying in value from 811 to 1411 of the Küng, or pound, given above.
