Hi! Everybody
Recently I bumped into this wonderful site where I learned (and am still learning) a lot about the Hokkien dialect. I would like to share with all of you one aspect of Hokkien I find fascinating. This is about adjectives used in the Hokkien dialect. For the purpose of emphasis of an adjective, often we find that this word is followed by an ending of two repeated words. (This is also found in Mandarin.) I have listed some as follows and hopefully all of you will help to add more to the list:
(I am not good in tone indication, but just hope that you could understand them.)
am bong bong - dark
ang ki ki - red
ang kong kong - red
ban so so - slow
chiam tok tok - sharp (btw this is why westerners, and Indians too, are
called "a-tok-a" in Taiwan because of their sharp nose.)
chhao hiam hiam - bad smell
chhi (nasal) sun sun - green
chhoo bi ba - rough (this one is one of the few exceptions with an ending
not in repeated words)
eng sian sian - free (time)
gong tai tai - stupid
gut lut sut - slippery (another exception)
hiong kai kai - fierce
hue niao niao - messy (in writing, drawing)
hue long long - messay (same as above)
iu chi chi - oily
iu kao kao - sad face
jeng chhi chhi - quiet
jiao phi phoe - wrinkle (another exception)
jiat kun kun - hot, enthusiatic about something
ju chhiang chhiang - messy
kim tang tang - golden, shining
khi toa toa - angry
leng hoo hoo - loose, not tight
leng ki ki - cold
leng pi pi - cold
liam thi thi - sticky
luan chhi chha (nasal) - chaotic
nng kao kao - soft
nng ko ko - soft
nua koo koo - soft and soggy (there must be a better word for this
explanation)
oo so so - black
oo lu lu - black
oo gui gui - black
ook khiak khiak - fierce
pe chang chang - white
pe le se - white (another exception)
pui chi chi - fat
pha (nasal) phi phu - not solid (another exception)
phua koo koo - broken into pieces
san pi pa - thin (person)(another exception)
san poo poo - thin (person)
sian tao tao - tired
siao tin tong (siao tin tang) - crazy (another exception)
sio kun kun - hot
song tai tai - coountry bumpkin like
sui tang tang - beautiful
tang pi pu - heavy (exception)
teng khok khok - hard
tit long song - straight (exception)
wan khiao khiao - crooked, not straight
we chak chak - short (person)
I am sorry that I cannot use tone indicaitons lest mistakenly use may cause misleadings. I can think of only these. I am sure there will many more new additions all of you can come up with. -:)
Hokkien Adjectives
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Casey
Re: Hokkien Adjectives
Another type of adjectives are also very interesting. To put in more "oomph" the main word is followed by three words behind. I can think of the following three:
- tng lo ko so - long (and tall too); e.g. The bamboos are "tng lo ko so" (very long and tall).
- wai ko chhi chhuah - not straight, crooked
- hue pa li niao - messy (writing, drawing); The wall is full of grafitti. It is "hue pa li niao".
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- tng lo ko so - long (and tall too); e.g. The bamboos are "tng lo ko so" (very long and tall).
- wai ko chhi chhuah - not straight, crooked
- hue pa li niao - messy (writing, drawing); The wall is full of grafitti. It is "hue pa li niao".
[%sig%]
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Niuc
Re: Hokkien Adjectives
Casey, this topic is indeed very interesting. Could you please tell us the wonderful website you mentioned? Does it have ‘hanji’ (Chinese characters) for this kind of words?
