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Chinese/Questions Answered by Expert Terry Thatcher Waltz
| Subject | Date Asked |
| Radical pronunciation | 12/11/2011 |
| Q: I've just started with Mandarin and have an assignment which requires me to write the pronunciation ... A: Well, first let me say -- what a useless assignment! You're clearly in a very traditionally taught ... | |
| Please Translate This Photo. | 4/27/2011 |
| Q: I was wondering if you could possibly type the characters in this photo out, along with the english ... A: 启动成功进入游戏仓库按ctl+shift ... | |
| Chinese Names and Naming Conventions | 4/24/2011 |
| Q: I'm trying to come up with a name for a Chinese girl in a modern story I'm writing but I'm ... A: Sorry, I didn't get notified that your follow-up was waiting at allexperts... :-( The University ... | |
| Chinese Names and Naming Conventions | 4/23/2011 |
| Q: I'm trying to come up with a name for a Chinese girl in a modern story I'm writing but I'm ... A: Chinese names consist of the surname, which comes first, and a given name. There is actually a list ... | |
| Gift for a baby | 3/17/2011 |
| Q: Would it be appropriate for a stranger to give a Chinese woman a gift for her baby. I was thinking ... A: I am sure that would be most appreciated. Traditionally, red would be the best color. If the person ... | |
| Chinese Character | 1/18/2011 |
| Q: I was wondering if you could please translate the attached chinese character for me. =) Thanks! A: This is a Simplified form (from Mainland China). It can be read either "le" or "yue". It doesn't ... | |
| Help translating postage stamp | 12/19/2010 |
| Q: This anvelop arrived and I don;t understand what it says on the postage stamp. Can you tell from the ... A: Well, this is not a postage stamp; it is just something printed on the envelope indicating that ... | |
| Is this chinese? | 12/7/2010 |
| Q: I'm troubleshooting a technical issue for a Combat Arms player. It would be easier if I could ... A: Yes, it is Chinese...but it's not an error message. This is just the list of alternatives that ... | |
| What college/University should I go to if I want to become a translator/interpretor? | 12/1/2010 |
| Q: I asked a couple people for advice, and they said I should major in something like Communications ... A: You should go to the least expensive college you can find. Seriously. It makes no difference at all ... | |
| why add 儿, the pinyin r after some words | 11/16/2010 |
| Q: I'll like to know why you must add 儿, the pinyin r after some chinese words. Thank you your ... A: The "r" sound just represents the variety of Mandarin spoken in Beijing -- or what people believe is ... | |
| how to pronounce "qiongqi" | 10/25/2010 |
| Q: Waltz, Can you tell how "qiongqi" would be pronounced in English? I found the term "A Chinese ... A: Sounds like that will be an interesting story! I couldn't figure out the best way to "spell" the ... | |
| Translation for two character | 9/27/2010 |
| Q: the link below is a picture of a tattoo of two asian charaters, Im not sure what language exactly, ... A: The character on the left, si3, means "death". The one on the right, "sheng1", means "life". The ... | |
| question about chinese symbols | 8/15/2010 |
| Q: I was curious as to why the Chinese have two different symbols for numbers; one for lower and one ... A: Chinese people write numbers using Arabic numerals, just as we do in English. The numbers can also ... | |
| Quick Question | 4/17/2010 |
| Q: Just a quick question. What's the Mandarin phoneme with the most number of associated characters? ... A: There isn't one. A phoneme is an individual unit of sound in a language that functions to ... | |
| What are these Chinese figures? | 3/9/2010 |
| Q: We received this gift from our Chinese friend upon having our baby daughter. We don't know what it ... A: I can only tell you what I've been able to find out about this -- I'm not an expert on Chinese or ... | |
| Chinese words in picture | 12/30/2009 |
| Q: could you please tell me what the words in this picture translate to in english? ... A: I think what you have in the picture is actually Japanese. The top character (or should we say ... | |
| Need help translating | 12/3/2009 |
| Q: I have this picture hanging in my living room and am a little embarrassed by not knowing what it ... A: This is one of my favorite sayings in Chinese: "zhi1 zu2 chang2 le4" -- know when you have enough ... | |
| Chinese translation from image | 9/25/2009 |
| Q: I was hoping you may be able to help me with a translation. I have attached an image. I have been ... A: Preston, No wonder you have had difficulty translating this...it's not proper Chinese. These are ... | |
| Translation? | 9/22/2009 |
