For Valentines Day this year, let’s learn a few Chinese words from a lighthearted song performed by 风飞飞 (Fēng fēi fēi) and another artist. The lively music of “我的一颗心 (Wǒde Yī Kē Xīn) – This Heart of Mine” was composed by 复临 (Fù Lín ), with lyrics written by 田弘 (Tián Hóng).
Here is the link to the video on Youtube,
and you can find the lyrics here.
Here’s my singable translation of the lyrics:
This heart of mine, I devote to one.
And only he may receive my love.
My dear sweetheart is my valentine.
Only his passion can warm my heart.
And yet, his feelings he doesn’t show.
Whenever he comes by, he seems shy.
Is he really shy?
This heart of mine, I devote to one.
And only he may receive my love.
心上人 (xīnshàngrén) is one way to say sweetheart in Chinese. To address your sweetheart, you would say, “甜心 (tiánxīn)” or “亲爱的 (qīn’ài de – dear)”. 心肝 (xīngān – heart and liver or darling) and 宝贝 (bǎobèi – treasure) are also terms of endearment, but 蜂蜜 (fēngmì – honey) is not. 🙂
献给 (xiàn gěi) is to present to, to devote to, or to dedicate to.
接受 (jiēshòu) is to receiver or to accept.
情人 (qíngrén) are lovers. 多情人 (duō qíngrén) refers to one who has lots of affection and love for another person.
热情 (rèqíng) is passion or enthusiasm.
温暖 (wēnnuǎn) means warmth or feeling warm, physically or emotionally.
可是 (kěshì) means however or but.
有情 (yǒuqíng) means having affection for someone.
却 (què) means nevertheless.
说明 (shuōmíng) is to explain or to describe. However, in this song, it is an abbreviation for 说明白 (shuō míngbái), which means to say clearly or unequivocally.
每一次 (měi yīcì) means each time or every time.
见到了我 (jiàn dàole wǒ) means seeing or meeting me.
是不是 (shì bùshì) means whether or not.
怕羞 (pàxiū) means being shy or bashful.
真 (zhēn) means authentic, true, real, truly or really.
The challenge for you today is to come up with a simple verse following the main pattern of the lyrics of this song, namely five Chinese characters per phrase or sentence. This is a popular form used by Chinese poets. An example is the following poem discussed in Chapter 22 of “Learn Chinese through Songs and Rhymes“.
床前明月光; The moonshine in front of my bed,
Chuáng qián míng yuèguāng;
疑是地上霜. I thought it was frost on the ground.
Yí shì dì shàng shuāng.
抬头望明月, I raise my head to see the bright moon.
Táitóu wàng míng yuè,
低头思故乡. I bend my head and long for my homeland.
Dītóu sī gùxiāng.
Use any theme of your choosing. If you would like to share your poem with the other readers, please post it in a comment. Thank you.
情人节快乐!
Qíngrénjié kuàilè!
Happy Valentines Day!
P.S. If you are looking for additional reading material in Chinese, you could try “Inspiring Stories in Chinese“. Each line of the stories is annotated with pinyin and English, and explanatory notes are provided for selected words and phrases. You will also be asked to do a few exercises to make sentences using some of the frequently used words and expressions.
The paperback copy of “Inspiring Stories in Chinese” is available at amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.
You can get the eBook version from kobo.com, barnesandnoble.com or other eBook outlets.
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