A Grammar of Colloquial Chinese, as Exhibited in the Shanghai Dialect

63. In eight of the nine divisions above, the second initial is the strong aspirate either alone or following, the letters k, t, ch, p, f, ts and tsh. Of these the palatal ch, and sibilant tsh, are not needed in Shánghái pronunciation. Ts takes their place. In double initials the aspirate is between t and s, or t and sh.

• (ch) 知道 m. ch táú‘ s. tsz dau‘, to know
• (tsh) 出來 m. ch’uh lái s. ts’eh lé, come out

F‘ is the same as f. In other instances the aspirate is always preserved.

• 吹進吹出 t’sz tsing‘ t’sz t’séh, blow in and out
• 看歇戲否 k’ön‘ h’ih h’í‘ ’vá, have you seen the play?
• 開口 k’é ’k’eu, begin speaking

In other cases, all these letters with and without aspirates, are the same with mandarin.

64. The third initial of the same eight divisions is wanting for Shánghái, only in the case of those headed ch and tsh. Their place is supplied by z. 形狀 yuug zong‘, visible form. Sh and zh in the seventh, are replaced by s and z.

• 一隻手 m. ih chih ’sheú s. ih tsáh ’seu, one hand
• 時物 m. sh wúh s. zz veh, things in season
• 扇子 m. shen‘ tsz s. sén‘ tsz, fan
• 受領 m. sheú ling s. ’zeu ’ling, receive

65. The h of mandarin is never heard before w or y in the lower tones:—

• 三魂六魄 san wung lóh p’áh, three mental, and six physical principles of human life
• 無形無像 vú yung vú ziáng‘, invisible
• 縣分꜄ yön‘ vun‘, what belongs to a district city
• 效法別人 yiau‘ fah pih niun, imitate others

In other examples among the lower tones, a slight aspirate is retained for the strong hissing sound of mandarin.

• 紅格紙頭, hóng kák ’tsz deu, red ruled paper
• 閒書 han sû, light reading, 鞋子 há ’tsz, shoes

This slight aspirate is lost in a word standing last in a combination.

• 那能修行 ’ná nung sieu ang? how shall I grow virtuous?
• 幾許闊狹 ’kí hau‘ kweh ah? how wide?

The English aspirate is between the two aspirates here distinguished, and is the same as that of Fúh-kien. We have no parallel in our pronunciation, to that hissing guttural sound, which in the mandarin provinces, belongs to all the five tones, and in Kiáng-nán to the upper series. Hence Morrison speaks of it as sh. Nor can the weak aspirate of the Kiáng-nán lower series, disappearing as it does so frequently, be regarded an equivalent to the English h.

66. With regard to the thick mutes and sibilants (g, d, b, v, z,) in the lower tones, it may be remarked generally, that foreigners in learning colloquial phrases, usually acquire the habit of pronouncing these consonants thin, when first in a combination, and broad, when some word precedes. This is so frequently true, that no further proof is needed of the pronunciation being variable.

• 第個 tí‘ kú‘, this
• 次第 t’sz‘ dí‘, good order
• 提拔 tí bah, rescue
• 拔草 pah ’ts’au, to weed
• 罷勿得 pá‘ veh tuh, indispensable
• 勿罷拉 veh ’bá ’lá, more than that
• 大同小異 tá‘ dóng ’siau í, differing but little
• 勿大好 veh dá‘ ’hau, not good

For t and p, there is no difficulty in spelling as is here done, but k, s, f, are not so easily disposed of. The initial k or g is enunciated thickly before the vowels i and ü, though according to the system of the Dictionaries, the initial is the same in all cases. Some foreign students regard it as an aspirated consonant. Others write it dj or d. This anomaly of pronunciation, so difficult to express, does not occur before w, a and é. Limited thus to í and ü, it is thought preferable not to depart from the analogy, by inventing a new symbol for the few words in use that contain this unmanageable consonant.

• 插旗 t’sah gí, set up a flag
• 顯轎 ’h’ien giau‘, mountain chair
• 葵花 kwé hwó, sunflower
• 求告 kieu kau‘, pray

67. The lower f and s, are often heard v, z, even without a word preceding. Thus the actual pronunciation cannot be fairly represented by the law that answers for the other letters, and the only resource is to follow the natives in each case. This v, as well as that from w (m.) are pronounced w on the eastern side of the Hwáng-p’ú.

• 服事 foh zz‘, to serve
• 牢實 lau zeh, honesty
• 謝謝 siá‘ ziá‘, I thank you
• 俗字眼 sóh zz‘ ngan, colloquial expressions.
• 尙書 zong‘ sû, the Historical Classic
• 飯吃曼 van‘ k’iuh man‘, have you dined?
• 邪派 siá p’á‘, depraved customs
• 罰咒 vah tseu‘, to swear
• 實在 seh zé‘, truly

68. The initials z and dz correspond, though somewhat irregularly, to the tabular initials z, zh, and j, dz, dj.

• 樹丫枝 zû‘ au tsz, branches of trees
• 若使 zák sz‘, if
• 炰茶 p’au‘ dzó make tea
• 傳下來 dzén ’au lé, deliver down
• 聚攏來 dzü‘ ’lóng lé, collect

The d is often dropped, both, in reading and in the conversational form.

• 勿會寫字 veh wé‘ siá zz‘, cannot write (m. tsz‘).
• 擺渡船 ’pá dú‘ zén,[1] ferry-boat (m. ch’uen).
• 養蠶 yáng‘ zén, keep silkworms, (m. t‘sán).

The d is in some words retained in reading, when dropped in the colloquial form.

• 豺狼虎豹 zá (r. dzé) long ’hu pau‘, wolves and tigers
• 稻柴 tau zá (c.) rice straw
• 柴門 dzé (r.) mun, wooden gate
• 造完 ’zau (r. dzau) wén, finish building

69. Words beginning with a vowel, belong to the thirty-first or thirty-third initials (y, y,) according as they are high or low in tone. In giving the romanized form, a more extended subdivision of the vowels must of necessity be adopted. In the present work, the initial vowel is italicized, when its word belongs to the lower series.

• 遠來死 ’yön lé ’sí, very far off
• 寃枉 yön ’wong, falsely accuse

Those words in the dialect that begin with n, m, v, while in northern mandarin they have only a vowel as their initial, are placed in the Dictionary system under those consonants, and they are all in the lower tones.

• 原是 ’niön ’zz, well then it is—
• 千山萬水 t’síen san van‘ ’ss, a long distance
• 一百萬 ih páh man‘, a million

Words in the upper series beginning with a vowel, which in northern mandarin take the sound ng before them, never have it in the Shánghái dialect, nor in the Dictionary system. E.g.[1] 愛 ngái‘, 惡 ngóh,[2] are pronounced é‘ and oh.

• 愛伊樣物事 é‘ í yáng‘ meh zz‘, love that thing

In the lower tones the initial ng is always preserved.

• 勿碍啥 veh ngé‘ sá‘, no matter
• 一眼勿硬 ih ’ngan veh ngáng‘, not in the least hard
• 咬牙切齒 ’ngaú ngá t’sih ’t’sz, grind teeth with rage
• 我勿餓 ’ngú veh ngú‘ I am not hungry

70. The remaining initials are ng, n, ni, m, v, l, and j. They belong with few exceptions to the lower tones.

Ng, I. Many words classed in the Dictionaries under this initial are pronounced differently in this dialect. Thus 堯 yau, 言 íen, have no initial consonant, 疑 ní, 爾 ’nü, 義 ní‘, belong to the tooth nasal (n), 午五魚 are read ü, ú, but spoken ng. Ng precedes a, e, o, ö, u, but not i, ü.

II. Other words as 月 niöh, 牛 nieu, 願 niön, belong more properly to the class headed ni, or the Spanish circumflexed n. The Sú-cheú dialect agrees better with the Dictionaries in this class of words, than that of Shánghái.

III. All the words in Morrison with the initial g belong to this class, except such as are in the upper tones. Such words as he writes aou, ae, yae, follow the same rule.

71. N, NI. These though distinguished in some alphabets as in Sanscrit and Spanish, may be for our purpose more usefully regarded as identical, the i being considered to belong to the final. Accordingly such words as 女 ’nü 你 ’né, 鈕 nieu, though placed under the palatal nasal ni in the native system, will be regarded as belonging to the tooth nasal n, and the remainder of the sound reckoned as the final. Even in the tables, these two consonants are in intentional juxtaposition. The consonants t, ch, to which they respectively belong are also naturally allied, as may be illustrated from our dialect, where ch becomes ts.

Many words written by Morrison yǔh, yin, yen, ying, yŏ, yu, yuen, yuĕ, take this initial, when they are in the lower tones. N, when thus prefixed, precedes no vowel but i, ü. The following are examples:—

72. M. V. The class headed m includes not only the mandarin words in m, but some that in mandarin begin with w. They are therefore placed together in the Dictionary system. Words thus transformed have v in reading as an intermediate sound, and often retain that form in the colloquial. If they are not words in very common use, they do not assume m as their initial. The following are examples:—

• 夫 mí and ví, c. ví, r.
• 萬 man‘ and van‘, c. van‘, r.
• 襪 mah, 蚊 mun, c. and r.
• 文, 武 vun, ’vú, c. and r.

Also 問忘網望味物 are spoken mun‘, &c. , and read vun‘, etc. In early Chinese these words all began with b.

73. L. J. The former of these, as used in our dialect, agrees with the native system, and with the northern mandarin, and calls for no remark except that a very few words as before noted belong to the upper series. See Art.56.

Under the initial j, are found all the Shánghái words in ni (c), and z (r), which are j, in Mandarin. E.g. 譆饒熱染日忍軟閏絨認撚 are spoken niáng, &c. , and read záng, &c.

Thus,

• 人 niun, c. zun, r. jin, m. a man
• 肉 nióh, c. zóh, r. júh, m. flesh

Words that are semi-colloquial, or only used in combination retain z. E.g. 惹仁仍弱乳 are read and spoken ’zá, zun, etc.

Thus, 自然 zz‘ zén, c. and r. tsz‘ jen, m.

⁂ Words in z from sh, or s in mandarin, never change into ni. Thus, the natural separation between distinct classes of words is maintained, when their reading sounds are identical.

74. This class also includes r.h. The native tables make no difference between j and rh, and in some parts of China the initial j is in jih, sun, and some other words pronounced like r.

• 而且 rh ’t’siá, perhaps

When thoroughly colloquialized, however, these words pass into ní, and must be placed under n or ng.

• 二 ní‘, c. rh‘ r. two
• 兒子 ní ’tsz, or ng ’tsz, c. rh, r. son
• 耳朶 ’ní ’tú, c. rh tó, r. ears

ii. Finals.

75. The Shánghái finals are about 60 in number. According to the native system, the whole of a word except the initial letter and the aspirate if there be one, is included in the final. In the Dictionaries, the finals, which unlike the initials differ but slightly from modern mandarin pronunciation, are less numerous. The 字彙 tsz‘ hwei‘ has 44. The short tones which should be considered independent rhymes are counted with the corresponding long ones, and thus the number is diminished. The first table in K’áng-hí has sixteen, and the second, twelve. Under each are several subdivisions. Another small and very convenient Dictionary, the 五方元音 ’Wú fáng yuen yin, taking the five tone mandarin dialect for its guide both in initials and finals, adopts twenty of the one, and twelve of the other, and arranges them under five tones. In reducing them to this small number, some violence is done to the sounds. All words beginning with a vowel, or ng are arranged under w and y. In the finals, expedients are also employed to diminish the number of headings.

76. In the finals, the departures from the mandarin type are numerous, but they are according to system, and the knowledge of one variation is usually a key to the pronunciation of many tens of other words. The variations are usually the same for one long tone as for all.

In the following table which consists of words without a diphthong, the first column contains the final according to Shánghái pronunciation; the second, all the examples of it having different rhymes in mandarin; the third, the mandarin spelling; and the fourth, the Shánghái reading sound.

