a few translations/hanzis

[Corina]

Hi I wanted to see if anyone could help me with these translations/hanzis for these following words:

* mien kerng - (I believe this means reluctant/unwilling? or was that average/ok?)
* Mó kwái ('kwái' has a short "a" sound and is rising) - (I heard this in a song, i think it's a noun for something... any thoughts?)

I also wanted to ask about the grammar of the word "gwai" - ghost. I know many Cantonese people use "gwai" as an intensified. such as "lei gong mut gwai" - What are you saying? I recently heart "zao gwai jo" - to leave/run away. Is the "gwai" an intensifier? I also heard a replacement for the word "gwai" with the word "cheun" (spring). "lei gong mut cheun?" So are "gwai" and "cheun" intensifiers?

[Terence]

1. min5 koeng5 勉強
2. mou4 kwai5 無

[...]

>> Is the "gwai" an intensifier?

yes.

>> I also heard a replacement for the word "gwai" with the word "cheun" (spring). "lei gong mut cheun?" So are "gwai" and "cheun" intensifiers?

well... here "cheun" means "testis".
"gong mut cheun" = " ballocks" [COARSE slang] nonsense.

[Dylan Sung]

Hoho! BTW, that should be "bollocks", which was once part of a song by a certain punk band. They were taken to court over it, but the attorney argued it was something to do with the church (either vestments or some such), therefore its a bone fide word, apparently.

Dyl.

[...]

thx4ur corrections

[Kobo-Daishi]

Dear all,

Dylan wrote:

>They were taken to court over it, but the attorney
>argued it was something to do with the church (either
>vestments or some such), therefore its a bone fide
>word, apparently.

I found this entry for bollock at the Oxford English Dictionary web site:

[var. BALLOCK.]

1. pl. The testicles. Cf. BALLOCK 1.

1744 School of Venus in D. Thomas Long Time Burning (1969) 362 You..can now without blushing call pr*ck, stones, bollocks, c*nt, tarse and the like names. 1763 WILKES & POTTER Essay on Woman (1871) 19 Pr*ck, c*nt, and bollocks in convulsions hurl'd. 1874 Lett. fr. Friend in Paris II. 158 At the same time handling the noble bollocks. 1968 Landfall XXII. 17 Fine specimen of a lad, my Monty. All bollocks and beef.

2. Naut. Either of two blocks fastened to the topsail-yard, for the topsail-ties to reeve through.

1889 Cent. Dict., Bollock-block. 1898 ANSTED Dict. Sea Terms, Bollocks, blocks secured to the middle of the topsail yards in large ships; the topsail ties pass through them, and thereby gain an increase of power in lifting the yards.

3. pl. (See quot. 1919); also, a mess, a muddle; nonsense (also as int.). As adj., naked. low slang. Cf. BALLOCK 2.

1919 DOWNING Digger Dial. 12 Bollocks (n. or adj.), absurd; an absurdity. 1950 G. WILSON Brave Company (1951) viii. 142 He's stark bollock. Ibid. ix. 159 Christ, what a bollocks. 1969 It 11-24 Apr. 15/2 Bollocks, nobody at all wants to know. Ibid. 15/3 It's really a load of bollocks.

xxxxxx

It doesn't seem to have anything to do with church paraphanalia, though.

I tried to find an article about the court case but didn't have the time to wade through all the hits.

I did find a UK site where they censored the offending word by writing "b*ll*cks" instead of "bollocks".

Here in the States we wouldn't find the word offensive. In fact most people here have probably never heard the word save for the Pistols album.

Note: I also censored 2 words in the above definition entry with asterisks that might be considered obscene in the States.

Kobo-Daishi, PLLA.

[Corina]

How do I use "mien kerng" / reluctant in a sentence?

[Kobo-Daishi]

Dear all,

... wrote:

>well... here "cheun" means "testis".

What is the character for "cheun"?

Kobo-Daishi, PLLA.

[sorry...]

no idea that how "ceon1" be written. it could be "春", but one thing that ppl ususally read "卵 leon2" as "ceon1".

[chaaru]

They were taken to court over it, but the attorney argued it was something to do with the church (either vestments or some such), therefore its a bone fide word