Difference between revisions of "The filler word "neige""
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| − | * | + | * <em>那个</em>...我 不 和 你们一起 吃饭 了，好 吗？<span class="trans">So. . .uhm, I won't eat with you guys, OK?</span> |
| − | * 我 想 吃 那个... 那个...湖南 菜。<span class="trans">I want to eat that. . .uhm. . .whatchamacallit. . .Hunan cuisine.</span> | + | * 我 想 吃 <em>那个</em>... <em>那个</em>...湖南 菜。<span class="trans">I want to eat that. . .uhm. . .whatchamacallit. . .Hunan cuisine.</span> |
| − | * | + | * <em>那个</em>...我明天可能晚点儿到公司。<span class="trans">Uhm...I might be a little bit late for work tomorrow.</span> |
| − | * | + | * 我 想 看 看 你 刚 买 的 <em>那个</em>···<em>那个</em>···iphone。<span class="trans">I‘d like to have a look at ···uhm···your iphone you just bought.</span> |
| − | * | + | * <em>那个</em>...我得去机场接我的朋友了。<span class="trans">Uhm...I”ve got to go o the airport to pick up my friends.</span> |
| − | * | + | * 昨天<em>那个</em>···<em>那个</em>···小笼包真好吃。<span class="trans">The ···uhm···steamed soup dumplings were so delicious.</span> |
| + | * 我 觉得，<em>那个</em>...这样 做 是 不 是 不 好 啊？ | ||
| + | * <em>那个</em>...不好意思，我 先 走 了。 | ||
| + | * 她 很 漂亮，就 像 <em>那个</em>...八 十 年代 的 电影 明星 一样。 | ||
| + | * <em>那个</em>...你 可以 做 我 的 女 朋友 吗？ | ||
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[[Category:A2 grammar points]] | [[Category:A2 grammar points]] | ||
| − | {{Basic Grammar|那个|A2|……那个……| | + | {{Basic Grammar|那个|A2|……那个……|<em>那个</em>...你 可以 做 我 的 女 朋友 吗？|grammar point|ASG8VJM8}} |
{{Rel char|那}} | {{Rel char|那}} | ||
{{Rel char|个}} | {{Rel char|个}} | ||
{{POS|Conjunctions}} | {{POS|Conjunctions}} | ||
{{Used for|Connecting ideas}} | {{Used for|Connecting ideas}} | ||
Revision as of 08:11, 8 October 2013
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Sometimes when speaking you may blank out a bit, forget a little word or phrase, and you need something to say while gathering your thoughts. Or maybe you need to stall for a while. Well, the word 那个（nèige) is just what you need.
Basic patterns
In English, words like "uhm" and "er" are used as filler[1] words when you're thinking about what to say. In Chinese, 那个 (nèige) is used for this purpose. This can sound a bit unfortunate[2] to English speakers, but it's very common in Mandarin and you'll hear it quite often around Chinese speakers.
那个 can be inserted into sentences wherever you need to pause for thought. This is similar to the slang use of "like" in English, or filler words in general.
Examples
Some examples:
- 那个...我 不 和 你们一起 吃饭 了，好 吗？So. . .uhm, I won't eat with you guys, OK?
- 我 想 吃 那个... 那个...湖南 菜。I want to eat that. . .uhm. . .whatchamacallit. . .Hunan cuisine.
- 那个...我明天可能晚点儿到公司。Uhm...I might be a little bit late for work tomorrow.
- 我 想 看 看 你 刚 买 的 那个···那个···iphone。I‘d like to have a look at ···uhm···your iphone you just bought.
- 那个...我得去机场接我的朋友了。Uhm...I”ve got to go o the airport to pick up my friends.
- 昨天那个···那个···小笼包真好吃。The ···uhm···steamed soup dumplings were so delicious.
- 我 觉得，那个...这样 做 是 不 是 不 好 啊？
- 那个...不好意思，我 先 走 了。
- 她 很 漂亮，就 像 那个...八 十 年代 的 电影 明星 一样。
- 那个...你 可以 做 我 的 女 朋友 吗？
References
- ↑ Filler (linguistics) on Wikipedia
- ↑ See This or That? Mandarin and the "N" word for elaboration
Further reading
Needs academic references!