P. I. S. iv.table of finals.

Finals.	Shánghái colloquial.	Mandarin.	Shánghái reading sound.
á	拉 lá (upper series)	lá
	拜 pá‘	pái	pé
	家 ká	kiá	kiá
	解 ’ká	kiái, kiè	kiá
	快 k’á	k‘wai	k‘wé
	惹 ’zá	jé
ah	法 fah	fáh, fá
	瞎 hah	hiáh, hiá
	隔 kah	kuh, kó	kuh
ák	百 pák	puh, ’pá	puh
	若 zák	jóh, jó‘
	目 mák, mok	múh, mú‘	mok
	石 zák	shǐh,[1] sh
an	但 tan‘	tán
	簡 ’kan	kian	kíen
áng	張 tsáng	cháng
	生 sáng	sung	sung
	宕 táng‘	táng	tong
	行 háng, yung	hing, háng
au	好 ’hau	háú
	下 ’hau, hó	hiá‘	yá
	呌 kau‘	kiáú	kiau
é	海 ’hé	hái
	雷 lé	lei, lui
	衰 sé	shwái
	倍 pé‘	pei
eh	雜 dzeh	tsáh,[2] tsá
	實 zeh	shih,[3] sh
	沒 meh	múh,[4] mú
	說 seh	shwoh	söh
	活 weh	hwóh,[5] hwó
én	半 pén‘	pwán
	船 zén	ch’uen
	善 ’zén	shen
eu	溝 keu	keú
í	理 ’lí	lí
	非 fí	fei
	去 k’í‘	k’ü	k’ü
	死 ’si	sz	sz
	些 sí	sie
ih	立 lih	lih, lí‘
	切 ts’ih	ts’ieh, t’sié
	雪 sih	siöh, ’sió
	恤 sih	siuh, sió
ing	循 dzing	siün
	心 sing	sin
	信 sing‘	sing
ó	怕 p’ó‘	p’á
	遮 tsó	ché	tsó
	赦 só‘	shé	sé
öh	奪 töh	tóh,[6] tó
ók	獨 tóh	túh,[7] tú
	木 móh, mok	múh, mú
	國 kóh, kweh	kwóh,[8] kwó
ok	薄 pók, pok	póh,[9] pó
	樂 lok	lóh, ló‘
	角 kok, kók	kióh, chió	kiák
ön	端 dön (upper series)	twán
	岸 ngön‘	ngán
óng	松 sóng, súng	sóng, súng
ong	喪 song	sáng
	雙 song	shwáng
	夢 mong	móng, múng	móng
	紅 ’kong	kiáng	kiáng
ú	所 ’sú	só
	大 tú‘	tá	tá
	古 ’kú	kú
ü	句 kü‘	kü
	歸 kü	kwei	kwé
û (ü)	主 ’tsû tsü	chú
uk	直 dzuk	chih,[10] ch
ûe (üe)	雖 sûe (ü)	súi
un (ng)	根 kun (g)	kun
	身 sun (g)	shin (un)
	尊 tsun (g)	tsün
ûn	杆 kûn	kán
	算 sûn‘	swán
óng (ú)	龍 lóng (ú)	lóng (ú)
ung	亨 hung	hung
	門 mung (n)	mun
m	無 vú, m	wú	vú
ng	恒 hng	hung
rh	而 rh	rh
sz	思 詩 sz	sz, sh and shí
	鼠 ’sz	shú	sû
	水 ’sz	shúi	sûe
76.The intermediate vowel i forms the following finals:—
iá	邪 siá	sié	sié
iah	甲 kah	kiáh, kiá	kiah
iák	畧 liah	lióh, liáú‘
ian	念 nian‘	nien
iau	教 kiau‘	kiáu
iáng	强 ’k’iang	k’iáng
ié	且 ’t’siá	t’sié	t’síe
íen	選 síen	siuen
	田 tíen	t’ien
	全 dzen	t’siuen	dzíen
ieu	求 kieu	k‘ieú
	宿 sieu	süh
iih	熱 nyih	jeh	zeh
ióh	曲 k’óh	k’iúh, ’k’ü
iöh	月 niöh	yueh	yöh
iön	權 kiön	k’iuen
ióng	窮 kióng	k’iong (ú)
	官 kióng	kúng	kóng
iú	靴 hiú	hiö
iuk	逆 niuk	nih
iun (ng)	勤 kiun (ng)	k’in
iung (n)	今 kiung (n)	kin
	京 kiung	king
iúng	兄 h’iúng	h’iung
iün	訓 h’iün‘	h’iün

77. The other intermediate vowels u, occurring only after k, g, forms the following finals:—

P. I. S. iv.table of finals.

Finals.	Shánghái colloquial.	Mandarin.	Shánghái reading sound.
uá	乖 kwá	kwái	kwé
uah	括 kwah	kwáh
nan	關 kwan	kwán
wén	官 kwén	kwán
wó	瓜 kwó	kwá
wok	槨 kwok	kwóh, ’kwó
wong	光 kwong	kwáng
wun (ng)	滾 kwun (ng)	kwun

Obs. i. For óng and úng, Morrison writes úng; Prémare óng. It will be seen that in our dialect they are both in use. When a word is pronounced alone, or when last in order, ó is more common, while ú prefers the first place in combination; 松紅 Súng-kong, Súng-kiáng; 吳淞 Ng sóng, Wú-súng; 中國人 tsúng kóh niun, Chinaman; 勿拉當中 veh ’lá tong tsóng, not in the centre.

Obs. ii. Words in é from m. ái have two sounds. Some employ the Scotch ae in sae, nae, etc. nearly like e before r in the English words there, where. Others pronounce the English a in cake, same, i.e. in our orthography é. Ex. 來海 lé, ’hé, are constantly heard with both these sounds.

Obs. iii. Words in én, beyond 黃渡 Wong dú‘, and 朱家閣 Tsû ká koh, 25 and 30 miles to the west of Shánghái, change into ön.

Obs. iv. On án, wánThe second of these mandarin finals passes into én or önThe former retains a for á.Ex.滿洲 Mén tseu, Manchu; 五六萬 ’ng lóh man, 50,000 or 60,000.

78. If the old native tables of finals could be reduced to a fixed Roman orthography, our dialect would be found to bear more similarity to that pronunciation as its maternal stem, than to its northern relative the modern mandarin. The final k in the short tone was recognized, and many sub-divisions of a final into two or more branches agree with our usage; i.e. kwán into kwön and kwan. Some southern dialects preserve some parts and some others parts of this traditional pronunciation. The work before referred to, Lé‘ sh‘ yin kíen‘ says, in the 凡例 Fán lieh, Introductory Notes, 南音於剜彎, 官關, 般班, 分之甚細。 北或合面爲一, Nén yun ü wén wan, kwén kwan pén pan, fun tsz zun‘ sí‘. Poh wóh heh rh wé ih.“In the south (Kiáng-nán.etc.), the pronunciation of the words pén pan, etc. is carefully separated, while in the north, they combine in one (á) sound.”

Another instance there given, of difference between the north and south in the final, is in such words as 銀盈, 勤檠, 神繩, 林靈, 貧平, 金京, m. yin ying, k’in k’ing, shin shing, lin ling, p’in p’ing, kin king. These the author says, are carefully distinguished in the north, while in the south they are identical in sound.

The rule of Shánghái pronunciation is this. Those words that end in ng in mandarin keep it. Those words that end in un change n into ng, while such as terminate in un take n or ng indifferently. Thus the above examples are read niun (g) yung, kiun (g) kiung, zun (g) zung, ling ling, ping ping, kiun (g) kiung.

Both of this writer’s observations are exemplified in the table. It is there shewn how far precisely this coalescing and subdividing of rhymes extends. One rhyme in either of the dialects, may branch off in the other into four or even six independent finals.

79. The most curious fact deducible from the table is, the affinity of certain vowels for the terminating consonant k (g before words in the lower tones) found in the short tone; a peculiarity which disappears a little south-west of Shánghái, and is not noticed at Ningpo.

The principal forms of words in the short tone in mandarin, according to different systems of orthography in common use are as follow:—

Morrison & Medhurst	ă	ĕ	eĕ	eǐh ih	uĕ	ǐh	ǔh	ŏ
Prémare	ă	ĕ	iĕ	ĭ	uĕ	ĕ	ǔh	ŏ
Williams	áh	eh	ieh	ih	ueh	eh	uh	óh
This work	áh	eh	ieh	ih	iöh	uh	úh	óh

Most words in the short tone ending in k, are of the last three of these finals u, ú, ó. Of the others, those in ih if they take k often insert a short u. E.g. 力 is heard lik or liuk. Similarly when words in úh and óh do not take k, they change úh and óh into eh. Thus, 末 móh becomes meh, Many words in conformity with this law, change their places among the finals, and the collocation of a and e, with k is carefully avoided, while u, ú, ó, retain it with equal consistency.[1] It should be observed however, that the á of mandarin becomes a in the short tone, and the longer a is only used as the colloquialized form of u. E.g. 百 c. pák, r. puk. Thus in Shánghái usage, á, u, ó, o take k in the short tone, a, e, ö, admit m terminating consonant, while i remains common.

This law is much simpler than that of the Fúh-kien and other dialects of the south of China. But while in those dialects, there are found as in the dictionaries three terminating consonants, k, t, p, similar affinities to vowels are traceable. In Fúh-kien with the exception of á, which, all three share between them, k usually prefers one set of vowels, and t and p another.

The native rule in the southern dialects, that k, t, p, are merely the form assumed by the final letters ng, n, m, in the short tone, is inapplicable to dialects, so far north as this. In the native system of finals, this limitation is found indeed, but is not rigidly adhered to. Some words in t are placed under ng as well as n. Others in k occur under vowel finals. The cases of conformity however, are so much more numerous than the exceptions, that the rule is indubitable. Since here only k is in use, the modern seat of the old pronunciation of the dictionaries must lie in part farther south. It embraces indeed the seaboard provinces, from Shánghái to Canton with parts of Kiang-si and Hu-nan.

80. The letter n is also affected by the preceding vowel. After a, e, ö, û, it is almost unheard when no word follows, and though a well-defined consonant in the next word brings it into notice, it is still only audible as a slight nasal sound. The vowels i, o, refuse to be associated with it, and when u precedes, it only holds its position in common with ng. After ü it is as in mandarin.

81. Out of 63 finals, there are twenty that vary their sound in reading. In all these, there is an approach to the mandarin pronunciation, and they are therefore employed, by those born within the limits of the dialect, when they wish to make themselves intelligible to strangers. In such cases, they are usually under the delusive impression that it is mandarin they speak. Such is the advantage of the alphabetic system, with its all-versatile and exhaustive applicability, that a foreigner can pass from one dialect to another so far as sound is concerned, with much greater quickness than a native. The latter has no ready method of writing new sounds down, nor is he practised in the art of separating them into their alphabetical elements. No thing but a long residence in the region of another pronunciation, and some natural flexibility of organs, can give him a different set of tones, and a new arrangement of vowels and consonants. The sight of a character suggests to him the sound, that he learnt in his childhood, and having always regarded each, sound as a unity not separable into alphabetic parts, any variation is too confusing and difficult of appreciation to be readily adopted.

The total number of sounds in our dialect independent of tones, is about 570. Morrison counts those of mandarin at 411, The difference is due to the broad initials b, g, d, v, z.

82. Irregularities of Pronunciation. Words that do not conform in sound to the rules given in this section are few.

• 十五 só‘ ’ng, (for seh ng), fifteen
• 錢 dzíen, r. is pronounced díen‘, c.
• 逐軸 dióh, r. They should be dzóh.
• 打 ’tá, to strike, in reading and colloquial is ’táng.[1]
• 那 r. ná, c. á in á lí, where.
• 所在 r. ’sú ’dzé, c. ’sû zé, a house

To these may be added the tendency of the initial k to be pronounced, when standing before i, like t in the upper series, and like d or dj in the lower.

PART II.
ON THE PARTS OF SPEECH

Section 1. Native divisions

83. Common teachers of the language in distinguishing words, only use two pairs of terms, viz. 實, 虛 zeh, h’ü, and 死, 活 ’sz, weh. The former signifies words that have a meaning (full) and such as have not (empty). All substantives are 實字眼 seh zz‘ ’nganAuxiliary words or particles receive the name of 虛字眼 h’ü zz‘ ’ngan. Verbs and adjectives are placed by some writers in the first of these classes, and by others in the second. Remusat, says that verbs are 實字 zeh zz‘; a native author 畢華珍 Pih wó tsun treats, all words except substantives, as in the second class.

84. The other pair of terms views words as nouns, which are spoken of as 死字眼 ’si zz‘ ’ngan, or verbs which are 活字眼 weh zz‘ ’ngan. The usual sense of 活 is living, but by an extension of meaning, it is applied to anything not fixed to its place, or liable to change in its appearance or form. Hence, verbs as dependent on circumstances of time, will, etc. are termed moving or transferable words, while substantive are said to be fixed or dead.

85. The native writer just referred to, in a recent work, 衍緖草堂筆記 ’íen ’zü ’t’sau dong pih kí‘, on the parts of speech and construction of sentences, has extended these divisions, by forming the 虛字 h’ü zz‘, or words not substantives, into four classes:—

1. Adjectives 呆虛字 ngé h’ü zz‘:—
   

   Ex.	高 kau, high	多 tú, many	大 tá‘, great
   	低 tí, low.	少 ’sau, few	小 ’siau, small

2. Verbs 活虛字 weh h’ü zz‘:—
   

   Ex.

   作 tsok, to do

   傳 dzén, to deliver down

3. 口氣語助虛字 ’k’eu k’i‘ ’nü ’dzú h’ü zz‘.Under this head he gives as examples:—
   

   焉 íen,?	乎 ú,?	}	Interrogative and other finals.
   哉 tsé,?	也 ’yé,.
   此 ’t’sz, this	所 ’sú, which	}	Pronouns and the sign of the possessive.
   其 gí, he	之 tsz, of
   甚 zun‘, very	可, ’k’ó, can	}	Adverbs & auxiliary verbs.
   最 tsûe‘, „	爲 wé, be

4. 空活虛字 k’óng weh h’ü zz‘.