| Q: I am very sorry for my failed attachments. Trying this one more time. This link should take you ... A: Well, this won't be what you were hoping for...I can't read it. I sent the image files to a native ... | |
| Tattoo | 8/13/2009 |
| Q: I'm pretty sure my tattoo on my back is not what I asked for. I've had it for about four years and ... A: The character on your back is "ying1", which is a Chinese surname, and used to mean "brave" in ... | |
| verbs - english to chinese | 7/3/2009 |
| Q: I am having trouble translating the verb "write", and the nouns "strength", and "life". Any help ... A: I would use this: 寫是活力 xiě shì huólì “活力" ... | |
| Confucius | 4/4/2009 |
| Q: Can you please tell me what these Confucius sayings mean in English: ... A: 三人行，必有我师。 Wherever three people walk, ... | |
| Meaning of the characters | 1/8/2008 |
| Q: Could you please explain the meaning of these two characters - "ke3 wang4" - "渴 望". ... A: It just means "to hope" -- a somewhat stronger meaning than the usual "xi1wang4". ke3 is 'thirsty' ... | |
| Translation. | 1/5/2008 |
| Q: Hope you are in good health and doing great. I was very interested in two art prints which I found ... A: Not to be too curmudgeonly, but I would never buy these as "art" prints. The Chinese characters are ... | |
| translation | 12/6/2007 |
| Q: What does "ÒÔÓÎÀë»ù¼Æ" mean in English, regarding lab chemical testing. as well as "ÒÔF¼Æ" I am ... A: Your Chinese characters got garbled on the AllExperts site, but they came through fine in the ... | |
| Remark Re a Chinese pictogram | 9/12/2007 |
| Q: My father once mentioned to me how his own father, a renowned Chinese-history expert(my grandfather ... A: Three woman radicals together is jian1, which as an individual character carries the meaning of ... | |
| Scope of outsiders in China after 10 years | 6/14/2007 |
| Q: People keep talking about China and its probable dominance in the world after few years ... A: Of course it will be advantageous! Would you want to depend only on what the people on the other ... | |
| chinese kanji pronunciation aid | 6/2/2007 |
| Q: I am currently learning japanese, but i really want to learn chinese afterwards. I was just ... A: I don't know of anything that prints Pinyin that small (you could potentially have up to 5 letters ... | |
| Bible scripture in english translated to chinese | 5/25/2007 |
| Q: I was wondering if you could translate this scripture for me. I would like to get a tattoo with this ... A: Leonora, If you believe in this sentiment, have it tattooed in English. The tattoo artist will not ... | |
| Chinese birth day | 3/22/2007 |
| Q: I have heard that some Chinese people count the time spent in the mothers womb is counted as the ... A: Most people in Taiwan do believe this, and as a result, I never turned 30 years old (I had moved to ... | |
| chinese alphabet | 3/9/2007 |
| Q: were can i find the chinese alphabet? i have a few symbles like man, sheep and so on. A: There is no Chinese alphabet in the sense of a (reasonably) limited number of symbols. You could use ... | |
| Chinese langauge | 1/1/2007 |
| Q: How many words are in the Chinese language? A: How many drops of water in the ocean? It depends on how you count -- and actually no one could ever ... | |
| Chinese university admission | 10/31/2006 |
| Q: I am a high school junior interested in applying to an undergraduate program in China after ... A: First, "requirements" on the Chinese side are usually written in stone. I can't think of any way ... | |
| TPRS Mandarin Course for adults? | 10/22/2006 |
| Q: I'd like to learn more about TPRS and improve my Chinese at the same time. Are there any courses (in ... A: I haven't been tracking it carefully of late, but to my knowlege there are not. I have been (very ... | |
| Can Chinese be self-taught | 9/20/2006 |
| Q: My friend is interested in learning Mandarin Chinese, i am wondering before she embarks on it, if it ... A: Well, there are always people who can learn almost anything on their own, and others who don't seem ... | |
| Birthday Greeting | 7/25/2006 |
| Q: I would like to paint calligraphy on a small scroll which I have a rosewood holder for. It's a nice ... A: Jesse, I can't think of anything off the top of my head...you probably want to find a real Chinese ... | |
| Internet/ Interp Software | 7/5/2006 |
| Q: Mrs. Thatcher-Waltz, I am a internet/graphics designer looking to expand my business in the ... A: If you mean machine translation, or some sort of program you could use on your PC or other device to ... | |
| translation | 6/15/2006 |
| Q: i want to know what the characters in this picture mean. can you help? found it on the net and its ... A: John, As I strongly suspect this is a tattoo question (why else would you have four individual ... | |
| translation | 6/7/2006 |
| Q: can you translate this plz thanx paste this into ypur address bar ... A: Sorry it took me awhile to pick up my mail today as I was traveling back from an out-of-town job. I ... | |
