4.5 Word Classes
Following are brief explanations of the basic terms in Chinese grammar used in this dictionary. (A
word of warning: it is a rather complicated matter to define grammatical terms accurately. Here we
will be content with some very general but useful ideas.)ADJECTIVE a describing word, a word that describes people, things or actions, typically
used before a noun.
ADVERB a word that modifies a verb, an adjective or another adverb.CONJUNCTION a word used to link two words, phrases or sentences, indicating certain
relationships between them.IDIOM a set phrase, the meaning of which cannot be readily derived from its
components.
INTERJECTION a word that expresses strong emotions.MEASURE WORD a word that connects a numeral to a noun. Measure words are a special feature
of Chinese; a list of measure words is included in the front matter.
MODAL VERB a word used before a verb to indicate necessity, possibility, willingness, etc.
NOUN a naming word, a word that names people, animals, plants, things, ideas, etc.
NUMERAL a word that represents a number, typically used with a noun.
ONOMATOPOEIA a word that imitates the sounds of a thing or an action.PARTICLE a word used with another word, phrase, or sentence to indicate certain
grammatical meanings or to express strong emotions.PREPOSITION a word used before a noun or pronoun to indicate time, place, direction,
manner, reason of an action, etc.
PRONOUN a word that is used in the place of a noun, a verb, an adjective, etc.
VERB an action word, a word that indicates what somebody does or feels.5 CULTURAL AND USAGE NOTES
As a dictionary for learners rather than a mere wordlist, this dictionary goes out of its way to give
essential information on cultural context, pronunciation, grammar and usage of words. For example:
lǐwù 礼物 [modif: 礼 gift + 物 thing] N gift, present (件 jiàn)
...NOTE: Chinese modesty requires that you belittle your present, describing it as 一件小礼物 yí jiàn
xiǎo lǐwù a small/insignificant gift. Upon receiving a present, it is bad manners to open it
immediately. The recipient is first supposed to say 不用不用 búyòng búyòng You didn’t have to
and then express thanks for the gift, describing it as 这么好的礼物 Zhème hǎo de lǐwù such a nice
gift, e.g. ■ 谢谢你送给我这么好的礼物。Xièxie nǐ sònggei wǒ zhème hǎo de lǐwù. Thank you for giving
me such a nice gift.
There are hundreds of such notes in the dictionary.6 HOW TO LOOK UP A WORD IN THE DICTIONARY
6.1 By Pinyin romanization