Here are some additional I remember, written with basic tones:
ang5 pha*3 pha*3 [ang5 phaN3 phaN3] – red (sky)
ng5 siu4 siu4 [ng5 siuh4 siuh4] – yellow
pe8 siak4 siak4 [peh8 siak4 siak4] - white
o1 kau8 kau8 [oo1 kao8 kao8] - black
o1 ter8 ter8 [oo1 teh4 teh4] - black
lik8 chiam3 chiam3 [lek8 chhiam3 chhiam3] - green
chi*1 sui2 sui2 [chhiN1 sui2 sui2] – blue (chi* in our dialect is blue instead of green, may be cyan is more accurate)
kng1 tang5 tang5 – bright
kng1 cha3 cha3 [kng1 chha3 chha3] - bright
am3 mi1 mo1 [am3 mi1 moo1] - dark
am3 mi1 sou1 [am3 mi1 so1] - dark
cue7 bi4 bua2 [tsoe7 bih4 bua2] – a lot / many
ching1 ka*3 ka*3 [chheng1 kaN3 kaN3] – clear (water)
bu7 siak4 siak4 - blurry
kut8 liu1 liu1 - slippery
kut8 niu4 siu*4 - slippery
khin1 niu4 siu*4 – light (vs heavy)
tang7 hm4 hm4 - heavy
si2 khiau3 khiau3 - dead
ua8 thiau3 thiau3 - lively
kau7 ching5 ching5 [kau7 chheng5 chheng5] - thick
pou8 li1 si1 – thin (vs thick)
pui5 tut4 tut4 - fat
pui5 lut4 lut4 - fat
pui5 lin3 lin3 - fat
i*5 lin3 lin3 - round
sua*3 thang2 thang2 - scattered
sua*3 ler8 ler8 – scattered
nng2 kiu8 kiu8 - soft
liou3 khiang7 khiang7 – tall (human)
ue2 ti8 tu8 – short (human)
sui2 ter1 ter1 - beautiful
phang1 kun2 kun2 - fragrant
iu3 mi1 mi1 – small/fine
iu3 mng1 mng1 – small/fine
luan7 chau1 chau1 - messy
luan7 chi1 chau1 - messy
siou1 thng3 thng3 - hot
khiang3 me4 me4 - clever
khiang3 ter1 ter1 - clever
gong7 ma4 ma4 - stupid
lau7 khok4 khok4 – old (vs young)
siau3 lian5 ter1 ter1 - young
kiam5 tok4 tok4 - salty
an5 tok2 tok2 - tight
sian7 tiu4 tiu4 - tired
kang1 sou1 sou1 – empty
kang1 so1 so1 - empty
ti*7 buan2 buan2 - full
pa2 ci*8 ci*8 - full
so1 piang3 piang3 - luxurious
niau1 pa3 pa3 – messy (writing)
ta1 khok4 khok4 – dry
ta1 sou4 sou4 - dry
tam5 lok4 lok4 - wet
tam5 ko3 ko3 - wet
sin1 tang1 tang1 - new
ku7 mau4 mau4 – old (vs new)
cha5 kuai4 kuai4 - stiff
tiam7 chi*1 chi*1 – quiet/silent
siu*5 kue5 kue5 – watery & muddy
chiou3 gi7 gi7 – big smile
chiou3 bi1 bi1 – big smile
chiou3 hai1 hai1 – big smile / laugh
iu1 khok4 khok4 - sad
chau3 pia*1 pia*1 – (said of unpleasant face)
liau5 pi3 pa3 [jiau5 pi3 pa3] - wrinkled
chiou1 ngia*5 ngia*5 - show off
ban7 thun1 thun1 - slow
tng5 phai*3 phai*3 - long
chui3 ko5 ko5 – broken in pieces
phu5 ching3 ching3 - arrogant
hiau5 li1 le1 – indecent
hiau5 li4 le4 – indecent
bou5 ai*5 chi4 chi4 [bo5 eng5 chhi4 chhi4] – busy
lau7 liat8 chi4 chi4 – busy / crowded
To emphasize a verb, reduplication usually precedes the verb:
kok8 khok8 cer7 – sitting without doing anything
khong3 khong3 tan2 – waiting in vain
phi8 phi8 chua2 - trembling
si4 si4 cun3 – trembling (hands)
ki1 ki1 kiou3 – shouting aloud
thi5 thi5 hau2 – crying aloud
lin1 lin1 gou5 – moving in circle
Some adjective can be tripled to emphasize its meaning:
ang5 ang5 ang5 - very very red, really red
Others:
i*5 ka1 la7 kou7 - round
pe8 cia*2 bou5 bi7 - tasteless
bou5 bi7 kau2 so3 - tasteless
thi2 thi2 thiau3 thiau3 – jumping here & there
‘la7 ser3’ used to describe a bad manner:
tai7 yat8 la7 ser3 – acting arrogantly
iau1 kui2 la7 ser3 – acting like a hungry ghost
Hopefully all friends here will share more about this interesting topic
[%sig%]
Here are some additional I remember, written with basic tones:
ang5 pha*3 pha*3 [ang5 phaN3 phaN3] – red (sky)
ng5 siu4 siu4 [ng5 siuh4 siuh4] – yellow
