For a native Chinese college graduate, he has spent 16 school years in collecting a database on Chinese words. Any genius who knew not a single Chinese word before taking this course is, of course, unable to muster a database comparable to those of native Chinese.

However, a database without a logic system can never reach a critical mass to transform a chaotic database into an organized foundation. It can never become a knowledge for analyzing the unknown. On the other hand, a logic system while it has a small database not only can probe the unknown but is able to build up an organized database with a much faster speed.

In this test, 15 questions are not discussed in this textbook. If the reader of this book is unable to answer those 15 questions with an open book test, he has not truly digested this course.

For native Chinese college graduates, they have never learned Chinese written words in a systematic way. Although they know all those words in this test, they might not know the true and the original meaning of those words. In these 100 questions, if one can answer 30 of them correctly, then, my assessment of his understanding on Chinese word system was wrong. However, I am quite certain that 99.9999% of native Chinese college graduates will not reach this level. If one can answer 60 of them correctly, he is, then, having a foundation the same as the reader who has completed this course. Reader of this book might be interested in finding this out by giving this test to any Chinese friend who is around you.

Part one:

• What is the default meaning of the following words?
• How can this default meaning explain its applications?

Examples:

• 對 is (over growing bush or a thick growth of shrubs) beside 寸 (a powerful hand). It means to deal a mess (or difficulty) with a powerful hand.
  • 對 手 (opponent) 、 對 待 (treating or dealing ...)
• 錯 is 金 (metal, such as a knife) beside 昔 (dried meat, later it means past time or event). 錯 is the knife marks on dried meat. Later, it became the markings on the knife sharpening stone. Then, it became the name of knife sharpening stone.
  • 交 錯 (crisscross)
  Note: after 對 (dealing with something forcefully), we check its result ( 錯 , the marking of that dealing). From this, a phrase 對 錯 (right or wrong) arose which originally means to compare the efforts and the results. Later, it became the current meaning, right (對 ) or wrong (錯 ).

