5 Chinese phrases I wish we had in English by Christina Twu

[yuiyoshida]

Growing up in a Mandarin-speaking household, I always knew I could count on my family tongue to express what I couldn’t in English.

For Chinese-Taiwanese-American families like mine (and Eddie Huang’s of “Fresh off the Boat” fame) most of what I heard growing up were from the mouths of Chinese matriarchs — a feisty auntie, a sassy mom, a scary restaurant boss. These women had no time for niceties. They would pass tiger judgment and pounce on anyone walking their direction. They threw their words around like darts: this person was too loud, lazy, too wild; they stink, they’re crazy, wrong, or they are just too much. But while these words often stung, they were delivered with equal parts suspicion, warmth and humor.

Though I can’t pay homage to the 300-some other Chinese dialects and languages besides Mandarin (including Cantonese, with these unparalleled proverbs captured by artist Ah To), I like to believe they come from the same spirit: the Chinese trinity of judgment, humor and family love.

But mostly, I can just vouch for my own experience as a Federal Way-reared American-born Chinese (ABC). Here is a smattering of it: five Mandarin Chinese phrases the English language should take a cue from:

1. Mò míng qí miào (莫名其妙


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http://www.seattleglobalist.com/2015/06/17/5-chinese-phrases-i-wish-we-had-in-english-mandarin-language/38334