Similarities and Differences between English and Chinese Languages

1. English emphasizes structure, while Chinese emphasizes semantics

English and Chinese are two completely different languages. Mr. Wang Li, a famous Chinese linguist, once said: "As far as the structure of sentences is concerned, Western language is governed by law, while Chinese language is governed by people.

Judging from the setting of English-Chinese translation questions, English sentences are generally more complex. This is mainly due to two reasons: First, the exam requires the sentences to be of a certain degree of difficulty, otherwise the candidates' true level cannot be tested; second, English can combine many layers of meaning in one sentence through structural arrangements.

In the translation from Chinese to English, the difference in semantics and structure is even more obvious. "The reason why it's funny is" study hard and make progress every day. " and "You don't know, who knows? " is a typical Chinese expression, and its direct translation into English does not conform to English grammar. The correct translation is actually very simple:

—Work hard and make progress everyday.

—If you don' t know, who knows?

The verbs Work and make are the core of the sentence, and they are connected by coordinating conjunctions; the if introductory clause makes who knows the main clause of the entire sentence. If there are no such structural elements. Adjustment, the semantics of Chinese sentences cannot be expressed in English

2. English has many long sentences, and Chinese has many short sentences

Because English emphasizes structure and Chinese emphasizes semantics, English sentences Chinese sentences are often relatively long, and the translation of the above example sentences has made this very clear. After understanding this difference, it is natural for translation to get rid of the constraints of the original text and strive for a certain initiative. This is Qian Zhong. As Mr. Shu said, "get the meaning, forget the words." The key to successfully completing this formal change is to analyze the structure of long English sentences and group them according to meaning. Cut into several small sections

—In the doorway lay at least twelve umbrellas of all sizes and colors.?

There are a bunch of umbrellas at the doorway, at least twelve. Colorful and of different sizes.

If this sentence is translated as "There are at least a dozen colorful umbrellas of different sizes at the door", the Chinese will obviously be a bit awkward, and the effect will definitely be far worse.

3. English has multiple clauses and Chinese has multiple clauses

English sentences can not only use long modifiers in simple sentences (the first two examples are simple sentences) to make the sentences longer, At the same time, clauses can also be used to complicate sentences, and these clauses are often connected to the main clause or other clauses through clause introductory words. Although the entire sentence seems complicated on the surface, it is a whole. Chinese inherently likes to use short sentences and expressive structures. Relatively loose, the clauses in English sentences often become clauses when translated into Chinese.

—Can you answer a question which I want to ask and which is puzzling me?

I have a question that I don’t understand. I want to ask you. Can you answer it?

Chinese uses three clauses to express the meaning of the original text, which obviously works very well. If it is translated into:

Can you answer a question that I don't understand and want to ask you? Not only does it not work well, but it also seems laborious.

4. English has multiple pronouns and Chinese has multiple nouns

English not only has personal pronouns such as we, you, he, and they, but also relative pronouns such as that and which. For long and complex sentences, English often uses many pronouns in order to make the sentence structure correct and semantically clear, while avoiding repetition of expressions. Although Chinese also has pronouns, due to its relatively loose structure and relatively short sentences, too many pronouns cannot be used in Chinese. Using nouns often makes the meaning clearer.

—There will be television chat shows hosted by robots, and cars with pollution monitors that will disable them when they offend.

Translation: There will be television chat shows hosted by robots, and cars with pollution monitors that will disable them when they offend. Programs and cars equipped with pollution monitors. Once the pollution of these cars exceeds the standard (or violates regulations), the monitors will stop them from driving.

The original English sentence *** uses three pronouns: the relative pronoun that, the object pronoun them and the nominative pronoun they. However, in the Chinese translation, only one pronoun "qi" is used, and that is translated into a noun "Monitor", they are translated into the noun "car". This is because there is no relative pronoun in Chinese. From an English grammatical perspective, that refers to the antecedent monitors. Translating it into the noun "monitor" becomes a very authentic Chinese expression. And if they are translated as "they", the semantics in Chinese may be unclear, because "they" may refer to "cars" or "monitors". It can be seen that many pronouns in English will become nouns when translated into Chinese.

5. English is more passive, while Chinese is more active

English prefers to use passive voice, especially in scientific and technological English. Although Chinese also has words such as "bei" and "you" to indicate that the action is passive, this expression is far less common than the passive voice in English. Therefore, the passive voice in English often becomes active in Chinese translation. Let’s first look at the Chinese translation of a set of commonly used passive sentence patterns:

It is said that...It is said...