Obs. The word weh is apparently employed, because conjunctions like verbs connect what goes before with what follows. Similarly, in English grammar the verb is the copula, while a large class of conjunctions consists of such as are termed copulative. The word 空 is prefixed to distinguish these particles from verbs. The examples he gives are—

These examples are from the language of books.The corresponding words in the dialect will be found in their places.

86. The frequent interchange of the parts of speech, and the rhythmical construction of sentences, have almost kept in concealment among the natives, the classification of which words naturally admit. Much attention has been given to the successive forms of the characters; the changes that have occurred in them, and the principles of their original formation have been carefully chronicled; but etymological studies have been comparatively neglected.

The rules of the Wun-cháng, or exercises in fine writing, law indeed been laid down, but they do not constitute the grammar of the language. While grammar is a science still unknown to the Chinese, it is a mark of the intelligence of our author that he has approached so nearly, as the preceding article shews to a western classification, and that he has defined with precision, all the principal parts of speech.

The division into parts of speech, and simple and compound words, gains in distinctness as we leave the books and restrict our illustrations to the language of conversation, and much more when instead of embracing the universal mandarin medium, we aim to exhibit the dialect of a single district.

For example the words 過 kú‘, 能 nung, 生 sáng, are in the books verbs or nouns according to their position, their tones remaining unchanged. In the Shánghái dialect they are all verbs, viz. to pass, can, to produce, If they stand alone; but the combinations of which they form part are often substantives. Ex. 過失 kú‘ seh, a fault; 能力 nung lih, strength; 生活 sáng wéh work. Ming, 明 which in the books is an adjective or verb, must if used as a verb in the colloquial have 白 páh appended to it, otherwise it is an adjective. Thus instead of terminations invented to carry a root through two or more parts of speech, we have two roots in opposition for the same purpose. In the following pages accordingly, the terms noun; adjective, etc. will be predicated of the combined forms each as a whole, and not of its constituent words except when viewed independently.

Section 2. Relation of the dialect to the written language, and to other dialects

87. In comparing the dialect with the language of books, it will be best to go at once to the oldest. The earliest portions of the Shú-king, Book of History, date from a period that must have been at least 3000 years ago if not previous to that of Moses. The occurrence of many of the commonest words now found in the colloquial media of China in records so ancient, is a sufficient illustration of the remarkable persistence of the language. It thus appears that many of the nouns and pronouns, adjectives and verbs, that formed the staple of conversation in the days of Yáu and Shun, are found not merely in the pages of an old world literature, but are still “familiar household words,” among the whole Chinese race. The selected examples which follow are all of constant use in the Shánghái dialect.

88. Examples of single words used in combination or singly.

Names of natural objects, animals, &c.

天 t’íen, heaven	月 niöh, moon	馬 ’mó, horse
地 ti‘, earth	星 sing, stars	牛 nieu, ox
人 niun, man	山 san, mountain	羊 yáng, sheep
水 ’sz, water.	海 ’hé, sea
火 ’hú, fire	草 ’t’sau, grass

Divisions of time.

春 t’sun, spring	日 nyih, day
夏 ’hau, summer	月 niöh, month
秋 t’sieu, autumn	歲 sûe‘, solar year
冬 tóng, winter	夜 yá‘ night

Meteorological terms.

風 fóng, wind

雷 lé, thunder

雨 ’ü, rain

Numbers.

一 ih, one	六 lóh, six
二 ní‘, two	七 t’sih, seven
三 san, three	八 pah, eight
四 sz‘, four	九 ’kieu, nine
五 ’ng, five	十 zeh, ten

Cardinal points.

東 tóng, east	南 nén, south
西 si, west	北 póh, north

Verbs.

定 ting‘, to fix	能 nung, can
歸 kwé, return home	有 ’yeu, have

Adjectives.

大 tá‘, great	希 hí, few
遠 ’yön, distant	直 dzuk, straight

Nouns.

罪 zûe, sin	禮 ’lí, ceremony
門 mun; door	詩 sz, poetry

Pronoun.

我 ’ngú, I

89. Examples of nouns composed of two characters, or as they may be termed, dissyllabic forms.

• 百姓 pák-sing‘, the people
• 天下 t’íen-’au, the world
• 正月 tsung‘-niöh, 1st month
• 聰明 ts’óng-ming, intelligent
• 上帝 záng‘-tí‘, God
• 鳳凰 vóng wong‘ phœnix
• 法度 fah-dú‘, mode of government

90. Examples of words used in combinations in the dialect, but not singly.

• 鳥 as in 窵鳥 ’tiau-niau, birds
• 帝 as in 皇帝 wong-tí‘, emperor
• 神 as in 神明 zun-ming, the inferior divinities
• 位 as in 地位 tí‘-wé‘, station
• 事 as in 事體 zz‘-’t’í, matter
• 可 as in 可以 ’k’ó-’í, may, can
• 日 as in 日頭 nyih-deu, the sun
• 聞 as in 新聞 sing-vun, intelligence
• 說 as in 說書 söh-sû, relate stories

91. These examples, which might if it were necessary, be extended to a much greater length, will be sufficient to exhibit how the most ancient forms of speech, the primitive words of the Chinese race, have maintained their position to the present time. In a similar way, the later classics contemporary with Hebrew literature, and the most flourishing part of the Greek, might be shewn to possess in a still greater abundance, the materials from which this and other dialects have grown into their existing form. But there are also many new words; the passage of time must witness changes, even in the language of a people so devoted to antiquity as that of China. It has been shewn that there has been variation in tones, by referring to the pronouncing Dictionaries made long since. The natives recognize great differences In modern and ancient sounds, as seen in the rhymes of the Book of Odes. Words also have changed; many expressions once common have become antiquated, and new ones have appeared. A reference ta colloquial mandarin will illustrate this statement, and bring before us another large portion of the materials of the dialect.

Relation to colloquial Mandarin. 92. The earliest examples of this form of Chinese, are found in works of the Sung dynasty and in the historical novels. Mencius so remarkable among the classic authors, for his picturesque imagery and the animation of his style, sometimes uses combinations, such as 朋友 páng yeu‘, friend; 自己 zz‘ ’kí, self; seldom found in ancient books, and which may be considered as conversational.

93. The following are examples selected from the San kwoh chi 三國志, and Lieh kwoh chi 烈國志, works now five hundred years old, of new words not found in the classics, and all in common use in our dialect.

樹 zû‘, tree	會 wé‘, am able to
脚 kiáh, roof	吃 k’iuh, eat
船 zén boat	呌 kiau‘, call a person
撇 p’ih, stroke to the left	攏 ’lóng, bring together
埃 á, take in order	惹 ’zá, provoke
敲 k’au, knock	揪 t’sieu, restrain by holding
撑 t’sáng, pole a boat	瞧 dziau, to look
抄 t’sau, to copy	抖 ’teu, shiver
喝 höh, call to	拖 t’ú, to pull
爬 pó, to scratch	勦 tsiau‘, destroy

94. Of the following new pronouns, and interrogative adverbs first found in the historical novels, there is scarcely any use made in the Shánghái dialect.

甚麽 m. shen‘ ’mó? what?	那裡 m. ’ná ’li? where?
什麽 shih ’mó? what?	這箇 ché‘ kó‘, this
怎麽 ’tsun ’mó? how?	他 t’á, he

Obs. The Shánghái pronouns are all different from those, except the mutilated form 那裡 ’a ’lí? where? So for the most part those of Fúh-kien; which again differ entirely from those of the Canton dialect as contained in Bridgman’s Chrestomathy. Some pronouns are widely spread. Thus, ngó 我 I, exists in all these dialects. As a class however, they are among the words most liable to variation in colloquial Chinese.

95. The following examples of double words taken from the same works, will further illustrate the extent to which mandarin phraseology agrees with that of our dialect. They are all such combinations as are not found in the classics, and might be increased indefinitely.

• 人家 niun ká, a man
• 低頭 tí deu, lower the head
• 開船 k’é zén, unmoor a boat
• 時辰 zz zun, an hour, i.e. twelfth of a day
• 招架 tsau ká‘, shield one’s-self
• (c) 幫助 pong dzú‘, to assist
• 容易 yúng í‘, easy.
• 船隻 (c) zen tsáh, boats; or a boat
• 𢬵命 ’p’ing ming‘, throw away life
• 看見 k’ön‘ kíen‘, to see
• 踅手 zeh ’seu, maimed hand
• 利害 lí é‘, dangerous, severe
• (c) 仔細 ’tsz sí‘, minutely
• 解說 ’ká seh, explanation
• 撞倒 dzong‘ ’tau, push down
• 敬重 kiung‘ dzóng, revere
• 最好 tsûe‘ ’hau, very good
• 認得 niun‘ tuh, know a person
• 唱喏 (c) t’song‘ ’zó, join one’s hands in respect
• 倒竪 ’tau ’zû, set up on end

The characters marked (c) are those that were invented, to represent colloquial words written for the first time. The rest are old classical characters, but they are not found in these combinations.

97. On comparing the old historical novels, with mandarin colloquial tales of the present dynasty, such as the well-known 紅樓夢 Dream of the Red Chamber, no closer analogy with our dialect appears. The style indeed is much more diffuse, being a faithful copy of what real conversation is, and so far it is more like provincial dialects. But as to words, the auxiliary particles (in which the chief changes occur), are peculiar to mandarin, and the verbs and nouns are the same as those of earlier works.

Thus, 的 occurs constantly instead of 之 ch, which is the most common sign of the possessive in the Three Kingdoms. As the third personal pronoun, 那 ’ná takes the place of 其 gí The word for said, 曰 yöh, a term not used in conversation, is replaced by 說道 shwóh táú, either together or apart.

98. Having thus briefly considered the historical division that the dialect admits of, into primitive and modern words, something should be added on local terms, constituting the remainder. On examination it will be found that the words, single and compound, not in mandarin, are few. They can scarcely be many more than a hundred. In a list drawn up for the purpose by a native, of about 100, a third part consisted of verbs, another third part of particles, the rest comprised substantives, adjectives, and words imitative of sounds.

Many of these belong also to the dialects of the neighbouring cities. In the histories of Sú-cheú and Súng-kiáng, the short chapter devoted to the subject of colloquialisms, enumerates several that belong equally to Shánghái. They appear to have been copied in great part from one work into another, and the whole number recorded in each does not reach fifty. Those contained in the history of Shánghái, will be found in the following pages under the parts of speech to which they belong. In Medhurst’s Dictionary of the Fúh-kien dialect, there are classified lists of about 250 phrases peculiar to that province. Some of these however are corrupted forms of expressions used in the other parts of China.

99. The neighbouring dialect of Sú-cheú may be expected to have much in common with that of Shánghái, The system of pronunciation is in general the same, the initial consonants forming a hard and soft series, corresponding to the upper and lower tones in the southern provinces. The following are examples of phrases, the same as those of Shánghái.

那哼 ’ná háng? how?	弗是 veh zz‘, it is not
自家 zz‘ ká, self	多許 tú hau‘, very many
弟个 veh kú‘, not so	慢點 man‘ ’tíen, little slower
做啥 tsú‘ sá‘? what do you?	個頭 kú‘ deu, there
個歇 kú‘ h’ih, at preset	個个 kú‘ kú‘, that

• 哉 tsé (m. 了), sign of completion.
• 子 ’tsz (m. 了), sign of past participle.
• 个 kú‘ (m. 的), sign of possessive.
• 勿 veh (m. 不), simple negative.
• 全 dsíen (m. 都), all
• 啥 sá‘ (m. 甚麽)? what?
• 好好能 ’hau ’hau nung, well, in a good manner
• 想着之 ’siáng záh ’tsz, having thought of
• 拉屋裡 ’la óh ’lí, at home
• 是介 zz‘ ké‘ (s. seh ké nung), thus

In some words very commonly occurring, that dialect differs from Shánghái and agrees with mandarin.

This, m. 道个 ché‘ kú‘.	s. 第个 tí‘ kú‘.
He, m. 他 t’á.	s. 伊 í.
How? m. 怎麽樣 ’tsun ’mó yáng‘?

Section 3. On the Substantive

100. The native grammarian already introduced to the reader defines substantives, or rather substances, thus 天地名物, 象數事理 T’íen dí‘ ming veh‘ ziáng‘ sú‘ zz‘ ’li, “Heaven, earth, names and things, images, numbers, facts and principles;” 凡有形有質, 有氣有聲 van ’yeu yiung ’yeu tseh ’yeu k’i ’yeu sung, “all things that have form, material substances, breath and sound;” 一切有端可指者 ih t’sih ’yeu tön ’k’ó ’tsz ’tsé, “all things having any property that can be pointed out;” 皆謂之實字 kia wé‘ tsz seh zz‘, “are called substantives.”