1. 丙
   • 柄 ( biing , handle of something) 、 炳 ( biing , a large fire )、 病 ( binq , sick or illness)
2. 壬
   • 妊 ( renn , pregnant) 、 聖 ( shenq , Holy man) 、 望 ( wanq , hope or looking forward to...)
     Note: the 壬 in 聖 and 望 is 土 , not 士 .
3. 寅
   • 演 ( yean , flowing out with some sequences)
4. 卯
   • 柳 ( leou , willow tree) 、 卵 ( laan , egg)
5. 辰
   • 振 ( jenn , rising up) 、 晨 ( chern , in the morning) 、 農 (nong , farming)
6. 酉
   • 酒 ( jeou , wine)、 酋 ( chyou , chief)
7. 亥
   • 該 ( gai , ought to be) 、 刻 ( keh , engrave) 、 劾 ( her' , enforce on something or impeach)
8. 劉
   • 瀏 ( liou , clear water or looking around) 、 劉 邦
9. 胡
   • 糊 ( hwu , paste) 、 胡 說 (wrong statement) 、 胡 人 ( not civilized man)
10. 曹
    • 遭 ( tzau , meets without being planned or encounter) 、 糟 (tzau , in a mess) 、 曹 操
11. 魏
    • 魏 國
12. 甬
    • 涌 ( yeong , rushing out) 、 桶 ( toong , water barrel) 、 痛 (tonq , ache) 、 蛹 ( yeong, cocoon)
13. 就
    • 成 就 (achievement) 、 就 是 ( that it is) 、 不 就 (not submit) 、 蹴 ( tsuh , a big step) 、 鷲 ( jiow, vulture)
14. 胤
    • 趙 匡 胤
15. 吳
    • 娛 ( yu , entertaining) 、 虞 (yu , worry about ... mishap) 、 吳 國
16. 詹
    • 擔 ( dan' , carry on shoulder), 膽 ( daan , gallbladder or bravery), 澹 ( dann , tranquil )
17. 俞
    • 愉 ( yu , happy), 偷 ( tou , stealing), 愈 ( yuh , going or passing over, surpass)
18. 耶
    • 揶 ( e' , teasing or ridicule), 椰 ( ye , coconut), 爺 ( ye , grand father)
19. 忝
    • 添 ( tian , add or adding), 舔 (tean , licking)
20. 甹
    • 騁 ( cheeng , gallop with horse), 聘 ( pinn , appointing)
21. 龠
    • 籥 ( yueh , lock or a pipe instrument) , 籲 ( yuh , calling and advocating)
22. 翟
    • 擢 ( jwo , promote), 濯 ( jwo , cleaning)
23. 禺
    • 遇 ( yuh , meets or meeting), 偶 ( oou , a pair), 隅 ( yu , one of the four corner)
24. 昜
    • 陽 ( yang , about the Sun or yang), 腸 ( charng , intestine), 湯 ( tang , soup)
25. 睪
    • 譯 ( yih , translating a document), 驛 ( yih , depot for traveling horses), 繹 ( yih , a way to un-tangle a mess, unravel)
26. 聿
    • 書 ( shu , book), 律 ( liuh , rules or laws), 筆 ( bii , pen)
27. 曷
    • 喝 ( he' , drinking or shouting), 渴 ( kee , thirst), 遏 ( eh , stopping)
28. 堯
    • 曉 ( sheau , day breaking or understanding), 饒 ( rau , plentiful), 燒 ( shau , burning)
29. 羕
    • 樣 ( yanq , sample or model), 漾 ( yanq , water ripple)
30. 袁
    • 轅 ( yuan , cart's door frame covered with upholstery), 遠 ( yeuan , far away)
31. 甫
    • 捕 ( buh , arrest), 補 ( buu , repair), 逋 ( bu , flee )
32. 翏
    • 戮 ( luh , killing or slay), 謬 ( miaw , not correct reasoning)
33. 戊
    • 茂 ( maw , plants are growing nice or exuberant), 鉞 ( yueh , halberd )
34. 咸
    • 感 ( gaan , moved with feeling), 減 ( jean , reduce or subtract)
35. 舀
    • 滔 ( tau , large wave of water), 搯 ( tau , scooping)
36. 婁
    • 摟 ( lou , hugging), 數 ( shuu , numbers or counting)
37. 彔
    • 錄 ( luh , recording), 剝 ( bau , peeling)
38. 虖
    • 滹 ( hu , the sound of running water)
39. 咼
    • 鍋 ( guo , cooking pan), 禍 ( huoh , bad encounter or disaster), 渦 ( guo , whirlpool)
40. 孚
    • 浮 ( fwu , afloat), 孵 ( fu , sitting on an egg or hatch)
41. 疌
    • 捷 ( jye , agile or agility), 睫 ( jye , eyelash)
42. 唐
    • 糖 ( tarng , sugar), 溏 ( tarng , water pond)
43. 蜀
    • 屬 ( shuu , belong to...), 燭 ( jwu , candle)
44. 賁
    • 憤 ( fenn , angry with emotion), 噴 ( pen' , bursting forward)
45. 雍
    • 擁 ( yeong , holding or possess), 臃 ( yeong , swollen)
46. 曼
    • 慢 ( mann , slow), 幔 ( mann , a big curtain)
47. 冘
    • 枕 ( jeen , pillow), 沈 (chern , sinking)
48. 圭
    • 佳 ( jia , good in quality), 娃 ( wa , a baby girl)
49. 垔
    • 湮 (in', sinking), 煙 (ian, smoke)
50. 僉
    • 儉 (jean, thrifty), 斂 (liann, collecting with force), 劍 (jiann, sword)

Part two:

Example: 世 -- in English , a decade is 10 years, a generation is 20 years. In China, 30 years is one 世 which is the fusion of 十 (ten) and 廿 (twenty).

1. 白
2. 紅
3. 黑
4. 黃
5. 年
6. 腳
7. 拜
8. 掌
9. 看
10. 命
11. 僉
12. 吃
13. 盲
14. 孕
15. 貸
16. 謝
17. 秋
18. 襄
19. 老
20. 賽
21. 戀
22. 緩
23. 有
24. 雨
25. 雪
26. 律
27. 君
28. 觀
29. 傻
30. 悲
31. 幾
32. 書
33. 妻
34. 虹
35. 漢
36. 光
37. 危
38. 卵
39. 柳
40. 名
41. 多
42. 亥
43. 春
44. 寒
45. 愛
46. 憂
47. 委
48. 寮
49. 瞎
50. 了