Thekla Chabbi (asker) Aug 5, 2009:

freelance, thank you very much for you explanation. It helps me very much to get details clear.
Do you maybe also have an idea for 河床 in this context? Could it be an allusion to sexual desire?

Denyce: Wellcome to Munich! Oktoberfest? This year you may easily catch swine flu there ;-) What are you doing in Germany?

Ocean520 Aug 5, 2009:

correction Sorry, should be:
a good-looking woman/man always attracts other men/women

Ocean520 Aug 5, 2009:

FYI-II According to the matchmaker’s comment, Uncle Chen was good looking and with well-behaved (he would be faithful to his wife). Just imagine, the matchmaker is like a salesperson; she would say anything good to sell out her products (the male/female candidates).
The article u r translating mixes Mandarin, Taiwanese and some Japanese. For example, the mother called any man whose last name was Chen “晉桑”. This should be Japaneseチンさん (陳さん / Chinn sann, for the spelling, my suggestion is to ask a Japanese who knows Mandarin).

Ocean520 Aug 5, 2009:

FYI 「他是潛力股喔，看起來又緣投又古意，好ㄤ歹照顧，伊不會啦。」
我媽是媒人嘴，黑累累。要是醜男，我都可以當場接話說：「壞壞ㄤ呷沒空。」
“He is a high-potential stock, looks handsome and honest. A good husband (or maybe this term can be interpreted as “a husband with good specifications”?) is not easy to keep/serve, but he won’t to be like that.”
My mum has a matchmaker’s mouth, loquacious and smooth. If there was an ugly-faced male candidate, I could just continue her words on the spot and say: “an ugly-faced husband is reliable (or “an ugly-face husband provides you with a good life” …).”
Besides, there is a Taiwanese slang term: 媠某/尪歹照顧. It means “a good-looking wife/husband is hard to keep/serve (because a good-looking woman/man always attracts other women/men and it is easy to start an affair, sort of this meaning…). 媠: means beautiful, handsome.
(I doubt “好ㄤ歹照顧” should be “媠尪歹照顧”?)
According to the matchmaker’s comment, Uncle Chen was good looking and with well-behaved (he would be faithful to his wife). Just imagine, the matchmaker is like a sal

Denyce Seow Aug 4, 2009:

河床 - Don't know Yes, I saw your question. I don't have a clue. Let's see what other colleagues say. My guess is, she's trying to give a poetic swing to it, but I am really not sure.

PS: Munich? I used to live in Wuerzburg. Will go back in September and stay till early next Jan! Maybe I'll visit Munich for the Oktoberfest! Prost!

Thekla Chabbi (asker) Aug 4, 2009:

河床 Denyce, thank you very much again for your immediate reply.<br>I posted another question before, which isn't quite clear for me yet. Maybe you can help me again: 他的日夜转成在我的河床嬉戏。<br>What does 河床 means here? If it really means "river bed", then I don't understand the meaning of the sentence.

Denyce Seow Aug 4, 2009:

黑累累 It means this person knows how to talk bullsh*t/rubbish.

Denyce Seow Aug 4, 2009:

Context again Yes, after reading the article, I think freelance522's interpretation makes more sense. Taiwanese and Hokkein are different but not by a lot. My parents watch Taiwanese shows and they are fine with the language. I have to depend on the Chinese subtitles! The younger generation is losing this dialect. My youngest brother, six years my junior, can't speak much Hokkien.

Thekla Chabbi (asker) Aug 4, 2009:

Thank you very much for your help. It ist Zhong Wenyins shortstory I am working on. Not easy for me this Taiwanese slang. But I understood this sentence now. One sentence earlier she writes the opposite 好尪歹照顾.
By the way, what does 黑累累 means exactly in this context?

Ocean520 Aug 4, 2009:

: ) 1. “要是醜男，我都可以當場接話說：「壞壞ㄤ呷沒空。」” which means "a husband with an ugly face" could be a good husband. (This is what I understand in Taiwanese.)
In 鍾’s article, it means even the little girl knows how to say something good about a candidate (who looks ugly) if she wants to be a matchmaker.
2. I speak Taiwanese which is my mother tongue too (I speak Mandarin and Taiwanese.)
3. Taiwanese is different from Hokkein.
4. All my relatives speak Taiwanese, not only my mum speak Taiwanese. : )

Denyce Seow Aug 4, 2009:

鍾文音 Looks like Thekla is really working with 鍾文音's article. Here is the sentence: 我媽是媒人嘴，黑累累。要是醜男，我都可以當場接話說：「壞壞ㄤ呷沒空。」
She mentions "醜男" earlier in the sentence, so it can't be a typo in this case, and especially not double typo.

Denyce Seow Aug 4, 2009:

Context I think it depends on Thekla's context. "醜醜尪，吃昧空" is correct, but so is "坏坏尪呷没空". Refer to Theresa Teng's song and you'll see that it makes sense. By the way, I speak Hokkein, so I know what she's singing. My mum even knows how to sing it. ;)

Ocean520 Aug 4, 2009:

I think you’re translating 鍾文音’s article? If so, then Karcsy’s answer is correct.
In 鍾’s article, she already mentioned “醜男” before “壞壞ㄤ，吃不空”。
As a Taiwanese, I think Karcsy’s version is the correct one.

karcsy Aug 3, 2009:

typo for : 醜醜尪，吃昧空。 尪 - husband (台语）； 醜醜尪，吃昧空。 釋義：醜夫雖醜，但卻會忠誠地愛老婆，不會出軌，讓老婆過好日子。