“The names of substances,” he adds, “may consist of one or several characters, which must be arranged in classes, brought under the dominion of the rhythmus, and stored in the memory for use when required.” Such nouns as express the properties of substances he calls 子字 ’tsz zz‘, “son characters,” while the names of the substances themselves are termed 毋字 ’mú zz‘, “mother characters.” Attributes he further subdivides into “universal,” 公共子字 kóng góng‘ ’tsz zz‘, and “special,” 實在子字 seh zé ’tsz zz‘.

Combined and uncombined substantives. 101. One of the most striking peculiarities of Chinese words, whether nouns, verbs or particles, is the strictness with which the laws of combination and order are observed. Each dialect has many words that can be used with or without an adjunct, and may be regarded as purely monosyllabic; another large class embraces such as are never used by the natives, except in apposition with some other word, and constituting for that dialect, what may be considered dissyllables. Of the former or monosyllabic kind are the following examples (s. c).

飯 van‘, cooked rice	貓 mau‘, cat	狗 ’keu, dog
雲 yün, clouds	墨 muh, ink	藥 yáh, medicine
理 ’lí, moral law	煤 mé, coal	雪 sih, snow

102. In construction, these and similar words may be observed to remain in an uncombined state. The first word in each, of the following sentences exemplifies this remark.

• 米糴好否 ’mi tih ’hau ’vá? have you brought rice?
• 人是一樣个 niun ’zz ih yáng‘ kú, I am a man as you
• 袖要大 dzien‘ yau‘ dú‘, let the sleeve be large

These words may all of them be used in combination, according to some of the laws described in the succeeding paragraphs. Thus they appear in dissyllabic forms such as—

米價 ’mí ká‘, price of rice

大人 tú‘ niun, father

103. The other class consists of those words that are never used without an adjunct. For example 衣 í dress, not used alone, is found among other combinations in the following.

衣裳 í zong, clothes

布衣 pú‘ í, cotton clothes

So also 猪 tsz, 日 zeh, 房 vong, 禮 ’lí, are found in combination only.

• 猪驢 tsz lú, a pig
• 過房 ku‘ vong, adopted child
• 江猪 kong tsz, the river pig (a fish).
• 禮物 ’lí veh, presents
• 日食 nyih zuh, eclipse of the sun

104. In construction, the adjuncts unless the rhythmus requires it, cannot be omitted.

• 着衣裳 tsáh í zong, put on clothes
• 殺猜驢个 sah tsz lú kú‘, pork butcher
• 日頭落山 nyih deu lok san, sun is setting
• 租房子 tsú vong ’tsz, let a house
• 送禮物 sóng‘ ’lí veh, offer presents

Combination. 105. Substantives are formed of two or more substantives combined in various ways. If the collocation consists of species and genus, the former precedes.

柏樹 páh zû‘, cypress	茶壺 dzó ú, teapot
松樹 sóng zû‘, pine	鐵蛋 t’ih dan‘, iron bullet
酒壺 tsieu ú, wine chalice	雞蛋 kí dan‘, hen’s egg

• 牡丹花 mau‘-tan‘ hwó, moutan pœny
• 孛相船 peh-siáng‘ zén pleasure boat
• 堦沿石 ká-íen záh, first door-step
• 磨刀石 mú tau záh, grind-stone
• 紅緯帽子 hóng wé‘ mau‘-’tsz, red tasselled hat

Obs. In the last five examples, the first two words constitute the species. The word 石 záh requires 頭 as its appendage, if there is no specific term prefixed. When compounds are formed, the auxiliary word is omitted. In the last case 子 tsz, the auxiliary is retained, or dropped at pleasure.

106. When the compound substantive formed by juxtaposition, consists of whole and part, or substance and accident or attribute, the former precedes.

• 手心 ’seu sing, palm of the hand
• 手套 ’seu t’au‘, gloves
• 樹根 zû‘ kun, root of a tree
• 樹葉 zû‘ ih, leaves of a tree
• 頭髮 teu fah, hair
• 首飾 ’seu seh, head ornaments

107. When two or more substantives, cognate in meaning, or in some logical relation, are in apposition, their order depends on native usage.

親眷 t’sing kiön‘, relations	信息 sing‘ sih, letters and news
街路 ká lu‘ the road	貨色 hú‘ suh, goods
榮光 yóng kwong, glory	財帛 dzé báh, money and silk

• 福祿壽 fóh loh zeu‘, happiness, affluence and age
• 酒色財氣 ’tsieu suh dzé k’í‘ wine, lust, riches and anger

Obs. i. The primary reason of the order in which these words are used, may have been a real or fanciful sequence of ideas, convenience of pronunciation, rhythm or caprice; but whatever it was, it is strictly preserved. Should another order be adopted, the meaning would not be conveyed. To these and other fixed combinations, found in all parts of speech, must in great part be attributed, the facility with which a language of monosyllables and tones such as the Chinese, is employed as a conversational medium.

Obs. ii. Many words found in compounds of this sort are inseparable. Thus 眷 kiön‘ has no other use in the dialect, than to form these combinations. As a verb to compassionate its use is limited to the books.

Obs.iii.Under this head may be included antithetical substantives (Literæ oppositæ, Premare), of which there are several in common use without a particle between them.姊妹 tsí (elder sister) mé‘ (younger do.) sisters; 禽獸 kiun (birds), seu‘ (beasts), animals; 天地 t’íen dí‘, heaven and earth; 夫婦 fú vú‘, husband and wife; 山水人物 san ’sz niun veh, mountains, water, men and things: 銅錢銀子 tóng díen niung ’tsz, copper and silver money.

Obs. iv. Phrases of this sort are not coined ad libitum. They are old forms, and the modern Chinese do not allow themselves to make new ones. Each dialect has its own traditional arrangement of words, as well as its particular mode of enunciating the tones, and its alphabetical variations. But there is in all the dialects, so large a majority of phrases as well as words, common to the rest of China, even in that of Fúh-kien, that the identity of the language is in no district brought into question by these differences.

108. Some of these combined forms consist of a substantive and an enclitic. Of the auxiliary words thus used 子 ’tsz, 頭 teu, are the most common.

鴿子 keh ’tsz, a pigeon	席子 sih ’tsz, matting
刮法子 kwah fah ’tsz, machinery
罐頭 kwén‘ deu, saucepan	流頭 lieu deu, pulley
甎頭 tsén deu, bricks	話頭 wó‘ deu, words
骨耳頭 kweh- ’rh deu, an axle

These enclitics are never used in the classics; they form a leading characteristic of colloquial Chinese. ’Tsz and teu give individuality and definiteness to the term they qualify. Their proper meaning, son, head, is in these cases lost; they help also to fill the rhythm of the sentence, and to distinguish the words to which they are appended from other terms like them in sound. The enclitic 兒 rh, so common in the mandarin provinces, and also in the dialect of Háng-cheú, has its place supplied by 子 ’tsz. Nyih ’tsz 日子 day is distinguished from nyih deu 日頭 the sun by the enclitic.

109. To express a place where persons come and go, the words 頭 deu and 塲 dzáng are appended to substantives.

• 粒屑 lih sih, or sih alone, expresses small fragments of
• 局頭 kióh deu, place of carrying on trade
• 橋頭 kiau deu, landing place of a bridge
• 碼頭 ’mó deu, „ „ of a ferry
• 賭場 ’tu dzáng, place of gaming
• 戲場 h’í dzáng, place of seeing plays
• 牛場 nieu dzáng, place of tethering cattle
• 柴粒屑 zá lih sih, small fragments of firewood

110. Verbs and adjectives form compound substantives, by taking after them such auxiliaries as 頭 teu, 法 fah and 處 t’sû‘.

• 有辦頭 ’yeu pan‘ deu, there is a way of doing it
• 唔坐處 m ’zú t’sû‘, no place to sit down
• 有啥做法 ’yeu sá‘ t’sû‘ fah? is there a way of doing it?
• 唔啥好處 m sá‘ ’hau t’sû‘, no benefit in it
• 那能好法 ’ná nung ’hau fah? how is it good?
• 長頭 dzáng deu, overplus
• 剩頭, 餘頭 dzung‘ deu, û deu, remainder.
• 牢實頭 lau zeh deu, a simple, honest person
• 苦惱子 ’k’u ’nau ’tsz, one very poor and wretched

111. Many of the auxiliary substantives treated of in the next section, whose office it is to stand between numerals and their nouns, often follow their substantives without a numeral. A compound is thus formed, in which the sense of the classifying particle is often preserved, A piece of is expressed by k’wé. A bar of by tiau.

冰塊 ping k’wé‘, piece of ice	鋼條 kong diau, steel spring
船隻 zén tsáh, boats	人頭 niun deu, a man
書本 sû ’pun, books	紙張 ’tsz tsáng, sheet of paper

112. The words 夫 fú, 手 ’seu, 做 tsoh, 匠 ziáng‘, 司務 sz‘ vú‘, 家 ká, 人 niun, are appended to substantives to denote agents, trades and professions.

• 脚夫 kiák fú, a porter
• 兇手 h’iúng ’seu, murderer
• 本作, 木匠 mok tsoh, or móh ziáng‘, carpenter
• 水作, 泥水匠 ’sz tsoh, or ní ’sz ziáng‘, bricklayer
• 鞋匠司務 há ziáng‘ sz‘ vú‘, shoemaker
• 裁縫司務 dzé vóng sz‘ vú‘, tailor
• 店家 tién ká, shop-keeper
• 船家 zén ká, boatman
• 捉魚人 tsoh ng niun. fisherman
• 拾柴人 sih zá niun, wood gatherer
• 東家 tóng (east) ká, master (who places his guests on the right.)
• 禮生 ’lí sáng, director of rites
• 先生 síen sáng, teacher

Obs. In the longer examples, some verbs will be found which enter into composition, as those in Art.113.

113. Verbs and adjectives are frequently compounded in the same way as substantives.

• 屏風 ping (to screen) fóng (the wind), a screen
• 扶手 vú (to support) ’seu (the hand), hand-rail
• 吃局 k’iuh (eat) gióh (food), food
• 小姐 ’siau tsiá, young lady
• 古董 ’kú (old) ’tóng, curiosities
• 夥計 ’hú (combine) kí‘ (plans), partner in business
• 辮子 píen‘ (to plait) ’tsz, the queue
• 黃狼 wong (yellow) long (wolf), weasel
• 抽㔸 t’seu (to draw out) t’í‘ (drawer), a drawer.
• 生梨 sáng (raw) lí (pears), pears
• 花紅 hwó (flower) óng (red), small apples
• 金箔 kíun boh, (thin) gold-leaf
• 相好 siáng (mutual) hau (good) intimate friends

114. The word 阿, merely euphonic, is joined to the names of persons, both relative and proper. Thus instead of 哥哥 kó kó, elder brother, we have in Shánghái 阿哥 ah (r. á.) kú also 阿爹 or 爹爹 tiá tiá, father. When applied to the names of children and others in humble life, either word in the proper name may annexed.

115. Some examples of foreign words used in the dialect, and of colloquial substantives, extracted from the history of Shánghái are here appended.

• 鴉片 á p’íen‘, opium
• 袈裟 ká só, Buddhist priest’s robeSanscrit Kashaya.
• 記 (c) 翼 (c) kí‘ lih, wings. m. ’ch pang rh.
• 尾杷 (c) ní‘ pó, tail. (尾) r. ’vi) m. i pa.
• 小囝 (c) ’siau nön, little boy
• 鱟 (c) heu‘, the king-crab, rainbow. m. kang‘, r. 虹 hung.
• 簷凙 (c) yien doh, icicles. m. ping chiu‘ ’tsz.
• 羊乳 (c) yáng ’ná, goat’s milk
• 筷 (c) k’wan, chopsticks. m. k’wai tsz.
• 烟囪 (c) íen t’sóng, chimney. m. yen ’t’ung.
• 爺娘 yá niáng, father and mother. m. tie niang.

Obs.Characters followed by (c) are such as are borrowed, to represent purely colloquial words.

New and colloquial words are usually written on the phonetic principle, as may be noticed in the first three examples. Natives differ much in their way of writing purely colloquial words, and being never made use of in books, it matters little what character is adopted.

116. The last way of forming compound substantives to be exemplified, is by the particle 個 kú‘, which coming after a verb and noun expresses an agent.

• 吃糧箇 k’iuh liáng kú, (living on imperial rice), soldiers
• 撐船箇 t’sáng zén kú‘, those who work boats
• 管賬個 ’kwén tsáng‘-kú‘, account-keeper
• 賣花個 má‘ hwó kú‘, flower-seller
• 擺渡個 ’pá dú‘ kú‘, ferryman

Obs. The common word 的 tih and in books 者 ’tsé is not used in this dialect its place being supplied by 個 kú‘ as in these examples.

Repetition. 117. Substantives are in some cases repeated. Forms indicative of diminutiveness are such as occur in the following examples.

• 嘵一星星 ’nau ih sing sing, look!there is a star
• 要一點點 yau‘ ih ’tíen ’tíen, I want a very little

118. A few repeated forms occur, with am adjective preceding in opposition.

• 暗洞洞 én‘ dóng dóng, a dark place
• 亮晃晃 liáng ’kwong ’kwong, a glimmer of light

Obs. Such forms of repetition are rare, except when they express plurality (v. Art.129). In the adjective and verb, they are much more common. See also Part III.Repetition.

