Contrast between English and Chinese (2)

A. Word order

1. Attributive modifiers

英语句中单词一般放在被修饰词的前面，短语和从句一般放在被修饰词的后面。汉语定语不管单词或词组一般都放在被修饰语的前面。

Examples:

1) something important 重要的事

2) the ancient Chinese poet中国古代诗人

3) a little, yellow, ragged, lame, unshaven beggar一个身材瘦小的叫化子，面黄肌瘦，衣衫褴褛，胡子拉渣的，还瘸着腿

4) a candidate with little chance of success 一个当选希望极微的候选人

2. Adverbial modifiers

英语状语可前可后。汉语状语一般放在被修饰的动词或形容词前面。

Examples:

1) to develop rapidly迅速发展；extremely fast快极了/ 极快

2) With a bag of books we walked across the garden in the gray light of the dawn. 我们提着一袋书，在晨曦中穿过了花园。

3) He was quick to use self-deprecating humor to throw anyone off the scent. 

为了迷惑别人，他机灵地说些自我挖苦的笑话。

4) He was born in Rome on May 27, 1980. 

他是1980年5月27日在罗马出生的。/ 他于1980年5月27日出生于罗马。

 

I. Syntactic Differences

A. Transformation of sentence structure

1. Simple Sentence →Complex Sentence

e.g. His superior grades at high school enabled him to enroll at the tuition-free College of the City of New York.

由于在中学成绩优异，他进入了免费的纽约市立大学。

2. Complex Sentence →Simple Sentence

e.g. That he will come to the discussion is certain. 他肯定会来参加讨论的。

e.g. He doesn’t know what life means to him. 他不知道人生的意义。

3. Complex Sentence →Complex Sentence

e.g. Our men had gone quite a distance off before the enemy reinforcement troops came up. 我们的队伍已经走得很远了，敌人的增援部队才赶上来。

e.g. This place is really beautiful, and many people bring their wives and families out here to live. 这地方实在漂亮，（所以）许多人都带着家小搬来居住。

4. Inverted Order →Natural Order

e.g. Little did I then know the meaning of war and what it was in reality.

   当时我确实还不太懂得战争的意义以及战争实际上是怎么回事。

5. Passive Voice →Active Voice

e.g. He is respected by everybody. 人人都尊敬他。

e.g. I was told not to trust what I read in the newspaper. 有人告诉我不要相信报纸上读到的消息。

B. Sentence order

1. Time order

e.g. He had flown in just the day before from Georgia where he had spent his vacation basking in the Caucasian sun after the completion of the construction job he had been engaged in in the South.

译：他本来在南部从事一项建筑工程；任务完成之后，他就上格鲁吉亚去度假，享受高加索的阳光，昨天才坐飞机回来。

2. Logic order

a. Cause-result order

e.g. He had to stay at home yesterday owing to the bad weather.

b. Condition –result order

e.g. She will play the piano only if she is paid. 只有付给她报酬，她才愿意演奏钢琴。