Lesson 18

Video and text
Listening and speaking
Vocabulary
Grammar exercises

Question: Your Chinese friend wrote a character on the board and wiped it off. It was not clear enough for you to read. Tell him you couldn't read it properly and ask him write it again clearly.

Hint 1   Use 清楚
Hint 2   Use the V得...一点儿 construction
Answer  我没看清楚你刚写的字。请你写得清楚一点儿。 Listen
Comments  Alternatively: 你刚写的字我没看清.请再写一遍, 写得清楚点儿 nǐ gāng xiě de zì wǒ méi kàn qīng. qǐng zài xiě yí biàn, xiě de qīngchu  diǎnr. 清楚 qīngchu clear is the result of 看 kàn reading and 写 xiě writing, therefore 清楚 qīngchu is placed after the verbs 看 kàn and 写 xiě. 一点儿 yì diǎnr in the V 得 Vde construction implies "more". The speaker would like to see the character written more clearly. The V 得ADV一 点儿 V deADVyì diǎnr construction is used when the speaker has already anticipated or experienced the outcome, but would like to experience it "more" or "less" than anticipated or experienced. For instance, 请你说得慢一点儿 qǐng nǐ shuō de màn yì diǎnr could you please speak more slowly. In colloquial Chinese 得 de and 一 yì  can sometimes be omitted: 请你说慢点儿 qǐng nǐ shuō màn diǎnr ; 请你写清楚点儿 qǐng nǐ  xiě qīngchu  diǎnr.
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