119. The formation of compound substantives, by the simple apposition of two or more roots, is also found in other languages. English and German contain many examples. Substantives, adjectives, and verbs all enter into these forms. E.g. hearsay (v. v.) , sunset (s. v.) , windfall (s. v.) , footstool (s. s.) , farewell (v. adv.) , lebewohl (do. German), adieu (prep. s. Fr. Eng.) , addio (do. Ital.) , safeguard (a. s.) , white-bait (a. s.) , Rath-haus (s. s.) , council-house (s. s.) . Though many of these words are written without a break, the accent on the penultimate indicates, for those that are English, that they are compounds. In languages that have an extensive system of terminations such as Latin, Greek, and Sanscrit, when composition occurs, the constituent roots become one word, and the affix of declension, &c. in the word that precedes is usually omitted. Thus, in αὐτάδελφος and αὐτόχειρ the simple root aut precedes the word to which it is joined, in one case with no adjunct, and in the other with the connecting vowel o. In the Latin word respublica, reipublicæ we have two roots in apposition, without the process of declension being interrupted. Cases of simple juxtaposition such as this, are much rarer in the ancient languages than in the modern, where the root admits of few variations in its form.

120. In the development of a language consisting of monosyllabic roots, where nothing can be added or altered, some equivalent for terminations and compounds must be expected. This want is met in the Indian languages of America, by combining several independent roots into one word. If for these agglutinated syllables, separate characters were reserved, it would be a system resembling the Chinese. We have in the latter (1), simple apposition of roots, as exemplified in articles 105, 106, 107. Second, there is a change of certain substantives into mere particles which are appended, deprived of their primitive meaning, to large classes of words, as seen in articles 108, 109, 110. Forms of this second kind are usually expressive of simple ideas only; the others may be simple or compound. The terminations of tense and case in the classical languages came from the simple apposition of separate words. Those of the first, second, and third persons of a verb are derived for example, from the three corresponding personal pronouns. Obsolete forms preserved in the oldest writers countenance this theory. Whether the primitive speech of mankind was of this sort, may be matter of controversy, but there can be no doubt that the Chinese language has this peculiarity.

121. Variation in tone might be enumerated as a third mode of supplying the want of inflexions. Examples in the spoken language are however extremely few. In 種 tsóng‘, to sow, and 種子 ’tsóng ’tsz, seed, the tone differs. But even here the enclitic 子 is an inseparable appendage to the noun. Some other examples here follow:—

一囘 ih wé‘, one time	囘來 wé lé, come back
磨子 mú‘ ’tsz, a mill	磨麥 mú máh, grind wheat
牽繩 k’íen‘ zung, towing-rope,	牽船 k’íen zén, tow a boat
鐵釘 t’ih ting, iron nail	釘牢 ting‘ lau, nail fast
應該 yung ké, ought	應許 yung‘ ’hü, a promise
想帮 siáng pong, to assist	宰相 tsé‘ siáng‘, chief mandn

Obs. The superior comma on the right shows where the words whose tone varies should receive the quick rising tone, or Shánghái k’u shing.

Gender. 122. Gender is expressed by auxiliary words set apart for the purpose. It being thus merely an instance of adjectives and substantives in apposition, the arrangement requires the words descriptive of sex (男 nén, 女 ’nü), or gender (雌 t’sz, 雄 yióng) to precede.

• 雄鷄雌鷄 yióng-kí t‘sz-kí, a cock and hen
• 一隻雄獅子 ih tsáh yióng sz-tsz, a male lion[1]
• 男人 nén niun, husband
• 女囝 ’nü nön, a girl

123. Among the words used in the Shánghái dialect to express family relationship are the following:—

爹爹 tiá tiá, father	姊夫 tsí fú, brother-in-law
阿媽 ah ’má, mother	孫女 sun ’nü, grand daughter
阿奶 ah ’ná, grandmother	外甥 ngá‘ sáng, sister’s son
伯伯 páh páh, eldest uncle	女壻 ’nü sih, son-in-law
爺叔 yá sóh, younger do	姑媽 kú mó, husband’s sister
娘舅 niáng gieu‘, mother’s brother	姑娘 kú niáng, father’s sister
丈人 dzáng‘ niun, father-in-law	阿姨 ah í, wife’s sister
丈姆 dzáng‘ m, mother-in-law	阿嫂 ah sau, brother’s wife
媳婦 sing vú, daughter-in-law	阿姪 ah dzeh, brother’s son
阿姊 ah tsí, elder sister	外公 ngá‘ kóng, mother’s father
妹妹 mé‘ mé‘,younger do	外婆 ngá bú, mother’s mother

Number. 124. The form of the substantives in the singular and plural is the same. The auxiliary adjectives and adverbs used to express plurality are placed some before and some after their words. Tsóng‘, tú hau‘ ’hau ’kí, and tá precede their noun. Dzén, t’óh, invariably follow their words.

125. 衆 tsóng‘ precedes its noun and expresses universality.

• 衆百姓 tsóng‘ pák sing‘, all the people
• 衆位阿 tsóng‘ wé‘ á, all you persons

126. 多許 tú hau‘ and ’hau ’ki 好幾 describe a great number or several. Being double inseparable particles, they form a complete member of a sentence alone, and therefore can be separated from their words, and placed afterwards with a copula and a terminating particle.

• 多許物事 tú hau‘ meh zz‘, a great many things
• 物事有多許拉 meh zz‘ ’yeu tú hau‘ lá, there are very many things
• 好幾个人 ’hau ’kí kú‘ niun, a good many men
• 人有好幾个 niun ’yeu ’hau ’kí ku‘, there are several men

127. 多 tú, several, like tsóng‘ cannot form a complete member of a sentence alone, and therefore precedes its word. It is used extensively with, the specific substantive particles already alluded to. The word tu, many, retains its old sound ta for this use.

• 買之大斤者 ’má tsz tá kiun ’tsé, have bought several catties
• 多囘 tá wé‘, several times
• 多個國度 tá kú‘ kóh dú‘, or tá kóh, several kingdoms
• 多句說話 tá kü‘ seh wó‘, many sentences

128. The words 全, 禿 dzén, t’óh foil following their substantives, usually from the first word in the concluding member of the proposition.

• 米咾肉禿有 ’mí lau niók t’óh yeu, there are both rice and meat
• 人全拉看戲 niun dzén ’lá k’ön‘ hí‘, they are all looking at the play

Obs. Pronunciation places these auxiliary particles in closer union with the following word, than with their own noun. Yet the rhythmus often attracts the two members into one sentence. E.g.

• 男女禿有 nén ’nü t’oh ’yeu, the men and women are all there
• 官府全好 kwén ’fú dzén ’hau, the mandarins are all good

129. The plural is also formed by repetition.

• 人人來者 niun niun lé ’tsé, the men are all come
• 國國太平 kók kók t’á‘ bing, nations all at peace
• 世世代代 sz‘ sz‘ dé‘ dé‘, age after age

Case. 130. The genitive or possessive case is expressed by 個 kú‘. It corresponds to 的 tih, m. 个 gé, é, Fúhkien, 個 kó‘, Canton.

• 伊个聲氣 í kú‘ sáng k’í‘, his voice
• 花个蘂頭 hwó kú‘ ’nü deu, the buds of flowers
• 人个面孔 niun kú‘ míen‘ ’k’óng, the human voice

Obs. When the possessive particle is omitted, a compound substantive is formed, as hwó ’nü deu, flower buds. Here no transposition is necessary, the predicated part standing last in both cases. English idiom placing the subject after the possessive particle, also requires the definite article to begin the sentence, “the buds of flowers.” When the constituent words are not adapted to form a compound substantive, as in the first of the examples above, the particle is always retained.

131. The objective case has no particle to mark it. It is known by position, coming after the verb. The nominative always precedes the verb.

• 我告訴㑚 ’ngú kau‘ sú‘ ná‘, I tell you
• 送我一本 sóng ’ngú ih ’pun, give me a book
• 勿要駡人 veh yau‘ mó‘ niun, do not rail at people
• 告訴伊拉者 kau‘ sú‘ í ’lá ’tsé, I have told him

132. Only the verb 話 wó‘, to say, requires a particle to precede the objective noun. The words 替, 對, 忒, t’í‘, té‘, t’eh, may either of them be employed.

• 吾替㑚話 ’ngú t’í‘ ná‘ wó‘, I tell you
• 忒伊話末者 t’eh í wó‘ meh ’tsé, tell him
• 對伊話拉者 té‘ í wó‘ ’lá ’tse, have told him

Obs. This verb being intransitive, and standing last, leaves the substantive ungoverned, and renders a preposition necessary. So in English say requires to after it. In Latin, the noun is put in the dative without a preposition, as dico vobis.

133. The sign of the dative in da mihi, and give it to me is omitted. The euphonic particle ’lá 拉 is used to fill up the rhythmus.

• 撥我一箇 peh ’ngú ih kú‘, give me one
• 撥飯拉我 peh van ’lá ’ngú, give me rice
• 撥飯我吃 peh van‘ ’ngú k’iuh, ditto
• 撥之我末者 peh tsz ’ngú meh ’tsé, give it to me
• 撥拉伊拉者 peh ’lá í ’lá ’tsé, have given it him

Obs. i. In English to is omitted or not at pleasure. Such datives as occur in Gloria Patri, dedicated to the interests of truth, my love to you cannot be expressed.

Obs. ii. In the example peh ’ngú ih kú‘, the dative comes next to the verb, while in the following sentence, the object precedes it. These differences of position are occasioned by the rhythmus.

134. To a place is expressed by 到 tau‘, usually with a verb of motion following the substantive.

• 到蘇州去者 tau‘ Sú-tseu k’i‘ ’tsé, gone to Sú-cheú
• 幾時到上海 ’kí zz tau‘ Zóng‘ ’hé, when did you come to Shánghái?
• 到此地来做啥 tau‘ ’t’sz dí‘ lé tsú‘ sá? what do you come to do?

135. Motion from or by (ablative) is expressed by 自 zz‘, 從 zóng, 由 yeu or 打, ’táng. The last of these is most frequently employed.

• 打啥户堂來 ’táng sá‘ ú dong lé? whence do you come?
• 打故邊走 ’táng kú‘ píen ’tseu, go that way
• 從第搭到屋裡 dzóng dí‘ dah tau‘ óh ’lí, from hence home

136. The sense of for, instead of is given by several particles, 替, 代, 代替, 忒, 爲, t’í, dé, dé t’í, t’uh and wé‘, are all in use.

• 忒我去買 t’uh ’ngú k’í‘ ’má, go and buy for me
• 爲之我咾 wé‘ tsz ’ngú lau— on my account—.
• 替儂做生活 t’í‘ nóng tsú‘ sáng weh, do work instead of you

137. In and at (locative case) are expressed by 勒拉 leh ’lá and 拉 ’lá before, and 裏 ’lí or 裏向 ’lí h’iáng‘, after the substantives, (m. 在 tsai‘ prefixed, 裏, 内, 中, ’lí, núi‘, chóng suffixes).

• 勿拉屋裏 veh ’lá óh ’lí, not at home
• 勿拉上海 veh ’lá Zóng‘ ’hé, not at Shánghái
• 勒拉勿勒拉 leh ’lá veh leh ’lá, at home or not?
• 勿勒裏 veh leh ’lí, not at home
• 嘴裏工夫 tsz‘ lí kúng fú, mere words
• 心裏向 sing ’lí h’iáng, in the mind

138. With, of (instrumental case) are expressed by the verb, tan (also nan west of Shánghái), or nó, to bring, preceding the noun and a verb following it.(m. 將 tsiáng, 把 pa; in books, 以 ’í and by the suffix 個 kú‘, which usually takes a verb between it and the noun.

• 担刀來割 tan tau lé kweh (köh), cut it with a knife
• 錫做个 sih tsú‘ kú‘, made of tin

139. In expressing by (instrumental case), the auxiliary verb peh 撥 precedes the instrumental noun, and the principal verb with or without its regimen follows (m. 彼 pei):—

• 撥拉爺娘責備 peh lá yá niáng tsah bé‘, he was reproved by his parents

140. Along with is expressed by t’eh 忒, 替 t’í and 同 tóng. The governed noun is followed by ih dau 一淘 together. This appendage is sometimes omitted, when 同 is used.

• 忒伊一淘去 t’eh í ih dau k’í‘, go with him
• 同我你跑 tóng ’ngú ’ní pau‘, go with us
• 替我一淘去 t’í‘ ’ngú ih dau k’í‘, go with me
• 我忒儂做朋友 ’ngú t’eh nóng tsú‘ páng ’yeu, I will be your friend

141. As a sign of the vocative, the suffix 呵 á is sometimes used. 老兄阿 lau h’iung á, brother (addressed to strangers as friendly salutation).

