Understanding Chinese Words and Characters

The video explores the structure of Chinese words, focusing on the distinction between characters and words, and the concept of morphemes. It delves into foreign and ancient words, and explains various types of compound words, including biased, parallel, duplicated, and affixed words. The video concludes with an explanation of subject predicate words, aiming to enhance understanding and learning of Chinese vocabulary.

What is the smallest grammatical unit in a language that carries meaning?

• Word

• Phrase

• Morpheme

• Syllable

Which of the following is an example of a borrowed foreign word in Chinese?

• Shan (mountain)

• Chi (eat)

• Sha fa (sofa)

• Ren (person)

What type of compound word is formed when the first character is a verb and the second character is the object?

• Parallel

• Biased

• Verb-Result

• Verb-Object

In a biased compound word, what does the first character typically do?

• Indicates the main category

• Adjusts the main category

• Represents a verb

• Represents an adjective

What is a characteristic of parallel compound words?

• They are always verbs

• They always have opposite meanings

• Both characters have equal weight

• The first character is more important

What is the purpose of duplicating characters in Chinese words?

• To express affection

• To form a negative

• To indicate a question

• To show past tense

Which prefix in Chinese indicates familiarity or seniority?

• Ke

• Lao

• Xiao

• Nan

What does the suffix 'zhe' indicate in Chinese?

• Plurality

• Expert in a field

• Casualness

• Past tense

What does the infix 'bu' indicate in a verb-result compound word?

• The action is completed

• The action is not possible

• The action is ongoing

• The action is hypothetical

What type of compound word is a mini sentence within itself?

• Subject-Predicate

• Verb-Object

• Parallel

• Biased