A:

Wǒ juéde guóhuà hé shuǐcǎi huà kànqǐlái yǒudiǎnr xiàng.

我觉得国画和水彩画看起来有点儿像。

I feel that traditional Chinese paintings and watercolor paintings look somewhat alike.

B:

Shì yǒuxiē xiāngsì, tāmen dōu xūyào yòng shuǐ lái tiáohé yánliào.

是有些相似，它们都需要用水来调和颜料。

They do share some similarities. Both require the use of water to mix pigments.

Dàn yě yǒu bùtóng zhī chù!

但也有不同之处！

But there are also differences!

A:

Shì a. Guóhuà zhùzhòng yìjìng, shuǐcǎi huà gèng kànzhòng sècǎi hé guāngyǐng de biànhuà.

是啊。国画注重意境，水彩画更看重色彩和光影的变化。

I can tell. Traditional Chinese paintings emphasize the artistic feel, while watercolor paintings focus more on the colors and the variations of light and shadow.

B:

Bùguò, huà hǎo tāmen dōu xūyào shēnhòu de gōngdǐ!

不过，画好它们都需要深厚的功底！

However, mastering either of them requires a tremendous amount of practice!

A:

Nǐ jīntiān kànqǐlái hěn gāoxìng a!

你今天看起来很高兴啊！

You seem very happy today!

B:

Duì! Wǒ shàngzhōu zài lùbiān jiǎn le yīgēn shùzhī, jīntiān zǎoshang jūrán kāihuā le!

对！我上周在路边捡了一根树枝，今天早上居然开花了！

Yes! I picked up a branch on the roadside last week, and it bloomed this morning!

A:

Guàibude nǐ xīnqíng zhème hǎo.

怪不得你心情这么好。

No wonder you’re in such a good mood.

B:

Shì a. Wǒ běnlái zhǐshì xiǎng nálái dāng zhuāngshì, méixiǎngdào jìngrán hái huì kāihuā!

是啊。我本来只是想拿来当装饰，没想到竟然还会开花！

Yeah. I only intended to use it as decoration, but I didn't expect it to flower!

In this special episode of Takeaway Chinese, we're going to learn how to say "straw" in Chinese.

In this special episode of Takeaway Chinese, we're going to learn how to say "furniture" in Chinese.

A:

Zěnme hái bù shuìjiào?

怎么还不睡觉？

Why are you not sleeping?

B:

Wǒ zhèngzài zhuī de wǔxiá xiǎoshuō gēngxīn le, gāngcái zài kàn xiǎoshuō.

我正在追的武侠小说更新了，刚才在看小说。

The martial arts novel I'm following just updated. I was reading it just now.

A:

Wánjié le ma?

完结了吗？

Is the book finished?

B:

Hái méi, cái xiě dào yībàn. Dàn shūli miáoxiě de jiānghú fēicháng kù.

还没，才写到一半。但书里描写的江湖非常酷。

Not yet, only halfway through. But the depiction of the world in the book is very cool.

In this special episode of Takeaway Chinese, we're going to learn how to say "broadcast" in Chinese.

In this special episode of Takeaway Chinese, we're going to learn how to say "boarding pass" in Chinese.

A:

Nǐ zài tiàowǔ ma?

你在跳舞吗？

Are you dancing?

B:

Bù shì, zhè jiào bāduànjǐn, shì yītào jiànshēn gōngfǎ.

不是，这叫八段锦，是一套健身功法。

No, this is called Baduanjin. It’s a set of qigong exercises.

A:

Liànxí tā yǒu shénme hǎochù ma?

练习它有什么好处吗？

What are the benefits of practicing it?

B:

Zhǔyào shì néng cùjìn qìxuè xúnhuán, qiángshēn jiàntǐ, suǒyǐ wǒ jīhū měitiān dōu liàn.

主要是能促进气血循环，强身健体，所以我几乎每天都练。

It mainly promotes the circulation of vital energy and blood and strengthens the body, so I practice almost every day.

A:

Yǒu zhème shénqí ma? Yàobù nǐ yě jiāojiao wǒ ba?

有这么神奇吗？要不你也教教我吧？

Is it that amazing? Why don't you teach me?

In this special episode of Takeaway Chinese, we're going to learn how to say "curtain" in Chinese.