pe8 siak4 siak4 [peh8 siak4 siak4] - white
o1 kau8 kau8 [oo1 kao8 kao8] - black
o1 ter8 ter8 [oo1 teh4 teh4] - black
lik8 chiam3 chiam3 [lek8 chhiam3 chhiam3] - green
chi*1 sui2 sui2 [chhiN1 sui2 sui2] – blue (chi* in our dialect is blue instead of green, may be cyan is more accurate)
kng1 tang5 tang5 – bright
kng1 cha3 cha3 [kng1 chha3 chha3] - bright
am3 mi1 mo1 [am3 mi1 moo1] - dark
am3 mi1 sou1 [am3 mi1 so1] - dark
cue7 bi4 bua2 [tsoe7 bih4 bua2] – a lot / many
ching1 ka*3 ka*3 [chheng1 kaN3 kaN3] – clear (water)
bu7 siak4 siak4 - blurry
kut8 liu1 liu1 - slippery
kut8 niu4 siu*4 - slippery
khin1 niu4 siu*4 – light (vs heavy)
tang7 hm4 hm4 - heavy
si2 khiau3 khiau3 - dead
ua8 thiau3 thiau3 - lively
kau7 ching5 ching5 [kau7 chheng5 chheng5] - thick
pou8 li1 si1 – thin (vs thick)
pui5 tut4 tut4 - fat
pui5 lut4 lut4 - fat
pui5 lin3 lin3 - fat
i*5 lin3 lin3 - round
sua*3 thang2 thang2 - scattered
sua*3 ler8 ler8 – scattered
nng2 kiu8 kiu8 - soft
liou3 khiang7 khiang7 – tall (human)
ue2 ti8 tu8 – short (human)
sui2 ter1 ter1 - beautiful
phang1 kun2 kun2 - fragrant
iu3 mi1 mi1 – small/fine
iu3 mng1 mng1 – small/fine
luan7 chau1 chau1 - messy
luan7 chi1 chau1 - messy
siou1 thng3 thng3 - hot
khiang3 me4 me4 - clever
khiang3 ter1 ter1 - clever
gong7 ma4 ma4 - stupid
lau7 khok4 khok4 – old (vs young)
siau3 lian5 ter1 ter1 - young
kiam5 tok4 tok4 - salty
an5 tok2 tok2 - tight
sian7 tiu4 tiu4 - tired
kang1 sou1 sou1 – empty
kang1 so1 so1 - empty
ti*7 buan2 buan2 - full
pa2 ci*8 ci*8 - full
so1 piang3 piang3 - luxurious
niau1 pa3 pa3 – messy (writing)
ta1 khok4 khok4 – dry
ta1 sou4 sou4 - dry
tam5 lok4 lok4 - wet
tam5 ko3 ko3 - wet
sin1 tang1 tang1 - new
ku7 mau4 mau4 – old (vs new)
cha5 kuai4 kuai4 - stiff
tiam7 chi*1 chi*1 – quiet/silent
siu*5 kue5 kue5 – watery & muddy
chiou3 gi7 gi7 – big smile
chiou3 bi1 bi1 – big smile
chiou3 hai1 hai1 – big smile / laugh
iu1 khok4 khok4 - sad
chau3 pia*1 pia*1 – (said of unpleasant face)
liau5 pi3 pa3 [jiau5 pi3 pa3] - wrinkled
chiou1 ngia*5 ngia*5 - show off
ban7 thun1 thun1 - slow
tng5 phai*3 phai*3 - long
chui3 ko5 ko5 – broken in pieces
phu5 ching3 ching3 - arrogant
hiau5 li1 le1 – indecent
hiau5 li4 le4 – indecent
bou5 ai*5 chi4 chi4 [bo5 eng5 chhi4 chhi4] – busy
lau7 liat8 chi4 chi4 – busy / crowded
To emphasize a verb, reduplication usually precedes the verb:
kok8 khok8 cer7 – sitting without doing anything
khong3 khong3 tan2 – waiting in vain
phi8 phi8 chua2 - trembling
si4 si4 cun3 – trembling (hands)
ki1 ki1 kiou3 – shouting aloud
thi5 thi5 hau2 – crying aloud
lin1 lin1 gou5 – moving in circle
Some adjective can be tripled to emphasize its meaning:
ang5 ang5 ang5 - very very red, really red
Others:
i*5 ka1 la7 kou7 - round
pe8 cia*2 bou5 bi7 - tasteless
bou5 bi7 kau2 so3 - tasteless
thi2 thi2 thiau3 thiau3 – jumping here & there
‘la7 ser3’ used to describe a bad manner:
tai7 yat8 la7 ser3 – acting arrogantly
iau1 kui2 la7 ser3 – acting like a hungry ghost
Hopefully all friends here will share more about this interesting topic
[%sig%]
-
Casey
Re: Hokkien Adjectives
Niuc
First of all, I sincerely apologise for my poor English expression which misled you to believe that I have found another Hokkien website. What I meant was that I found this very website that we are in. This is the wonderful website I was talking about. Sorry again.