| Proverb | 6/3/2006 |
| Q: I was reading about the Seven Warring States and came across the sentence: A popular Chinese ... A: It's hard to be certain, but it sounds like the expression might be "qi1 guo2 zhi1 luan4". You can ... | |
| President Hu Jintao | 4/22/2006 |
| Q: I would appreciate it if you could tell me whether President Hu Jintao of China can speak English ... A: I don't know if he speaks English or not, but diplomatic protocol demands that heads of state and ... | |
| Question About Chinese | 3/7/2006 |
| Q: I am doing a project for University about self-teaching language. My question is Would you say it ... A: I would say..definitely yes. There is nothing magical about having a language teacher or using a ... | |
| the best US College to study Chinese | 1/18/2006 |
| Q: Is there a good school to study Chinese in the US? Is there a recognized authority in the business ... A: There are quite a few schools that offer Chinese at the university level. I'm prejudiced toward ... | |
| possible tattoo | 1/12/2006 |
| Q: what do the words "health, wisdom, prosperity" in chinese calligraphy look like? A: These are not one-character words,and I have to say that as a matter of policy, I do NOT advise ... | |
| Learning Chinese | 1/6/2006 |
| Q: Maybe this is a silly question, but could you recommend a book or a program to me to help learn ... A: I'd really suggest trying to get a class somewhere, because the pronunciation of Chinese -- with the ... | |
| CHINESE | 12/28/2005 |
| Q: WHAT HELPED YOU TO LEARN CHINESE? BECAUSE I HAVE BEEN LEARNIG FOR ABOUT A YEAR AND HAVE REACHED A ... A: Well, the best thing is to take a diversified approach to your learning. If you don't already do so, ... | |
| Chinese tattoo | 9/16/2005 |
| Q: First of all, thank you very much for your kindness and patience. I'm sorry to bother you so much ... A: I can assure you, first of all, that we translate Chinese for a living. The translators who have ... | |
| Chinese tattoo | 9/16/2005 |
| Q: So as far as your concern, can I be quiet - that the tattoo says "mother"? thanks.thanks. I've set ... A: I've asked a couple of other translators to look at the tattoo photo (good thing you posted it to ... | |
| Chinese tattoo | 9/16/2005 |
| Q: I've set up an album at tripod.com. here is the direct link to the photo: ... A: In the photo you posted, there are three characters. The "top" of the tattoo is the bottom of hte ... | |
| Chinese Writing | 9/20/2004 |
| Q: May I send you a picture of a Chinese symbol (writing) so you can tell me what it means? A: No problem looking at it...but it would be better if you can find a place to post the image (there ... | |
| request opinion | 8/29/2004 |
| Q: sorry to bother you again but I am still wrestling with my Mothers birthday wish! Could please tell ... A: I would still use "gongxi qishi sui" instead of "qishi sui le". That version doesn't sound like a ... | |
| translation | 8/25/2004 |
| Q: Terry, one more question and I promise not to bother you again. I want to write a scroll in chinese ... A: Hmmm....what a nice idea! Let's take your sentences one by one. First, you wouldn't call your mother ... | |
| Translation | 8/25/2004 |
| Q: Cheers Terry! So I WAS miles off with my translation! Never mind, I'll keep slogging away at ... A: Just remember in Chinese, try starting from ALL the words (in succession)....if it doesn't make ... | |
| translation | 8/25/2004 |
| Q: Terry, thanks for your speedy response. Would it help if I gave the dictionary def of each ... A: Brilliant idea to give the dictionary definitions...now I can definitely tell you what it means! ... | |
| request translation | 8/25/2004 |
| Q: I am teaching myself Chinese and know several hundred characters... Would you be so kind as to ... A: I'm sure you will have a great time learning Chinese! It is such a neat language to know. Now, ... | |
Terry Thatcher Waltz
Top Expert on this page
Expertise
I specialize in Chinese technical translation and conference interpretation, and terminology. I can answer questions about these topics, Chinese language pedagogy and learning issues, Chinese grammar for learners, and general issue related to Taiwan.
Experience
Full-time translator and conference interpreter since 1987; long-time resident of Taiwan. Qualified State Dept. language contractor (interpreter and translator) with extensive government and private sector experience.
Organizations
American Translators Association; The Translators' and Interpreters' Guild; ATA Interpreters' Division; ATA Chinese Division.
Publications
AIIC (International Association of Conference Interpreters) website
Education/Credentials
Ph.D., Chinese; MA, Conference Interpreting
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