Lesson 105 where’s My Camera?

M: Dàjiā hǎo. Huānyíng nǐmen dào Xiànzài Xué Hànyǔ. Wǒ shì ML.

S: Wǒ shì Stuart. M: Remember? 记得吗? jìde ma? We're still in the Yíhéyuán. Wǒmen hái zài Yíhéyuán.

S: We're going to take photos, zhàoxiàng.

M: It's a good opportunity to learn things like ‘look for' and some more position words. Don't forget to repeat everything with us.

S: wher'd I put my camera? 我的照相机放在哪儿了？Wǒde zhàoxiàngjī fàng zài nǎrle?

M: I'll help you look. 我帮你找 wǒ bāng nǐ zhào.

S: Is it on the table? 它在桌子上吗 tā zài zhuōzi shàng ma?

M: I'll look. 我看看 wǒ kàn kàn. Not on the table. 不在桌子上. Bú zài zhuōzi shàng.

S: Is it under the table? 它在桌子下面吗? tā zài zhuōzi xiàmian ma?

M: 我看看。也不在桌子下面 wǒ kànkàn, yě bú zài zhuōzi xiàmian.

S: My camera is not on the table, and not under the table either. 我的照相机不在桌子上，也不在桌子下面.

M: Poor Stuart. M: Now to look at the new stuff.

S: I said, 我的照相机放在哪儿了?

M: wǒde zhàoxiàngjī fàng zài nǎrle? 放 FANG fàng, ‘to place' or ‘to put'. wǒde zhàoxiàngjī fàng zài nǎrle? Literally, ‘my camera put wher?" or ‘wher did I put my camera?' Say it, everybody, wǒde zhàoxiàngjī fàng zài nǎrle? wǒde zhàoxiàngji fàng zài nǎrle?

S: So how to say, ‘wher'd I put my beer?'

M: Méi cuò. 我的啤酒放在哪儿了？Wǒ de píjiǔ fàng zài nǎrle?

S: ML offered to help me find my camera..

M: 我帮你找 wǒ bāng nǐ zhào. 帮BANG bāng, remember, is ‘to help'. 找 ZHAO zhào, ‘to look for'. Wǒ bāng nǐ zhào. I'll help you look. All together: Wǒ bāng nǐ zhào, wǒ bāng nǐ zhào.

S: So, can you say, ‘you are looking for what?'

M: Hěn hǎo. 你找什么, nǐ zhǎo shénme?

S: And can you say, ‘I'm looking for your camera'?

M: Duì le. 我找你的照相机 wǒ zhǎo nǐde zhàoxiàngjī.

S: Now try to pick out the word for ‘table'. 它在桌子上吗?

M: Tā zài zhuōzi shàng ma? 桌子 ZHUO ZI zhuo1zi, is ‘table'. The little zi, which is unstressed, no strong tone, is a prefix added to some nouns, like 孩子 háizi, child; 房子 fángzi, house, and, as here, zhuōzi, table, zhuōzi. And, remembering that shàng means ‘on' and xià means ‘under', let's finish with the rest of the dialogue.

M: 我看看。它不在桌子上. Wǒ kànkan. Tā bú zài zhuōzi shàng.

S: 它在桌子下面吗 tā zài zhuōzi xià ma?

M: 我看看。它也不在桌子下面 wǒ kànkan, tā yěbú zài zhuōzi xiàmian.

S: 我的照相机不在桌子上，也不在桌子下面. Wǒ de zhàoxiàngjī bú zài zhuōzi shàng, yě bú zài zhuōzi xiàmian.

M: Oh dear! Lost camera! Time to go. Zàijiàn.