It is very interesting to go through your list of adjectives. What a list! It is great that you could come up with so many more.
Yes, repeated words as adverbs do bring out the action denoted by the verb more lively. However, I found that the auxiliary words were not as specific as those in adjectives.
Lastly, I have not come across the expression "---- la7 ser3" before. Is this specifically used in "Tang Oa*" dialect only?
[%sig%]
First of all, I sincerely apologise for my poor English expression which misled you to believe that I have found another Hokkien website. What I meant was that I found this very website that we are in. This is the wonderful website I was talking about. Sorry again.
It is very interesting to go through your list of adjectives. What a list! It is great that you could come up with so many more.
Yes, repeated words as adverbs do bring out the action denoted by the verb more lively. However, I found that the auxiliary words were not as specific as those in adjectives.
Lastly, I have not come across the expression "---- la7 ser3" before. Is this specifically used in "Tang Oa*" dialect only?
[%sig%]
-
Casey
Re: Hokkien Adjectives
Niuc
First of all, I sincerely apologise for my poor English expression which misled you to believe that I have found another Hokkien website. What I meant was that I found this very website that we are in. This is the wonderful website I was talking about. Sorry again.
It is very interesting to go through your list of adjectives. What a list! It is great that you could come up with so many more.
Yes, repeated words as adverbs do bring out the action denoted by the verb more lively. However, I found that the auxiliary words were not as specific as those in adjectives.
Lastly, I have not come across the expression "---- la7 ser3" before. Is this specifically used in "Tang Oa*" dialect only?
First of all, I sincerely apologise for my poor English expression which misled you to believe that I have found another Hokkien website. What I meant was that I found this very website that we are in. This is the wonderful website I was talking about. Sorry again.
It is very interesting to go through your list of adjectives. What a list! It is great that you could come up with so many more.
Yes, repeated words as adverbs do bring out the action denoted by the verb more lively. However, I found that the auxiliary words were not as specific as those in adjectives.
Lastly, I have not come across the expression "---- la7 ser3" before. Is this specifically used in "Tang Oa*" dialect only?
-
Niuc
Re: Hokkien Adjectives
Hi Casey,
You're too polite!
It was not really your mistake hence no need to apologize. Even if it were, it were not a serious one. Actually it was also due to my misinterpretation. So, please don't take it too seriously.
There are a lot of expression like these in Hokkien. There are still many more beside those posted above by you & me. Yeah, I also feel that these kind of auxiliary words for verbs are less than those for adjectives.
About "---- la7 ser3" ['er' sounds as in English 'her', this sound also exists in Cuanciu dialect, become 'e' in E-mng and 'ue' in Ciangciu], I don't know whether it's only used in Tang-ua* dialect. Its usage is quite limited. So far I haven't heard this expression in other dialects. I'll try to find out.
Btw, Kaiah wrote the 'hanji' for some of the expressions you posted in this page http://chinese.cari.com.my/forum/viewth ... ?tid=27757 .
http://chinese.cari.com.my/forum/forumd ... php?fid=37 is a Malaysian Chinese forum for discussion on Chinese dialects. Many postings are very interesting.
[%sig%]
You're too polite!
It was not really your mistake hence no need to apologize. Even if it were, it were not a serious one. Actually it was also due to my misinterpretation. So, please don't take it too seriously.
There are a lot of expression like these in Hokkien. There are still many more beside those posted above by you & me. Yeah, I also feel that these kind of auxiliary words for verbs are less than those for adjectives.
About "---- la7 ser3" ['er' sounds as in English 'her', this sound also exists in Cuanciu dialect, become 'e' in E-mng and 'ue' in Ciangciu], I don't know whether it's only used in Tang-ua* dialect. Its usage is quite limited. So far I haven't heard this expression in other dialects. I'll try to find out.
Btw, Kaiah wrote the 'hanji' for some of the expressions you posted in this page http://chinese.cari.com.my/forum/viewth ... ?tid=27757 .
http://chinese.cari.com.my/forum/forumd ... php?fid=37 is a Malaysian Chinese forum for discussion on Chinese dialects. Many postings are very interesting.
[%sig%]