It is reported that...Accordingly...?

It is estimated that...It is estimated...?

It must be pointed out that...Must be pointed out...?

It can not be denied that...It is undeniable...

It is (generally) considered that...Everyone (generally) thinks...?

6. There are many variations in English and many in Chinese Repetition

Anyone familiar with English knows that English often changes expressions when expressing the same meaning. The first time you say "I think" you can use "I think", but the second time you use "I think" it is obviously boring and should be replaced with expressions like "I believe" or "I imagine". In contrast, Chinese does not have as high requirements for changing expressions as English. Many changing expressions in English can be translated into repeated expressions. Consider the following example:

—The monkey's most extraordinary accomplishment was learning to operate a tractor. By the age of nine, the monkey had learned to solo on the vehicle.?

The monkey's most remarkable achievement was learning to drive a tractor. By the age of nine, the monkey had learned to perform tractor driving alone.

Tractor and vehicle obviously both mean "tractor" in the sentence. There are changes in the English expression, but when translated into Chinese, repeated expressions are used. ?Because English likes to use pronouns and Chinese likes to use nouns, this also makes the characteristics of English's many changes and Chinese's many repetitions more prominent.

—He hated failure; he had conquered it all his life, risen above it, and despised it in others.?

He hated failure; he had conquered it all his life, risen above it, and despised it in others.?

Failure, and contempt for the failure of others.

7. How abstract is English, and how concrete is Chinese?

People who have done a lot of translation practice have this experience: English sentences are difficult to translate mainly because of their complex structure and abstract expression. . By analyzing the structure of sentences and changing long sentences into short sentences and clauses into clauses, structural problems are often easily solved. Expressing abstractly requires the translator to thoroughly understand the meaning of the original text and express it in concrete Chinese, which is often more challenging for candidates.

total exhaustion

far_sightedness

careful consideration

perfect harmony

feed on fancies Painting cakes to satisfy hunger?

With great eagerness Lack of perseverance Three days of fishing and two days of drying the net?

await with great anxiety Looking through the autumn water?

make a little contribution?

8. English has many extensions, and Chinese has many inferences

People who work as translators often have such a feeling: someone I clearly know the words, but I just don’t know how to express them. This is actually the extension and reasoning of words at work. Now let’s take a look at how the word sure is treated in different sentences:

—I am not quite sure of his having said it.

I am not quite sure whether he had said it. talk.

—This is the surest guarantee that we shall be successful.

This is the surest guarantee that we shall be successful.

—He made a sure step out of the mud.

He made a sure step out of the mud.

—She had a sure grasp of the subject.

She had a sure grasp of the subject.

—He is very sure in his beliefs.

His beliefs are very firm.

The five sures are translated as "certain", "reliable", "robust", "firm" and "firm" respectively. If they are all translated into the familiar "certain" and "certain" ", wouldn't the Chinese translation become a heavenly book? If the meaning of the original word is slightly extended, the translation must make appropriate inferences.

9. English tends to omit more, while Chinese tends to supplement more.

On the one hand, English attaches great importance to sentence structure, and on the other hand, it likes to use omissions. There are many types of omissions in English, including noun omissions, verb omissions, syntactic omissions, and situational omissions. In parallel structures, English often omits words that have appeared before, while Chinese often repeats these omitted words.

—Ambition is the mother of destruction as well as of evil.

Ambition is not only the root of evil, but also the root of destruction.

—Reading exercises one's eyes; speaking, one's tongue; while writing, one's mind. (F. Bacon)?

Reading trains one's eyes, speaking trains one's mouth, and writing Train people's thinking.

—Association with the good can only produce good, with the wicked, evil.

Those who are close to vermillion are red, and those who are close to ink are black.

—One boy is a boy, two boys half a boy, three boys no boy.

One monk carries water to eat, two monks carry water to eat, and three monks have no water eat.

10. English has more emphasis on the front, while Chinese has more emphasis on the back

When expressing logical thinking, English often puts judgments or conclusions first, and facts or descriptions later, that is, The center of gravity comes first; in Chinese, it goes from cause to effect, from hypothesis to inference, from fact to conclusion, that is, the center of gravity comes later.

—I was all the more delighted when, as a result of the initiative of your Government it proved possible to reinstate the visit so quickly.

Because of the initiative of your Government, it proved possible to reinstate the visit so quickly. Access can be re-implemented so quickly. This makes me particularly happy.