- 有啥勿懂 ’yeu sá‘ veh ’tong, why should I not understand?
- 勿曾曉得 veh zung ’h’iau tuh, I do not know.
- 洋價大者 yáng ká‘ dú‘ ’tsé, the price of the dollar is high.
- 那能辦法 ná‘ nung‘ pan‘ fah, how should we proceed?
- 要好就好 yau‘ ’hau dzieu‘ ’hau, if you want it good, it is at once good.
Obs. The order of the words in these phrases is regulated by the rules of [Part III, section 1], and the sections on propositions.
369. Many groups have an internal syntactical arrangement, and they are so numerous, that although some examples have already been given, more will here appended. They may be divided into (a), those in which there is a repetition of the idea, and (b) where there is none.
- 嘴尖舌快 ’tsz tsíen zeh k’wá‘, sharp lips and tongue.
- 靑天白日 t’sing t’íen bah nyih, clear sky and bright sun.
- 忘恩負義 vong un veu‘ ní‘, forget kindness.
- 欺天瞞地 k’í t’íen mén dí‘, deceive heaven and earth.
- 東倒西歪 tóng ’tau sí hwá, all is in disorder.
- 話長話短 wó‘ dzáng wó‘ ’tön, very loquacious.
- 搬嘴弄舌 pén ’tsz lóng‘ zeh, fond of using the tongue.
- 呑飢忍餓 t’un kí ’niun ngú‘, to endure hunger.
- 人面獸心 niun míen‘ seu‘ sing, in face a man, but in heart a wild beast.
- 苦口良言 ’k’ú ’k’eu líang íen, advice bitter but salutary.
- 山珍海味 san tsun ’hé mí‘, delicacies from the mountain and the sea.
- 指東話西 ’tsz tóng wó‘ sí, advising this and then that.
- 藏頭露尾 dzong deu lú‘ ’ví, act contrary to propriety.
- 喜富怕窮 ’h’í fú‘ p’ó‘ gióng, pleased with riches but fearing poverty.
- 損人利己 ’sun niun lí‘ ’kí, rob others to enrich one’s-self.
- 呼兄喊第 hú h’iúng han‘ dí‘, to call brothers.
- 或三或四 woh san wóh sz‘, sometimes this and sometimes that.
- 引經據典 ’yung kiung kü‘ ’tíen, to cite books and appeal to the classics.
- 吹哥唱曲 t’sz kú t’song‘ k’ióh, to play airs and sing songs.
370. Passing over repetition groups, as already sufficiently illustrated, some examples will be given of those in which several words coordinate in sense are placed in proximity. In many instances such words as express relative superiority stand first.
- 風雲雷雨 fóng yün lé ’ü, wind, clouds, thunder and rain.
- 雨雪霜露 ’ü sih song lú‘, rain, snow, hail and dew.
- 賢良方正 híen liáng fong tsung‘, the wise, good, noble and upright.
- 柴米油鹽 zá ’mí yeu íen, fuel, rice, oil and salt.
- 荳穀米麥 teu‘ kóh ’mí máh, beans, rice and wheat.
- 始終本末 ’sz tsóng ’pun meh, beginning and end, origin and conclusion.
- 牛羊犬馬 nieu, yáng, ’k’iön, ’mó, cattle, sleep, dogs and horses.
- 君親師友 kiün t’sing sz ’yeu, king, parents, teacher and friends.
- 磚瓦石灰 tsén ’ngó záh hwé, bricks, tiles and lime.
- 禽獸昆蟲 kiun seu‘ k’wun dzóng, birds, beasts and insects.
- 瓶甏罐頭 ping báng kwén deu, pitchers, pots and pans.
- 耳目口鼻 ’rh móh ’k’eu bih, ear eyes, mouth and nose.
- 魚鳞蝦蟹 ng ling hön ’há, fish, crabs and shrimps.
- 金銀銅錫 kiun niun dóng t’ih sih, gold, copper, copper, iron and tin.
- 解釋 ’ká seh, explain.
- 審斷 ’sun tön‘, to judge.
- 離散 lí san‘, to be scattered.
- 偷竊 t’eu t’sih, to steal.
- 圓滿 yön ’mén, round & full.
- 端方 tön fong, upright.
- 紡織 ’fong tsuh, spinning and weaving.
Obs. On presenting these examples to a Fuh-kien literary man, it was found that half of the groups were in use in his dialect; of the remainder, more than half were partially the same with collocations familiar to him, while the rest were entirely different.
371. Species invariably precedes genus, and matter form, in groups formed of words thus related.
- 筆筒好插個 pih dóng ’hau t’sah kú‘, you can stick it in the pencil holder.
- 嘸沒筆帽子 m meh pih mau ’tsz, there is no top-case to the pencil.
- 蚊帳破個 mun tsáng, p’ú‘ kú‘, the mosquito curtain is torn.
- 扇骨綠漆個 sén‘ kweh lók t’sih kú‘, the frame of the fan is painted green.
- 鐵店裏打拉個 t’ih tíen‘ lí ’táng ’lá kú‘, it was made in the blacksmith’s shop.
- 石馬 sáh ’mó, stone horse.
- 蒲扇 pú sén‘, broad-leaf fans.
- 砂皮 só bí, sand paper.
- 瓦粒屑 ’ngó lih sih, earthenware fragments.
Obs. i. Substance precedes accident or attribute, and the whole its part. This is sometimes the same with the proposition immediately above, genus being only such part of species as happens to belong commonly to several objects. We may fix our attention on either word in the compound indifferently, considering it as the essence, while the other is the accident. Thus, 屋基 óh kí, foundation of a house; 屋頂 hó ’ting, house roof, are parts of the appellative substantive house. So, if speaking of the articles into which bamboo is manufactured, the second word in 竹牌 tsóh bá, piece of flattened bamboo; 竹簾 tsóh líen, bamboo window-blinds; 竹紙 tsóh ’tsz, bamboo paper, is in each case that which expresses form, while the first describes the material.