HSK 4 Grammar 04: Auxiliary Words
HSK · HSK · HSK 4 Topik 4 3:37 Narasi bahasa Inggris · Subtitle bahasa Inggris + 中文 disematkan langsung
Bab-bab
Transkrip
Two endings round off a list without finishing it. Shenme de is the chatty and-stuff, and deng or dengdeng is the formal etcetera. Choosing between them is a register question, spoken ease against written neatness, and the exam also listens for one punctuation habit: Chinese puts no comma before deng. This lesson works both endings, then pairs them in real situations.
The structure is noun one, noun two, optionally noun three, then shenme de. Wo nainai zhi chi shucai, doufu shenme de, my grandma only eats vegetables, tofu, and the like. Shuxue, wuli shenme de, wo dou bu ganxingqu, maths, physics and so on, I'm not interested in any of it. Shenme de rounds off an informal list with a casual wave of the hand, and it can even trail a single item when it is obvious what else belongs in the group, like zhoumo ta jiu da da youxi shenme de, at weekends he just plays games and stuff. It is casual, fine in speech, too loose for formal writing.
A friend asks what you ate at the night market. The register is chat, so the casual ending fits. Name two real items, then wave: women chi le kaochuan, jianbing shenme de, we had skewers, pancakes and stuff. Two real items plus the wave is exactly how a natural spoken answer goes, neither an inventory nor a shrug.
Deng or dengdeng closes a list formally. Xigua, putao dengdeng, wo dou xihuan chi, watermelon, grapes and so on, I like them all. Two habits to build. First, no comma before it: Chinese writes pingguo, xiangjiao deng, with the list's dun-marks between items and deng simply appended, never a comma in front. Second, deng can sit before a summarising noun: Beijing, Shanghai deng chengshi, cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, where the category noun rides after deng, a structure English handles with such as.
Put the two endings side by side. Shenme de is casual and spoken, for chat and texting, and it is too loose for formal writing. Deng and dengdeng are formal and written, for lists, reports and notices, with no comma before them. Same job, different clothes. A message to a friend: wo mai le shupian, kele shenme de, I bought crisps, cola and stuff. A notice on a board: qing xiedai qianbi, xiangpi, shenfenzheng deng wupin, please bring items such as pencils, erasers and your I D card. The ending matches the page it sits on.
Pause and check both. First, the written notice takes deng or dengdeng, the formal ending; shenme de would be too loose for the page. Second, false: Chinese writes no comma before deng, pingguo, xiangjiao deng, with the ending simply appended. The review's remaining questions: cities such as Beijing and Shanghai is Beijing, Shanghai deng chengshi, with the category noun after deng, and a text to a friend about weekend food takes shenme de, the casual wave.