Lessons 7, 9, 13: How to use 入迷, 装, 敢 and 为难

Four common words: be captivated, pretend, dare, and to put someone in a difficult position / be in a difficult position.

Hanyu textbook · Hanyu 5 · Lesson 7 · Hanyu 5 · Lesson 9 · Hanyu 5 · Lesson 13

他装着高兴的样子，其实心里很难过。

Tā zhuāngzhe gāoxìng de yàngzi, qíshí xīnli hěn nánguò.

He pretends to be cheerful, but actually he is very sad inside.

Explanation

入迷 (be enchanted) is usually used as 对……入迷 and normally takes no object: you don't say 我入迷音乐; you say 我对音乐入迷.

装 means to pretend, to put on, not to be real (装懂, 装出来, 装着高兴的样子).

敢 means to have the courage to do something; it usually goes before a verb and can also stand alone to answer a question; the negatives are 不敢 and 没敢.

为难 has two meanings: (A) to feel something is hard to resolve, to be in a difficult position (感到为难); (B) to put someone in a difficult position (别为难他).

Structure

1
Ssubject对Nnoun入迷 / V得入迷
入迷 takes no object.
- 优美的音乐让人听得入迷。
  Yōuměi de yīnyuè ràng rén tīng de rùmí.
  The soft music captivates the listeners.
- 他看足球比赛看得入迷。
  Tā kàn zúqiú bǐsài kàn de rùmí.
  He is totally absorbed in watching soccer.
- 这个孩子对电脑入了迷。
  Zhège háizi duì diànnǎo rù le mí.
  This child is hooked on computers.
2
装V / Adj / 装出来
To pretend; not real.
- 她收入不多，可她脸上总是带着笑容，那笑容可不是装出来的。
  Tā shōurù bù duō, kě tā liǎnshang zǒngshì dàizhe xiàoróng, nà xiàoróng kě bú shì zhuāng chūlai de.
  Her income is not high, but there is always a smile on her face, and that smile is not an act.
- 懂就是懂，不懂就是不懂，不要装懂。
  Dǒng jiù shì dǒng, bù dǒng jiù shì bù dǒng, búyào zhuāng dǒng.
  Understanding is understanding and not understanding is not understanding; don't pretend to understand.
- 病是装不出来的。
  Bìng shì zhuāng bu chūlai de.
  You can't fake an illness.
- 他装着高兴的样子，其实心里很难过。
  Tā zhuāngzhe gāoxìng de yàngzi, qíshí xīnli hěn nánguò.
  He pretends to be cheerful, but actually he is very sad inside.
3
敢 + V；不敢 / 没敢 + V
To dare / not dare; can stand alone to answer a question.
- 晚上连电视我都不敢看，怕影响孩子学习。
  Wǎnshang lián diànshì wǒ dōu bù gǎn kàn, pà yǐngxiǎng háizi xuéxí.
  In the evening I don't even dare watch TV, for fear of affecting my child's studies.
- 街上车太多，我不敢骑车上街。
  Jiēshang chē tài duō, wǒ bù gǎn qí chē shàng jiē.
  There are too many cars on the road; I don't dare ride my bike on the street.
- 老师叫我们回答问题的时候，我总是不敢说。
  Lǎoshī jiào wǒmen huídá wèntí de shíhou, wǒ zǒngshì bù gǎn shuō.
  When the teacher calls on me to answer a question, I never dare speak.
- 你敢不敢从这儿游过去？敢。
  Nǐ gǎn bu gǎn cóng zhèr yóu guòqu? Gǎn.
  Do you dare to swim across from here? I do.
4
感到 / 有点儿为难；为难 + người
A: in a difficult position; B: to make things difficult for someone.
- 一个男人带一个孩子，家务事就够我为难的。
  Yí ge nánrén dài yí ge háizi, jiāwùshì jiù gòu wǒ wéinán de.
  A man raising a child alone: the housework alone is enough to leave me in a bind.
- 他向我借钱，让我感到很为难，因为这个月我的钱也不够用。
  Tā xiàng wǒ jiè qián, ràng wǒ gǎndào hěn wéinán, yīnwèi zhège yuè wǒ de qián yě bú gòu yòng.
  His asking to borrow money put me in a very awkward position, because my own money isn't enough for this month either.
- 朋友明天要回国，应该去送送他，可是明天有考试，我感到有点儿为难。
  Péngyou míngtiān yào huíguó, yīnggāi qù sòngsong tā, kěshì míngtiān yǒu kǎoshì, wǒ gǎndào yǒudiǎnr wéinán.
  You're going home tomorrow and I ought to see you off, but I have an exam tomorrow, so I feel a bit torn.
- 他真的不会唱歌，你就别为难他了。
  Tā zhēn de bú huì chànggē, nǐ jiù bié wéinán tā le.
  He really can't sing; stop making things hard for him.

Usage notes

入迷 takes no object: you don't say 我入迷音乐, you say 我对音乐入迷。
敢 can answer a question on its own (敢。); the negatives are 不敢 or 没敢.

Practice

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