142. Case particles in other languages. Prepositions standing before the noun, and terminations making up one word with the root, are used together in the classical languages to express case; and very frequently the suffixes alone. In the modern European languages, suffixes are much less used, prepositions performing the office of case particles. In the Tartar languages, the particles called in other languages prepositions, come after their words, and are therefore called postpositions. In Manchu, the oblique cases, four in number, are formed by suffixes selected from this class of particles. When written they are joined to the noun or not at pleasure, and may all be used independently as particles. Thus it appears that the Chinese in using separate case particles, some before and some after, the nouns to which they belong, do not depart from the practice common to other races.

143. Premare’s method of illustrating one by one, the words most important in a grammatical view, by numerous examples, is here followed in regard to some commonly used nouns.

• 口 ’k’eu, mouth, an openingIt is only used in combination.
• 口音 ’k’eu yun, speech
• 口才 ’k’eu dzé, fluency
• 口是心非 ’k’eu ’zz sing fí, plausible but not sincere
• 三叉路口 san t’só lú‘ ’k’eu, where three roads meet
• 口頭言語 ’k’eu deu íen ’nü, colloquial particles
• 一口土白 ih ’k’eu ’t’ú báh, all he says is in the dialect.
• 門口 mun ’k’eu, opening.
• 海口 ’hé ’k’eu, sea-port
• 乍浦口嘴 Dzó‘ p’ú‘ ’k’eu tsz‘, Háng-cheú bay
• 口說無憑 ’k’eu söh m bing, words without foundation
• 有口無心 ’yeu k’eu m sing, speaking without thinking, mere words
• 一口咬定 ih ’k’eu ngau ding‘, spoke decisively

144. 氣 k’í‘.

1. Breath, vapour.

透氣 t’eu k’í‘, to breathe	地氣 tí k’í‘, climate
濕氣 sák k’í‘, moisture	斷氣 dön‘ k’í‘, to die

2. Anger.

• 惹氣儂 ’zá k’í‘ nóng‘, provoke you
• 勿要動氣 veh yau‘ dóng‘ k’í‘ do not be angry
• 氣殺我 k’í‘ sah ’ngú, provoke me greatly

3. Manner, expression, meaning.

• 陽氣來咾 yáng k’í‘ lé lau, beautifully ornamented
• 神氣宛然 zun k’í‘ wén zén, likeness to perfect
• 勿要客氣 veh yau‘ k’ák k’í‘, do not stand on ceremony
• 大有福氣 tú‘ ’yeu fóh k’í‘, has great happiness

145. 心 sing, heart, mind.

• 心拉書上 sing ’lá sû long‘, attend to your book
• 心裏明白個 sing ’lí ming bák kú‘, has an intelligent mind
• 摳心挖胆 k’eu sing wah ’tan, mind set on schemes
• 當心,留心,小心 tong sing, lieu sing, ’siau sing, pay attention
• 盡心竭力 dzing‘ sing gih lih, do your utmost
• 兩條心思 ’liáng diau sing sz, double-minded
• 白費心思 pak fí‘ sing sz, planning in vain
• 一心一念 ih sing ih nian‘, all intent upon
• 直心直肚腸 dzuh sing dzuh tú dzáng, honest, sincere
• 心心主念 sing sing ’tsû nian, resolutely intent on
• 赤胆忠心 t’suk ’tan tsóng sing, faithful

146. 手 ’seu, hand, an artisan.

• 上手下手 zong‘ ’seu ’au ’seu, superior and inferior workmen
• 動手勿得 ’tóng ’seu veh tuh, may not put hand to it
• 手忙脚亂, ’seu mong kiáh lön, confused and wrong
• 親手 t’sing ’seu, with his own hand.
• 一手難遮天下目 ih ’seu nan tsó t’íen ’au móh, one hand cannot cover the eyes of all the world
• 白手求財 pák ’seu gieu dzé, want money without earning it
• 幫手 pong ’seu, assistant
• 傳手 dzén ’seu, from hand to hand

147. 分 vun‘, duty, divisions.

• 十分裏一分 seh vun‘ ’lí ih vun‘, one tenth
• 名分, 本分 ming vun‘, ’pun vun‘, duties
• 職分꜄ tsuh vun‘, an office
• 一生安分꜄ ih sáng ön vun‘, do my duty a whole lifetime
• 分꜄所當然 vun‘ ’sú tong zén, as in duty bound

148. 頭 teu, head.

• 唔頭唔腦 m deu m ’nau, without order
• 頭二百里 teu ní‘ páh ’lí, about 200 Chinese miles
• 幾許人頭 ’kí hau‘ niun deu? how many men?
• 起頭 ’k’í deu, at the beginning
• 頭頭是道 teu deu ’zz dau‘, it is all reasonable

149. 眼 ngan eye, a point, a small hole.

• 一眼勿差 ih ngan veh t’só, quite right
• 眼睛勿好 ’ngan tsing veh ’hau, his eyes are bad
• 只得—眼 tseh tuh ih ’ngan, only a very little
• 眼底無人 ’ngan tí m niun, thinks none so good as he

150. 目 moh, eye.

頭目 teu móh, chief	賬目 t’sáng‘ móh, accounts
眼目 ’ngan moh, eyes	數目 sú‘ moh, numbers
大關節目 tá‘ kwan tsih móh, important doctrine

151. 底 ’tí, bottom.

• 月底 niöh ’tí, end of the month
• 年底 níen ’tí, end of the year
• 私底下 sz ’tí ’au, secretly
• 底裡 ’tí ’li, at the bottom
• 底下挽通 ’tí ’au ’wan t’óng, to inform secretly
• 底面不和 ’tí míen‘ peh ú, heart and looks not agreeing
• 直到底 dzuk tau‘ ’tí, to the end
• 脚底下 kiák ’tí ’au, under the feet

152. The following substantives combine with the cardinal points to form nouns of place. They are arranged in the order of their frequency. 沿, 半爿, 面, 邊, 首, 頭, 方, han‘, pén‘ ban, míen‘, píen, ’seu, teu, fong. One or two examples will suffice to explain this usage.

• 東半爿, 東面 tóng pén‘ ban, tóng míen‘, on the eastern side

The combinations with 裏 ’lí, within, include two other words which here appended, 向, 勢, 面, 邊, 頭, h’iáng‘, sz‘, míen‘, píen, teu.

• Thus, 裏向, 裏面, ’lí h’iáng‘, ’lí míen‘, inside.

Obs. Other words, such as the demonstrative pronouns, and some of the prepositions form similar combinations, as will be afterwards seen.

Section 4. On numeral particles and auxiliary substantives

153. Under his head, are included the classifying particles, called by some writers numerals, with weights and measures, and any parts not being themselves full appellative nouns, into which substantives admit of being divided.

Obs. i The distinctive numeral particles applied to different substantives, belonging as they do themselves to that class of words, could not be placed with propriety among or after the adjectives; yet their Syntax is sufficiently unlike that of the substantive to require them to be placed apart.

Obs. ii. A comprehensive classification of substantives has been presented to philologists, by Dr. Legge in his “Letters on the rendering of the name God in Chinese,” Hongkong, 1850. Several useful terms are there introduced, partly from Nordheimer, but a place for the nouns now under discussion is not provided for except under class (4). The classes into which common or nouns not proper are there divided, are—

1. “Appellative or generic nouns, or names of species of individual existence, e.g. man, mountain, tree, house, garment.” Here shape and substance are both included, and the indefinite article can be prefixed in all cases.

2. “Material nouns, e.g. corn, gold, water.” Here matter only is embraced, while the limitation of form must be supplied by other words, as “a bushel of corn,” “a handful of gold,” “a cup of water,” “a sceptre of iron.” Nordheimer, Hebrew Grammar, vol. II. 796, invents no name for the former words in these cases, merely saying that the second limits the first in meaning. He considers them all concrete nouns.

3. “Collective nouns, or nouns which though singular in form, yet express a multitude.”

4. “Abstract nouns or names of qualities or modes of existence, abstracted from the object with which they are in combination.” Numeral particles and nouns of measure and shape must be placed here, although they are thereby associated with a multitude of mental and moral terms, with which they have little in common. Abstract nouns might form two classes distinguished as material and moral.

5. “Relative nouns, e.g. father, king.” Since the second class material nouns furnishes the matter of which the words ‘bushel,’ ‘handful’, ‘cup,’ etc. supply the form, perhaps these auxiliary words should be called formal nouns, and form a sixth class.

154. The classes (1), (2), (5) and part of (4), are embraced in the preceding section; The remainder form the subject of the present. With regard to their use, combined with the numeral, they cover the ground of the article a, an in the class, and of the auxiliary words in the second.

• Thus, a mountain, 一座山 ih zú‘ san
• Call a man, 告一个人來 kau‘ ih kú‘ niun lé.
• Two measures of rice, 二斗米 ní‘ ’teu ’mí.
• A cup of cold water, 一碗冷水 ih ’wén ’láng ’sz.

Obs. In Hebrew no word like of is necessary, e.g. shébet (constr.) barzel, a sceptre of iron. Lat. virga ferrea.

155. The number and the auxiliary word are both necessary to the idiom, but the latter is sometimes used alone after the substantive, as noticed in Art.111. Yet in this case, the same construction is admissible. Thus we have,

• 兩間房間 ’liáng kan vong kan, two rooms
• 兩條鋼條 ’liáng diau kong diau, two steel springs
• 三隻船隻 san tsáh zén tsáh, three boats

156. The distinctive numeral particles, or those employed with the appellative or generic nouns, here follow.

• 箇 kú‘ (keu‘), of men, fish, cash, dials, collars, and all relative terms.
• 顆 ’k’ú, of pearls.
• 根 kun (root), of candles, hairs, trees, masts, bamboos.
• 管 kwén (pipe), of flutes, pencils.
• 口 ’k’eu (mouth), of coffins, men (as consumers).
• 科 k’ú, of plants, trees, roots, 三科樹 san k’ú zû‘, 3 trees
• 塊 k’wé‘, of stones, bricks, dollars.
• 件 kíen‘, of garments, affairs, news, things.
• 頭 teu, of men, of cattle (when reckoned by heads).
• 頂 ’ting, of sedan chairs, hats, umbrellas, curtains.
• 朶 ’tú, of single flowers.
• 燈 tung, of candles, lights, 一燈火 ih tung ’hú, a light
• 堵 ’tú, of walls, 一堵牆 ih ’tú dziáng, a wall
• 條 tiau, of snakes, dragons, bridges, ropes, roads.
• 把 ’pó (hold in hand); of chairs, knives, fans, wine bowls.
• 本 ’pun (root), of books, account books, plays.
• 匹 p’ih, of horses (隻 is more common.)
• 面 míen, of mirrors, brass and skin gongs.
• 幅 fóh, of pictures, maps.
• 對 fóng, of letters, 一封信 ih fóng sing‘, a letter
• 文 vun, of cash, (個 is more common).
• 隻 tsáh, of birds, quadrupeds, tables, temples, hands, feet, watches, shoes, clocks, eyes, ears, vessels.
• 盞 ’tsan, of lamps.
• 樁 tsong, of matters.
• 種 ’tsóng, of matters.
• 枝 tsz, of pencils, branches, stalks.
• 座 zú‘, of houses, mountains, pagodas.
• 乘 zung, of carriages.
• 圓 yön, of dollars.
• 樣 yáng‘, of affairs, matters.
• 項 háng‘, of things, matters.Also 星 sing, of things.

Obs. i. The office of these substantive particles is simply indicative. The reason of their application to particular words is custom only, but etymological connection is sometimes traceable as in 封 to close up, 頭 is applied to men only as a suffix.

Obs. ii. All generic and relative nouns are here included. They are distinguished in English from material nouns by taking the plural, and admitting a, an, before them.

Obs. iii. These words differ frequently, in their application to particular nouns, from the usage of other parts of the country. A native of Fúh-kien would laugh to hear 隻 tsáh, instead of 枝 tsz, applied to hands and feet. In mandarin 尾 vi‘, is the distinctive particle for fish instead of 箇 kú‘, which is employed in this dialect.

Obs. iv. Most of these particles are employed in mandarin. They are used sparingly in the historical novels, because the semi-colloquial, semi-literary style of those works only occasionally expands into full conversational idiom. When it does so, they are always found.

157. The next class of the auxiliary substantives are such as are significant, or retain their meaning when translated into English, giving to their substantives, which are either material nouns or are construed as such, limitations of form and quantity.

Obs. Weights and measures, names of vessels, divisions of books, etc., though belonging to the significant auxiliary particles, will be placed separately (see Art.158–160).

