Here’s how this game works. I start with a word in Chinese, and I translate it into English. The English word will have multiple meanings, so I’ll translate it into a different Chinese word. The Chinese word will have multiple meanings, so I’ll translate it into a different English word, and so on and so forth, until we reach a word so specific that it can’t be translated in two different ways.
游戏规则：从一个汉语词开始，地二把它翻译成英文。这个英文词有多个含义，地二取其中一个译回汉语。这个汉语词又有多个含义，地二取其中一个译回英语，如此往复，直到找不出多义词为止。听上去有些困难，但是汉语和英语多义词都很多，而不同语种的两个语言，每个词的外延经常不完整覆盖，所以形成一个长链条其实很容易。
This may sound a bit difficult, but both Chinese and English have lots of homonyms, and their definitions rarely overlap exactly, so it’s not entirely challenging to form a reasonably long chain. What better word to start with than game:
游戏
游戏 is the most straightforward translation of game. It goes with 玩; to play a game is 玩游戏. A word game is 文字游戏, which, without context, typically refers to the dishonest practice rather than the innocent fun. Board games are often abbreviated to 桌游, and video games are called 电脑游戏 if played on a computer, or 街机游戏 (lit. street machine games) if played on an arcade machine.
既然是做游戏，那就从“游戏”这个词开始。游戏一般翻译成 game。桌游叫做 board games，文字游戏可以翻译成 word games。汉语里提到文字游戏，一般是指咬字眼纠细节那种不诚实行为，但是诸如成语接龙等文字类的游戏也可以称作 word games。电脑游戏，一般叫做 video games（很少叫 △ computer games），但 video games 也指在游戏厅玩的那种街机游戏。
Continue reading “Bilingual chain: a game | 双语链条：游戏开始” →
D. R. Whispers 