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Mandarin Chinese · HSK 3.0 Band 2 · Chapter 33

我先开会再吃饭 Meeting first, then eat

Wǒ xiān kāi huì zài chī fàn

Huang An and Xie Ping plan tomorrow. Vocab: 先 / 再 / 然后 / 开会 / 计划 / 安排 / 会议 / 报告 / 项目 / 任务. Introduces the sequential compound sentence (二62 — 先...再.../然后...).

Dialogue

今天的安排 — Today's plan

黄安谢xiè平píng, 今jīn天tiān我wǒ们men怎zěn么me安ān排pái? Xie Ping, how do we arrange today?
谢平我wǒ先xiān开kāi会huì, 再zài吃chī饭fàn. I'll do the meeting first, then eat.
黄安会huì议yì几jǐ点diǎn开kāi始shǐ? What time does the meeting start?
谢平九jiǔ点diǎn半bàn. 我wǒ先xiān去qù办bàn公gōng室shì, 然rán后hòu开kāi会huì. 9:30. I'll go to the office first, then the meeting.
黄安好hǎo. 我wǒ先xiān做zuò计jì划huà, 然rán后hòu跟gēn方fāng红hóng说shuō一yí下xià. OK. I'll make the plan first, then tell Fang Hong.
谢平没méi问wèn题tí. 三sān点diǎn的de项xiàng目mù报bào告gào别bié忘wàng了le. No problem. Don't forget the 3pm project report.

Dialogue

我们的任务 — Our tasks

黄安今jīn天tiān的de会huì议yì有yǒu三sān个gè任rèn务wu. 第dì一yī, 看kàn上shàng个gè月yuè的de报bào告gào. Today's meeting has three tasks. First, look at last month's report.
谢平好hǎo. 报bào告gào我wǒ已yǐ经jīng看kàn了le. OK. I've already read the report.
黄安第dì二èr, 安ān排pái下xià个gè项xiàng目mù的dì计jì划huà. Second, arrange the next project's plan.
谢平我wǒ先xiān做zuò这zhè个ge. 然rán后hòu再zài说shuō. I'll do this first. Then we'll talk.
黄安第dì三sān, 给gěi方fāng红hóng一yí个gè简jiǎn单dān任rèn务wu. 让ràng她tā试shì一yi试shì. Third, give Fang Hong a simple task. Let her try.
谢平好hǎo主zhǔ意yì. 她tā下xià个gè月yuè开kāi始shǐ上shàng班bān. Good idea. She starts next month.

Dialogue

吃饭再说 — Let's talk after lunch

谢平会huì开kāi完wán了le. 我wǒ先xiān去qù吃chī饭fàn. 一yí会huì儿er见jiàn. Meeting's done. Going to eat. See you in a bit.
黄安好hǎo. 我wǒ也yě快kuài去qù吃chī. 中zhōng午wǔ吃chī完wán, 我wǒ们men再zài说shuō三sān点diǎn的de报bào告gào. OK. I'll go eat too. After lunch, we talk about the 3pm report.
谢平没méi问wèn题tí. No problem.
黄安你nǐ今jīn天tiān也yě加jiā班bān吗ma? Working overtime today too?
谢平不bù一yí定dìng. 看kàn任rèn务wu多duō不bu多duō. Not sure. Depends on the workload.
黄安别bié太tài累lèi. 你nǐ的de工gōng作zuò太tài忙máng. Don't get too tired. Your job is too busy.

Vocabulary

先xiān: adverb first (chapter grammar anchor)
再zài: adverb then; again
然rán后hòu: adverb after that
开kāi会huì: verb have a meeting (separable)
计jì划huà: n./v. plan
安ān排pái: v./n. arrange
会huì议yì: noun meeting (formal)
报bào告gào: n./v. report
项xiàng目mù: noun project
任rèn务wu: noun task
一yí会huì儿er: noun a moment (Bk2 revisit)

New characters

议: discuss (in 会议)
会议 huìyì — meeting (formal)
计: plan; calculate (in 计划)
计划 jìhuà — plan
划: plan; draw (in 计划)
计划 jìhuà — plan
项: item (in 项目)
项目 xiàngmù — project
目: eye / sight (semantic radical, expanding from ch2)
项目 xiàngmù — project
报: report (in 报告)
报告 bàogào — report
告: (in 报告 = report)
报告 bàogào — report
任: (in 任务 = task)
任务 rènwu — task
务: task; service (in 任务)
任务 rènwu — task服务 fúwù — service服务员 fúwùyuán — service staff; attendant
主: main (in 主意 / 主要)
主意 zhǔyi — idea; plan主人 zhǔrén — host; owner (recall Bk2)

Hanzi — writing & recognition

先

xiān first; before (chapter grammar anchor) Writing

6 strokes top-bottom

Compound: walking + person. Original sense: "walking ahead = first / earlier." Modern: 先 (first), 先生 (sir / Mr — Level 1 reuse), 先后 (sequence). Anchors 先...再... compound.

然

rán thus; so (formal placement; was leak in Bk2 ch9) Writing

12 strokes top-bottom radical 灬

划

huà plan; draw (in 计划) Writing

6 strokes left-right

Modern: "plan / divide / draw a line." Anchors 计划 (plan, this chapter). The 刂 (knife) radical on the right links to "cutting / dividing" semantics.

排

pái arrange; row (in 安排) Writing

11 strokes left-right radical 扌

Phono-semantic compound: 扌 (hand) + 非 (fēi, phonetic). Original sense: "to arrange by hand." Modern: 安排 (arrange, this chapter), 排队 (queue — Level 2 elsewhere).

会

huì meeting; can (Level 1 revisit; in 会议 / 开会) Recognition

6 strokes top-bottom

议

yì discuss (in 会议) Recognition

5 strokes left-right radical 讠

报

bào report (in 报告) Recognition

7 strokes left-right radical 扌

项

xiàng item (in 项目) Recognition

9 strokes left-right

务

wù task; service (in 任务) Recognition

5 strokes top-bottom

Grammar

Sequential compound — first X, then Y

Explanation

Both 先 X 再 Y and 先 X 然后 Y express action sequence. Pattern: Subject + 先 + V₁ + (再 / 然后) + V₂. Example: 我先开会再吃饭 = 'First I'll have the meeting, then eat.' THREE VARIANTS: (1) 先...再... — tight; 再 implies 'next step in the same kind of activity.' (2) 先...然后... — looser; 然后 stands alone as a connector, like English 'and then.' (3) Not required to lead with 先; 我开会, 然后吃饭 is also fine. KEY: same subject across both verbs. Chain three+ verbs as 先 X 再 Y 然后 Z.

Examples

我先开会再吃饭. First I have a meeting, then I eat.
我们先做计划, 然后开始项目. Let's make a plan first, then start the project.
黄安先回家, 然后写报告. Huang An goes home first, then writes the report.
你先安排时间, 我们再说. Arrange the time first, then we'll talk.

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