YJ: And wo shi Yajie. Cam, we’ve been talking about food and restaurants, and we’ve learned how to order many dishes.
Cam: I’m getting better at that, but sometimes I need to call the waitress or waiter over to my table – right now I can only yell , because I don’t know what to call them!
Yajie: Let’s check out our Key Words of the Day.
Key Words of the Day
服务员(fu2wu4 yuan2) waiter or waitress, napkin 餐巾纸(can1jin1zhi3)。我要几张餐巾纸, I’d like some napkins. 加一个糖醋排骨I’d like to add another spareribs in sweet and sour sauce. 加一瓶啤酒. I want to have another bottle of beer.
All in today’s Chinese Studio.
Cam: Yajie, I can be a messy eater… and the other day, I needed to get some napkins. But how do I call for help, and then ask for some napkins?
YJ: First you may call for the waiter or waitress. In Chinese it’s服务员(fu2wu4 yuan2), waiter, or waitress. 服务员(fu2wu4 yuan2) does not mention the gender.
Cam: 服务员(fu2wu4 yuan2).
YJ: 服务(fu2wu4) means service. 服, f-u, the second tone; 务, w-u, the fourth tone. Together it’s服务(fu2wu4).
Cam: 服务(fu2wu4).
YJ: 员 (yuan2), y-u-a-n, the second tone. It suggests a person engaged in certain field of activity.
Cam: 员 (yuan2).
YJ: 服务员(fu2wu4 yuan2).
Cam: 服务员(fu2wu4 yuan2).
Conversation1 :
YJ: Now Cam, there they are, and you can ask for some napkins. Let’s learn how to say napkin first. It’s “餐巾纸(can1jin1 zhi3)”.
Cam: 餐巾纸(can1jin1 zhi3)
YJ: 餐巾(can1jin1) is napkin. All in the first tone.
Cam: 餐巾(can1jin1).
YJ: 纸 (zhi3), z-h-i, the third tone means paper.
Cam: 纸 (zhi3).
YJ: 餐巾纸(can1jin1zhi3) napkin.
Cam: 餐巾纸(can1jin1zhi3).
YJ: 我要几张餐巾纸(wo3 yao4 ji3 zhang1 can1jin1zhi3)。
Cam: 我要几张餐巾纸( wo3 yao4 ji3 zhang1 can1jin1zhi3)。
YJ: 几(ji3) means some, and 张(zhang1) is a measure word for the napkin, means piece of …
Cam: Wow, hold on a sec Yajie. In English we don’t say some pieces of napkin, we just say some napkins.
YJ: I know. But that is the difference between English and Chinese. In Chinese we say “some pieces of napkin” 几张(ji3 zhang1) means some pieces of …
Cam: 几张 (ji3 zhang1)。
YJ: and napkin is 餐巾纸。So together “I’d like some napkins ” should be 我要几张餐巾纸( wo3 yao4 ji3 zhang1 can1jin1zhi3)
Cam:我要几张餐巾纸( wo3 yao4 ji3 zhang1 can1jin1zhi3)。
Conversation2:
Cam: Yajie, I don’t think I could ever eat enough Chinese food… so I’d like to add another dish, but how about spareribs in sweet and sour sauce?
YJ: Ok… Cam. You can say加一个糖醋排骨(jia1 yi2ge4 tang2 cu4 pai2 gu3).
Cam: 加一个糖醋排骨(jia1 yi2ge4 tang2 cu4 pai2 gu3).
YJ: 加(jia1) means add.
Cam: 加(jia1).
YJ: 一个(yi2ge4), one.
Cam: 一个(yi2ge4).
YJ: 糖醋排骨(tang2 cu4 pai2 gu3), we learned it in previous show.
Cam: Yes, how can I forget this, 糖醋排骨(tang2 cu4 pai2 gu3).
YJ: 加一个糖醋排骨(jia1 yi2ge4 tang2 cu4 pai2 gu3). I’d like to add spareribs in sweet and sour sauce.
Cam: 加一个糖醋排骨(jia1 yi2ge4 tang2 cu4 pai2 gu3). So I guess I can put any dish after jia1 yi2 ge4, right?
YJ: yes, jia yi ge any dish that u want.
Cam: Ok…I also want to have another bottle of beer. Can I say ”jia1 yi2 ge3 pi2 jiu3”?
YJ: it’s 加一瓶啤酒(jia1 yi4ping2 pi2jiu3) 瓶ping, means bottle。
Cam: Oh, right, I knew that, 加一瓶啤酒(jia1 yi4ping2 pi2jiu3).
