actually i dont know where to add this funny article

[Guest faint]

昨天来了个老外，进到办公室，前台小姐左看右看，大家都在打游戏，只有自己比较清闲，就面带微笑的：

　　　　前台小姐：“hello?“

　　　　老外：“hi.”

　　　　前台小姐：“you have what thing?“

　　　　老外：“can you speak english?“

　　　 前台小姐：“if i not speak english, i am speakingwhat? “

　　　　老外：“can anybody else speak english? “

　　　　前台小姐：“you yourself look. all people are playing,no people

have time, you can wait, you wait, you not wait, you go"

　　　 老外：“good heavens. anybody here can speak english?“

　　　　前台小姐：“ shout what shout, quiet a little, you on earth

have what thing.“

　　　　老外：“i want to speak to your head.“

　　　 前台小姐：“head not zai.you tomorrow come.“

some chinglish and some shanghainess,just enjoy it

[skylee]

Thank you.

[cometrue]

more:

no three no four （不三不四）

people mountain people sea.(人山人海）

morning three night four （朝三暮四）

want money no,want life one! （要钱不给， 要命有一条！）

money or life？ （要钱还是要命？）

wang eight eggs 王八蛋

wang old five 王老五

ten three point 十三点

no care three seven two ten one 不管三七二十一

play a big knife before guangong （关公面前耍大刀）

play an ax before luban （班门弄斧）

we are brothers,who and who ah! （咱们兄弟谁跟谁啊！）

good good study,day day up! （好好学习，天天向上！）

you ask me, i ask who （你问我，我去问谁？）

五讲四美三热爱

five talks, four beuties and three lovers.

你个色狼！你要是不三不四，我就给你点颜色瞧瞧，叫你滚蛋！

you color wolf!if you are not three not four, i will give you some color to see see and let you roll eggs!

车水马龙

car water,horse dragon.

我感到很难过

i feel it difficult to pass。

三心二意

three heart two meaning

望穿秋水

look through autumn water

红颜知己

red face know me

马马虎虎

horse-horse-tiger-tiger

我不管三七二十一就……

but i'm not care three seven twenty-one

[ala]

haha

I didn't catch the Shanghainese though. Seems like pretty standard Mandarin. Ｔhis line would be really awkward in Shanghainese: “you can wait, you wait, you not wait, you go"

"shout what shout" could be Shanghainese, but we would usually say: 叫啥啦　instead. But we do say 叫啥啦叫 when the action of shouting has been going on for a while or for several times.

"if i not speak english, i am speakingwhat?" in Shanghainese would be expressed: "if i am not speaking english, i have been speaking what then?" since Shanghainese has the present and present perfect progressive tenses, as well as the "ne" particle indicating "then." 　　假使我末勒讲英文，我勒拉讲啥呢？

[skylee]

"shout what shout" = 叫甚麼叫

Actually I think the laowai understands what the receptionist says.

I like "head not zai".

[Guest faint]

i like "shout what shout" ,so shanghainese

and some shanghai dialect like " 昂三" is the transliteration of "on sale"in english,funny ha?

[ala]

More colorful Shanghainese:

瘪三 pissei (beggar, homeless), supposedly comes from "beg sir."

And also the commonly used 发格 fakkuh, to describe something that is acting up, screwing up... it obviously comes from the English, although I doubt people who use it today know this. First used in the 20's. It can be conjugated 又发格拉 。勒拉发格。

昂三 agnsei (miserable, unfortunate) is indeed from "on sale." First used a hundred twenty years ago.　This word is used very seriously, and most people have no clue that its etymology is "on sale." 架昂三!　＝ so unfortunate!　　结局忒昂三啦。= the consequences are too unfortunate.

[smithsgj]

Recall something about "la si ka" (?) in Shanghainese being used to announce the last tram of the day, from "last car". Anyone?

Why would "miserable" be "on sale"????

[Guest faint]

i dont think"昂三"means unfortunate,it always describes some low quality things or persons

seems this topic should move to another place

[ala]

i dont think"昂三"means unfortunate,it always describes some low quality things or persons

昂三 could be unfortunate or unlucky too. for example, I have both a midterm and paper. Because of worrying about the paper, I couldn't concentrate very well on studying for the midterm. Because of studying for the midterm, I didn't have enough time to finish the paper. The best expression for this unfortunate situation is: 老昂三额。 But yeah, it also means crappy, inferior. 昂三 is the word to use when you have to express: crappy, substandard, miserable, unfortunate, unlucky, unsatisfying. You could see 老昂三额 as "this is sh*t"; but it has stronger connotations with unlucky, unfortunate, and aspirations unmet. Things of low standard and quality are usually related with the more graphic 污 instead of 昂三. 昂三 is much more complex.

smithsgj: things "on sale" are usually inferior and disappointing, at least that was the impression during the days when the word was first coined.