MEotW: jiǎntǐ‐zì

The Mandarin Expression of the Week is:

• jiǎntǐ‐zì

While they are simpler than traditional Chinese characters, why are the official simplified characters at best a compromise?

“爱” is the Simplified Chinese character for “love”. It’s simpler, but omits the “heart” radical (“心”), and has been “friend” (“友”)-zoned. 💔

— Troubadour WW (@troubadourww) February 20, 2017

“Ài” is how Pīnyīn represents “love”. It doesn’t play the games the characters play—it helps you actually say “I love you” (“Wǒ ài nǐ”). ❤️

— Troubadour WW (@troubadourww) February 20, 2017

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MEotW: Hànzì

The Mandarin Expression of the Week is:

• Hànzì

In the big picture, how should we Mandarin field language learners view Chinese characters?

(The above picture is from near the beginning of the book The Chinese Language: Fact and Fantasy, by John DeFrancis.)

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MEotW: Yànwén

The Mandarin Expression of the Week is:

• Yànwén

Is Pīnyīn the Hangul of Mandarin?

 metalslick

The Korean text “Joseongeul” and “Hangeul,” written in Hangul, the native Korean script. [source]

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MEotW: chá

The Mandarin Expression of the Week is:

• chá

Why do the words “tea” and “chai” both exist when they basically refer to the same thing?

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MEotW: Jìniàn Jùhuì

The Mandarin Expression of the Week is:

• 
• Jìniàn Jùhuì

Should Pīnyīn be capitalized the way English is?

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