• 間 kan, a room of a house, ih kan vong deu, a room
• 口 ’k’eu, mouthful of breath, words, rice.
• 句 kü‘, a sentence of speech, ih kü seh wó‘.
• 竿 kûn, rod of bamboo for fishing, ih kûn diau‘ kûn
• 科 k’ú, pluck up a heap of grass, pah ih k’ú ’t’sau.
• 塊 k’wé‘, a piece of land, meat, silver.
• 捆 ’k’wun (to roll), a faggot of wood.
• 局 kióh, play a game at chess, tsoh ih gióh gí.
• 眼 ’ngan (eye) holes in nets, of nails, cash, a little of any thing
• 担 tan‘(to carry), a load of anything, ih tan‘ meh zz‘.
• 點 ’tíen drop of ink, little of anything.
• 湯 t’ong, how many kinds of food, ’kí t’ong van‘.
• 墩 tun, heap of earth, rubbish.
• 檯 té, a stage of plays, table of wine, food.
• 頭 teu, bring an end of rope, tan ih deu zung.
• 條 tiau, long piece of iron, wood, string of cash.
• 段 tön, piece cut off, of wood, string, etc.
• 板 ’pan, half sheet of paper.
• 包 pau (to wrap) a parcel, bundle of cotton, sugar.
• 把 ’pó, handful of rice, ih ’pó ’mí.
• 派 p’á‘, division of things, kind of men, customs.
• 篇 p’íen‘, a piece of elegant composition, ih p’íen vun tsáng.
• 片 p’íen, piece of gold, ih p’íen kiun ’tsz.
• 疋 p’ih, piece of cloth.
• 鋪 p’ú (to spread), covering of carpets, coverlids.
• 門 mun (touch-hole), piece of artillery.
• 紐 ’nieu, san ’nieu zung, three skeins of string.
• 方 fong (square), a piece of cloth, land, ih fong tí bí.
• 封 fóng, a packet of silver, ih fóng niung ’tsz.
• 手 ’seu, ih ’seu ni, handful of earth.
• 張 tsáng (to extend), sheet of paper.
• 節 tsih, knot of bamboo, joint of finger.
• 串 t’sén, string of flowers, cash, beads.
• 餐 t’sön, meal of rice.
• 軸 dzóh (rollers), map on rollers, ih gióh wó‘, a picture
• 席 dzih (mat), party at dinner.
• 扇 sén‘, open one leaf of the door, ih sén‘ mun, k’é k’é.
• 重 zóng, layers of books, dress.
• 層 zung, story of pagodas, steps of ladders.
• 陣 dzun‘, gust of wind, shower of rain.
• 葉 ih, leaf of grass, flowers, ih ih ’t’sau, a blade of grass
• 圓 yön, small cake of meat, medicine.
• 粒 lih, seed of corn.

Obs. i. Words expressing kind of, sort of such as 種樣星 tsóng yang‘ sing, have been placed with those particles that are simply indicative, because they are applied to nouns complete in their form and organization, e.g. 伊種人 í ’tsóng niun, that sort of man; 第星 事體 tí‘ sing zz‘ ’t’i, this sort of thing. Having a significance of their own, they should also be mentioned here.

Obs. ii. Material nouns often in English become generic, assuming the plural termination, and when singular the indefinite article, e.g. earth, stone, etc. In Chinese, if we wish to speak of a stone, the affix 頭 must be used, and 塊 prefixed. Some words need only the auxiliary prefix, e.g. 一塊煤 ih k’wé‘ mé, a piece of coal.

Obs. iii. Some auxiliaries as 塊 are found both in the significant and simply indicative class; a circumstance which suggests that all the particles in the former table had a meaning of their own originally, though now in some instances not to be traced.

Obs. iv. A few verbs are found among these words, viz. 把, 捆, 担, 包, 張, 鋪; they are here to be construed as substantives. In English, verbs construed as nouns are very numerous, e.g. hold, handle, touch, walk, roll.

Obs. v. The examples given in the table, are sufficient to shew that for this class of nouns English usage is similar, except that the particle of must be inserted. It is different with the words of the former table, for which there is no equivalent idiom in English. These two kinds of auxiliaries should therefore be keep distinct.

158. The definite subdivisions of material nouns will now be noticed. It is not only the numeral particles and the other auxiliaries, as registered in the two preceding articles, that intervene between numbers and their substantives. Many nouns are divisible into several parts, which have appropriate names and may be used as the words of the preceding table. The most useful names of divisions are here given, and first those of books and characters.

• Divisions of books.
• 句 kü‘, sentence
• 節 tsih, verse
• 大 tá‘, column
• 行 hong, column
• 張 tsáng, leaf
• 頁 yih, a leaf
• 章 tsáng, section
• 首 ’seu, ode
• 篇 p’ien, chapter
• 本 ’pun, volume
• 都 pú‘, a whole work

• Strokes of characters.
• 點 ’tíen ㇔
• 劃 wáh ㇐
• 𥪡 ’zû ㇑
• 剔 t’iuh ㇂
• 撇 p’ih ㇒
• 捺 nah ㇏
• 挑 t’iau ㇀
• 拂 fah ㇓
• 圏 k’iön, small circle〇

Obs. These words do not take any numeral particle. Thus in giving directions to a scholar to write the character 受 ’zeu, a teacher would say 一撇, 三黯, 帽下又字 ih p’ih, san tíen, mau‘, ’au ’tí yeu‘, zz‘. The eight strokes given above are all contained in the character 永. Information on this subject is given in Dr. Bridgman’s Chinese Chrestomathy and other works.

159. The most common names of vessels of capacity are the following.

碗 wén, bowl	盤 pén, tray
盞 tsan, ib	桶 ’tóng, bucket
盆 pun, a plate	匣 hah, casket
缸 kong, large jar	箱 siáng, chest
㼦 páng‘, pitcher	籃 lan, basket
瓶 ping, bottle, jar	簍 ’lieu, small hamper

Obs. These words are used as the auxiliary particles of that which is contained in them. But if they are construed as independent substantives they all take 隻 as their distinctive particle. Thus we find, 一隻碗, 一碗茶, ih tsáh wén, a cup; ih wén dzó‘, a cup of tea.

160. Of definite measures, the following are in common use.

Land and Long Measure.	Dry Measure.
畝 meu, 240 square pú‘.	石 sáh, 10 teu
站 dzan‘, 90 ’lí	斗 ’teu, 10 sung
里 ’lí, 360 pú‘.	升 sung, a pint
步 pú‘, five feet	合 keh, tenth of a pint
丈 záng‘, ten feet	抄 t’sau, 100th of keh
尺 t’sáh, foot (14 Eng. in. taylor’s ft. , 10⅞in. carpenter’s ft.)
寸 t’sun‘, tenth of a foot
分 fun, tenth of a t’sun‘

Weights.
担 tan‘, pecul	角 koh, 10 cents
斤 kiun, catty	分 fun, 1 cent
兩 ’liáng, tael	毫 háu, tenth of fun.
錢 dzíen, mace	釐 lí, tenth of hau

Measures of time.
代 dé‘, generation	點 ’tíen, hour (with 鐘).
世 sz‘, ib	刻 k’uh, ¼ hour
年 níen, year	分 fun, minute
歲 sûe‘, ib	杪 miau, second
日 nyih, day	歇 h’ih, instant

Obs. 時 zz, hour, and 月 niöh, month, are here omitted, because they usually take 箇 before them. This must be to distinguish them from words similar in sound, or from their own other senses.

161. Collective auxiliary nouns varying through all the forms of plurality, from a pair to a multitude, here follow:—

• 句 kü‘, sentence of words.
• 聯 líen, pair of corresponding sentences of poetry.
• 雙 song, pair of shoes.
• 對 té‘, opposite pair of candles, geese, ih dé‘ kí, pair of fowls
• 股 ’kú, 2 or 3 in trade; san ’ku k’é, divide between three
• 排 pá, a pile or raft of timber, row of trees.
• 隊 té‘, a rank of soldiers, ih dé ping.
• 帖 t’ih, parcel of ten pencils, ih t’ih pih.
• 刀 tau, 100 sheets of paper, ih tau ’tsz.
• 炷 tsû, bundle of incense, ih tsû h’iáng.
• 套 t’au‘, coverful of books, ih t’au‘, sû.
• 串 t’sén chain of 1,000 cash.
• 羣 kiün, flock of birds, beasts, ih giün ’tiau.
• 副 fú‘, suit of clothes, ih fú‘ í zong.
• 行 hong, rows of birds flying, trees.

162. From the list here given, it appears that there are at least 130 of these imperfect substantives, almost all in common use. They admit of a fourfold division.

I. Of the first kind, whose office is simply indicative of appellative nouns, or distinctive to some extent of classes, there are upwards of 30. A few examples are appended.

• 一口棺材 ih ’k’eu kwén zé, a coffin
• 造一條橋 ’zau ih diau giau, build a bridge
• 殺一隻雞 sah ih tsáh kí, kill a fowl
• 一枝大筆 ih tsz dú‘ pih, a large pencil

Obs. i. At first sight, these words look like a capricious superfluity of articles, arising merely from a fondness for multiplying words. They appear appropriate in a language, where there is so much arbitrary classification, and so little exhibition of the power of generalizing by means of deep and comprehensive principles. Here are thirty words made use of, where one would be sufficient. It should however be remembered, that when used as adverbs there is great clearness given to the conception they express, and that they diminish the confusion that arises from similarities of sound.

Obs. ii. When an adjective is used, it comes between the particle and the noun, as in the last example. This is also true of the other particles that are the subject of this chapter.

II. Of the significant particles, or those that are applied to material nouns, and define quantity and form, apart from number, there are about 40. E.g.

• 一張紙頭 ih tsáng ’tsz deu, a sheet of paper
• 二十担泥 ní‘ seh tan‘ ní, twenty loads of earth
• 九層塔 ’kieu zung t’áh, pagoda of nine stories

Obs. i. When they become parts of compound appellative nouns, one of the distinctive particles precedes.

• 一个面孔 ih ku‘ míen‘ ’k’óng, one face
• 一隻節頭 ih tsáh tsih deu, one finger

Obs. ii. 點, 眼, tíen, ngan, are applied to any material noun in the sense of a little of. Ih 一 precedes them.

III. The subdivisions or definite parts of material nouns, form the most numerous class of the auxiliary substantives. Upwards of 50 are here collected. They take no particle after the number preceding, and must therefore be classed as imperfect substantives. Thus the construction in the following examples is similar.

(III.)	一斤花 ih kiun hwó, pound of cotton
(II.)	一包花 ih pau hwó, bundle of cotton
(II.)	一粒米 ih lih ’mí, a grain of rice
(III.)	一斗米 ih ’teu ’mí, a peck of rice

IV. Collectives compose the remaining, and smallest class of qualifying particles applied to substantives. The use of words in the four classes of particles may be seen in the following examples.

• 一隻羊 ih tsáh yáng, a sheep
• 一塊羊肉 ih k’wé yáng nióh, a piece of mutton.
• 一斤羊肉 ih kiun yáng nióh, catty of mutton
• 一羣羊 ih giün yáng, flock of sheep

163. Another small class of auxiliary substantives, consists of those that are used with verbs, expressing like our word times, the number of times the action has been performed. They are 次, 燙, 囘, 轉, 記; their use will be understood by examples.

• 來過兩次 lé kú‘ ’liáng t’sz‘, I have come twice
• 去之一燙 k’í‘ tsz ih t’ong, having gone once
• 要讀兩囘 yau‘ dóh ’liáng wé‘, you must read it twice
• 走兩轉就定 ’tseu ’liáng ’tsén dzieu‘ ding‘, after going round twice he stops
• 打三十記 ’táng san seh kí‘, received 30 blows

Section 5. On the Adjective呆 虛 字.

164. The native writer before alluded to says, the office of adjectives is “to describe the attributes and appearance of things.” “In apposition with nouns, they express their qualities,” (與實字相加, 以形容實字如何樣.) “Some adjectives consist of two words which are inseparable. Thus, repetition of the initial, the rhyme, and the whole character, frequently occurs.” (有兩字折不開者, 如雙聲, 疊韻, 疊字等類.) “There are not more than a few tens of characters that are adjectives.”

Antithesis. 165. In substantives, the principle of combination came prominently to view, and it will be found to belong though not so extensively, to the other parts of speech. That of antithesis belongs especially to adjectives. Most of the single-worded adjectives in daily use will illustrate this.

• 輕重 k’iung, ’dzóng, light, heavy
• 大小 tú‘, ’siau, great, little
• 多少 tú ’sau, many, few
• 長短 dzáng, ’tön, long, short
• 厚薄 ’heu, póh, thick, thin
• 闊狹 k’weh, hah, broad, narrow
• 高低 kau, tí, high, low
• 深淺 sun, ’t’síen, deep, shallow
• 冷暖 ’láng, ’nön, cold, warm.
• 清濁 t’sing, dzóh, clear, muddy
• 快慢 k’wá‘, man‘, quick, slow
• 好孬 (c) ’hau, k’ieu, good, bad (k’ieu = 歹 ’té).
• 淡濃 tan‘, nióng, pale, deep
• 早晚 ’tsau, an‘, early, late
• 硬軟 ngáng‘, ’niön, hard, soft
• 曲直 k’ióh, dzuh, crooked, straight
• 正斜 tsung‘, siá, right, bent
• 壯瘦 tsong‘, seu‘, fat, lean
• 生熟 sáng, zóh, ripe, unripe
• 鬆緊 sóng, kiun, loose, tight
• 粗細 t’sú, sí‘, coarse, fine
• 新舊 sing, ’kieu, new, old
• 稀綳 (c) h’í, ’máng, few, crowded (máng = 密 mih).
• 貴强 (c) kü‘, giáng, dear, cheap (giáng = 賤 dzíen).
• 眞假 tsun, ’ká, true, false
• 亮暗 liáng‘, en‘, light, dark

Obs. i. Those words only that are marked (c) are not used in literary compositions. There is no class of words more extensively spread through all Chinese, spoken and written, than the majority of these adjectives.

