Fall is upon us, and for many that means that the weather outside is getting a little “冷” (lěng: cold). This week on the Skritter blog we focus on the more extended usage of “cold” and apply it to other situations and words.
Alternative meaning of “冷”
Going beyond simply meaning cold, 冷 can also be used more abstractly to describe the atmosphere or ambiance of a locations. Whether the place is void of people or simply feels off-putting, 冷 describes both scenarios perfectly. Let’s take a look at the following examples.
氣氛非常冷
气氛非常冷
qì fēn fēi cháng lěng
The ambiance (here) is really cold.
場子很冷
场子很冷
chǎngzi hěn lěng
This place (feels) really cold.
昨天我去的那個生日Party很少人來，場子很冷
昨天我去的那个生日Party很少人来，场子很冷
zuótiān wǒ qù de nàge shēngrì Party hěn shǎo rén lái, chǎngzi hěn lěng
Only a few people were at the birthday party yesterday; the place was pretty desolate.
Words with 冷
When combined with other characters, the basic idea of “cold” still remains, however the meaning is once again applied in more abstract ways. Let’s take a look at the following words and example sentences to get a better idea of how “cold” is still captured in words.
冷血 (lěngxuè: cold blooded):
Originally used to describe cold blooded animals, can also be used to describe someone’s attitude today something or another person. For example:
冷血的人/人很冷血
lěngxuè de rén / rén hěn lěngxuè
我最討厭冷血的男生!
我最讨厌冷血的男生!
wǒ zuì tǎoyàn lěngxuè de nánshēng
I hate cold-blooded men the most!
冷場/冷场 (lěngchǎng: awkward silence):
Next time your hear the crickets after someone speaks you’ll be armed with the vocabulary to talk about it. 冷場/冷场 can serve as both a noun and a verb.
他一說話就冷場，沒有人要回答他。
他一说话就冷场，没有人要回答他。
tā yī shuōhuà jiù lěngchǎng, méiyǒurén yào huídá tā.
The second they opened their mouth there was an awkward silence; no one wanted to reply.
冷笑話/ 冷笑话 (lěng xiàohuà: lame joke/ bad joke):
What better way to describe a lame joke than by talking about the cold reaction it usually gets the second you’ve told one? When describing a lame joke we often use the verb 說/说 (shuō) or 講/讲 (jiǎng). Wanna talk about lame jokes? Take a page from the
Weibo Corpus and sound like a local with the following phrase:
冷笑話笑死我了!
冷笑话笑死我了!
lěng xiàohuà xiào sǐ wǒ le!
The lame joke really killed me!
There are so many more words that expand upon the original meaning of “cold” in fun and interesting ways. We hope you’ll share your favorites in the comments below. And hopefully after today, you’ll be able to talk about “cold” in more ways than just the weather!
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Have questions, comments, feedback, or a topic you want covered on the Skritter blog? Please send them to jake@skritter.com
