Chinese why are you like this

[soundofwonder]

So you would think 差人 (lit. lost people) means "lack of people" right?

Been reading some stuff set in ancient china and turns out 差人 used to mean "get people to do [something]".

Also 失笑 (lit. lost smile) means to break out in laughter. This (probable) shortening of words is giving my brain conniptions.

Comments

[adastrad]

I know nothing about Chinese, but I have a huge soft spot for these kinds of things in language.

These two examples are giving me some good imagery, though: like someone who doesn't know what to do, so they're just kind of milling around helplessly until someone gives them a task.

And the second: laughter being a smile that can't be contained, it has to escape into the world and be lost from the face.

I'm probably getting way too poetic with those, lol!

[soundofwonder]

I think the image of the second word is what you said too! Chinese in fiction is usually very poetic and rooted in imagery.

画蛇添足 (lit. to add legs while drawing a snake) means to do something unnecessary, for example. Literal translations usually end up sounding very purple prose-y or wonky in english, unfortunately.

[adastrad]

Oh, that's cool - I had no idea!

That example is really cute - and a pretty apt metaphor lol! I can see how it might not translate well, though, if there's a lot of it.

[aeslis]

The first one's not a Japanese word, but the second one apparently means the same in Japanese! How interesting! I did not know, so now I do. :)

[soundofwonder]

Oh yeah, there are many words that exist both in tradtional chinese and kanji and have the same meanings!

Though there's a funny one:

勉強 means to study in japanese but it means to force oneself to do [something] in chinese.

(imo, maybe the meanings aren't that different after all lol)