Obs. ii. Antithetical substantives of one character each, are rare in the colloquial. See 107.Obs.iii.

Obs. iii. In Premare’s list of antithetical characters, more than fifty of 117 are adjectives. Many also of those that belong to other parts of speech, have the antithesis less strongly marked.

Obs. iv. Many abstract substantives are formed by the union of these antithetical adjectives, in the order in which they stand above; e.g. how long?’kí hau‘ dzáng ’dön? to say nothing about speed, veh ’kong k’wá man‘ v. Syntax. Part III. §2.

166. Sometimes in the antithesis, one member is a single, and the other a double form.

佳 kiá, capable	唔用 m yúng‘, useless
亂 lön‘, disturbed	太平 t’a‘ bing, peaceful

167. Other words having no obvious antithesis form it by assuming the sign of the negative.

• 勿像我能 veh ziáng‘ ’ngú nung, not like me
• 勿肯做 veh ’k’ung tsú‘, not willing to do it
• 勿便當 veh bíen‘ tong‘, not convenient

Obs. The negative here just corresponds to our English prefix un, e.g. unlike, unwilling.

Combination. 168. Many adjectives are formed by the apposition in a fixed order, of two adjectives, and in these compounds many book words occur.

淸爽 t’sing ’song, clear	忠厚 tsóng ’eu, faithful
懶惰 lan dú‘, lazy	謙虛 k’íen h’ü, humble
乾淨 kûn zing‘, clean	煩難 van nan, difficult
聰明 t’sóng ming, clever	須少 sü ’sau, few
毛草 mau ’t’sau, rough	許多 ’hü tú, many
冷靜 ’láng ’zing, solitary	新鮮 sing síen, new
粗疎 t’sú sú, coarse	呆笨 ngé bun‘, stupid
窮苦 kióng ’kú, poor	兇狠 h’iúng ’hun, fierce

Obs. The antithesis that occurs in examples of this sort is sufficiently indicated by the sense.

169. In addition to compounds such as those already given, formed by two adjectives, substantives and verbs make part of many.

• 小器 ’siau (small) k’í‘, (vessel), parsimonious
• 雪白 sih báh, snow-white
• 厚道 ’heu (thick) dau‘ (doctrine), liberal
• 大量 tû‘ (great) liáng‘, (capacity), generous.
• 刻薄 k’uh (to cut) bóh (thin), exacting
• 認眞 niung‘ tsun, diligent
• 拗强 au‘ (to bend) giáng, unyielding
• 完全 wén (finish) zíen, complete (r. dzíen.)
• 氣悶 k’í‘(anger) mun‘ (sad), secretly sad
• 高興 kau (wish) h’iung‘ (ready for), willing
• 難過 nan (hard) ku‘ (to pass), painful, sad
• 胆大 ’tan (liver) dú‘ (great), bold
• 出客 t’seh (outside) k’áh, (visitor), handsome
• 好笑 ’hau (good) siau‘ (laugh), ridiculous

Obs. There are also triple forms, in which other parts of speech enter, e.g. 壁立直, pih lih dzuh, straight as a wall; 的溜圓 tih lieu‘ yön, very round. In these examples, the adjective which stands last is qualified by the preceding words.

170. Some adjectives of two words are exclusively local in their use, and present no etymology in their characters, being written phonetically. They are always inseparable.

𨅓跎 sá dú, tired	豪燥 au sau‘, active, sharp.
齷齪 ok t’soh, dirty	㾑𤺥 keh dah, blind to reason
囫圇 weh lun, entire	𨰵𨐃 h’iá tsá, skillful
葛列 köh lih, clean	玲瓏 ling lóng, intelligent. m.

171. Combinations of three are also numerous, in which the first word contains the principal meaning. The second is repeated, and as will be seen in the examples, sometimes conveys only sound. The phonetic formation of the characters will usually serve to indicate this.

• 瞎搭搭 p. hah tah tah, irregular
• 硬𨅘𨅘 p. ngáng‘ báng báng, hard and stiff
• 軟滋滋 ’niön tsz tsz, soft
• 滑澾澾 p. wah t’ah t’ah, slippery
• 閙嚷嚷 ’nau záng záng, noisy, humming
• 毛萋萋 mau ts’í ts’í, rough
• 暖筒筒 p. ’nön dóng dóng, warm
• 直條條 dzuh diau diau, straight
• 矮矬矬 ’á t’sú t’sú, dwarfish
• 短悠悠 ’tön yeu yeu, „
• 白雪雪 pak sih sih, snow-white
• 黑搨搨 p. huk t’ah t’ah, black

Obs. i. In examples not marked p. the repeated word has an independent sense, in agreement with that of the leading word, and is so used in the books.

Obs. ii. These phonetic appendages, destitute of any significance of their own, are interesting to the comparative etymologist as corresponding to adjectival terminations in other languages.

172. Combined forms of four words, often consisting of adjectives and either substantives or verbs, and still more frequently of double adjectives repeated are, such as follow.

• 正大光明 tsung‘ dá‘ kwong ming, upright and wise
• 寬弘大量 k’wén óng dú‘ liáng‘, generous
• 井井有條 ’tsing ’tsing ’yeu diau, very regular
• 希奇古怪 h’i gi ’kú kwá‘, extraordinary
• 長長遠遠 dzáng dzáng ’yön ’yön long in time
• 高高低低 kau kau tí tí, irregular in height
• 忙忙碌碌 mong mong lóh lóh, busy
• 胆胆大大 ’tan ’tan dú‘ dú‘, boldy

Obs. The monosyllabic adjectives are not repeated. These double forms when repeated, are also correctly translated as adverbs in almost all cases. It will be seen in subsequent sections, that repetition is used most extensively among verbs and adverbs.

173. The place of the adjective is before its noun if they go into combination, but with the substantive verb as copula or an equivalent, it may become a supplementary member of the sentence.

• 好人 ’hau niun, good man
• 人是好個 niun ’zz ’hau kú‘, the man is good
• 白糖 páh dong, white sugar
• 清水 t’sing ’sz, clear water
• 快馬 k’wá‘ ’mó, swift horse
• 冷飯 ’láng van‘, cold rice
• 舊書 kieu‘ sû, old books
• 馬倒勿快 ’mó ’tau veh k’wa‘, yet the horse goes slowly
• 水淸是清個 ’sz t’sing ’zz t’sing ku‘, the water is clear

174. Substantives become adjectives to other substantives, if placed before them in combination.

洋刀 yáng tau, foreign knife	石路 zah lú‘, stone road
牛奶 nieu ’ná, buffalo milk	海船 ’hé zén, sea junk

Obs. Compounds of this kind have come under notice before, Art.106. Thus it appears that cases occur which prevent the accurate defining of the parts of speech. For the words standing first in these examples, while they may well be claimed as adjectives, according to the grammar of the classical languages, are unquestionably substantives when alone. As roots they are substantives. It is by position that they are changed into adjectives. For corresponding examples in English, see Art.119.

175. Verbs with the particle 個 or 拉個, become adjectives to the following noun.

• 種拉个稻 tsóng‘ ’lá kú‘ ’dau, the sown rice
• 死个人多 ’sí kú‘ niun tú, those that die are many
• 愛拉个囝 é‘ ’lá kú‘ ’siau nön, a dear child
• 活个物事 weh kú‘ meh zz‘ living thing

Obs. i. In examples like the second of these, the sense is also complete without the noun as ’sí kú‘ tú. We have in English a darkened room, a beloved child. Participles are here construed as adjectives, a usage similar to the Chinese.

Obs. ii. Some verbs enter into combination as adjectives, without the intervention of any particle. 死人 ’sí niun, dead man; 孝子 h’iau‘ ’tsz, filial son; 孝女 h’iau‘ ’nü, filial daughter.

176. A few adjectives are also employed as transitive verbs. The second and fourth of the following sentences are examples. In the 1st and 3rd, the same words are adjectives.

• 喜歡得極 ’h’í hwén tuh giuh, exceedingly glad
• 牛喜歡水 nieu ’h’í hwén ’sz, buffaloes are fond of water
• 快快活活 k’a‘ k’a‘ weh weh, very glad
• 伊總快活儂 í tsóng k’a‘ weh nóng‘, he will certainly be pleased with you

Comparison of adjectives. 177. The comparative is expressed in several ways, as by—

a. 再 tsé‘, again, which precedes the adjective it qualifies.

• 勿能再少 veh nung tsé‘ ’sau, I cannot say less
• 再大無沒 tsé‘ dú‘ m méh, there are none larger
• 再强有否 tsé‘ giáng ’yeu ’vá? have you any cheaper?

b點 ’tíen, a little, follows the word that it qualifies.

• 第本書好點 tí‘ ’pun sû ’hau ’tíen, this book is better
• 快點走 k’wá‘ ’tíen ’tseu, walk a little faster
• 多點末者 tú ’tíen meh ’tsé, say a little more

c一眼 ih ’ngan, a little, is similar in use to the last.

• 倒好一眼 ’tau ’hau ih ’ngan, this is however something better
• 高大一眼 kau dú‘ ih ’ngan, let it be better and more

d. 還 wan still, further; this word combined with 要 yau‘, to want, makes the adjective that follows comparative.

• 還要好 wan yau‘ ’hau, I want better yet
• 工力還要細 kúng fú wan yau‘ sí‘, I want the work finer

e. 比 ’pí, compare; this word makes the adjective that follows comparative. When 比 is in the negative form, the adjective may be omitted.

• 上海勿比蘇州 Zong‘ ’hé veh ’pí Sú tseu, Shanghai cannot be compared to Sú-cheú
• 比我還好 ’pí ’ngú wan ’hau, he is better than I
• 比我好 ’pí ’ngú ’hau, do
• 勿算比我好 veh sûn ’pí ’ngú ’hau, he is not to be thought better than I

f. 更 kung‘, better. Sometimes 加 ká, to add, follows it.

• 勿去更好 veh k’í‘ kung‘ hau, not to go would be better
• 更加勿對 kung‘ ká veh té‘, still more wrong
• 更加無用 kung‘ ká m yúng‘, much more useless

g. 越 yöh repeated. The use of this particle repeated is to place the two members of a sentence in strong antithesis; sometimes 發 fah, to express follows it.

• 越多越好 yöh tú yöh ’hau, the more the better
• 越發窮越發要生病 yöh fah gióng yöh fah yau‘ sáng bing‘, the poorer men are, the more liable they are to sickness
• 越發明白末越發要喜歡 yöh fah ming báh meh, yöh fah yau‘ ’h’í hwén, the more you understand it, the better you will be pleased with it

h. 又 í‘, again, is a very common form. 比 ’pí, often commences the sentence.

• 第个人又好 tí‘ kú‘ niun í‘ ’hau, this man is better
• 落雨又多 loh ’ü í‘ tú, it rains still more

i. 又加 í‘ ká, still more is often preceded by 比 ’pí.

• 比我又加明白 ’pí ’ngú í‘ ká ming báh, he is still more intelligent than I

k加, 添, 放大 ká or tíen add or fong‘ dú‘, increase.

• 加伊個膽量 ká í kú‘ ’tan liáng‘, grew more courageous
• 今朝風加大 kiun tsau fóng ká dú‘, the wind is higher to-day
• 鞋子要放大 há ’tsz yau‘ fong‘ dú‘, make the shoes larger
• 銅錢要添點 tóng díen yau‘ t’íen ’tíen, you must give more money

l. The comparison is intensified by adding 得多 tuh tú after the adjective.

• 昨日好得多者 zoh nyih ’hau tuh tú ’tsé, yesterday he was much better.
• 第根竹頭比伊根長学得多 tí‘ kun tsóh-deu ’pí í kun dzang tuh tú, this bamboo is much larger than that
• 第二隻鷄重得多 tí‘ ní‘ tsáh kí dzóng‘ tuh tú, the second fowl is much heavier

m. Beside the formation of the comparative by particles, it is expressed by the positive standing first, when the difference of the compared objects is mentioned.

• 高六寸 kau lók t’sun‘, taller by six inches

Obs. i. The verb 比 is however in examples of this last kind, understood as going before, and is often expressed, as in 第隻船此伊隻闊 二尺 ti‘ tsáh zén ’pí í tsáh k’weh ní‘ ts’ah, this boat is two feet wider than that我娘個病比前日子好得多者 ’ngú niáng kú‘ bing‘ ’pí zien nyih ’tsz ’hau tuh tú ’tsé, my mother is much better than the day before yesterday.