"你很高兴，我也很高兴。"
Translation:You are happy, I am also happy.
145 CommentsThis discussion is locked.
So my understanding is that the meaning of 很, when used with adjectives, is much closer to "is" (it's used basically all the time without carrying much weight) BUT the behavior is much closer to "very", since if you pick another adjective it will replace 很, rather than being used in addition. Since in other situations it does mean "very" and it's important to get used to adjectives not requiring a verb to link them with the noun, most language courses seem to just teach it as "very" and then slowly wean you off translating every emotional state expressed in Chinese as extra intense ;)
I do think both translations should be allowed and would report any sentences that don't, though. The course staff do seem to be actively fleshing out the range of accepted translations based on that feedback :)
As a native speaker, who also consulted with other native speakers, I can vouch that the verb "to be" is often implied in Chinese. Therefore, contrary to so many people's claims, 很 is not needed to connect the subject (ex. 我) to the adjective (ex. 高兴). Think of the common questions 你好吗? or 你好不好? There's no "to be" or any verb in those sentences. The sentences 我病了, 我生病了 and 我有病 (literal translation "I have sickness.") all mean "I'm sick," but the first one contains NO verb. Therefore, please ONLY use 很 if you want to express "very." (Yes, people may use 很, similarly to the "very" used in "Very happy to meet you" without truly meaning it, as in being polite/welcoming, but this doesn't make 很 a connector word.)
2019 Apeil tips on mobile now. I am a Plus subscriber. But maybe available to all now. Otherwise, before subscribing, i preferred studying from browser so i could access tips.
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While 很 does mean "very," it does not have the same weight as English. In Chinese we throw 很 around like it's nothing. For instance, we can say something is 很大 (very large) when it's only somewhat large, whereas in English, "very large" must mean VERY large.
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Sometimes people do mean "very," but you're right a lot of people use 很 without meaning it.
Why is there no slow playback button? They speak so fast for new learners.
Tips and notes
When we want to describe something we don’t use the verb “to be”, we have to put something else before an adjective. The most common word used to do this is 很 hěn, which literally means very. It goes between the subject (who or what we are describing) and the adjective (what we are describing it as). Since 很 is used so often like this, it oftentimes doesn’t mean “very”, just a link between a noun and an adjective.
*Pinyin in brackets is the actual pronunciation as a result of the change of tone.
Chinese ----- Pinyin ----- English
我很好。----- Wǒ hěn[hén]* hǎo. ----- I'm good.
你很高兴。----- Nǐ[ní] hěn gāoxìng. ----- You are happy.
The word for “also” or “too” is much less flexible in Chinese than in English. It must always come after the subject and before the verb.
Chinese ----- Pinyin ----- English
我也认识你。----- Wǒ[wó] yě rènshi nǐ. ----- I also know you. / I know you, too.
我也很高兴。----- Wǒ yě[yé] hěn gāoxìng. ----- I am happy, also. / I am also happy.
也 can also be used in the phrase "If X is... then Y is (also) ..." Here we don't need to use 很.
Chinese ----- Pinyin ----- English
你高兴，我也高兴. ----- nǐ gāoxìng, wǒ[wó] yě gāoxìng. ----- If you are happy then I am happy.
你很高兴，我也很高兴。----- nǐ[ní] hěn gāoxìng, wǒ yě[yé] hěn gāo xìng. ----- You are happy, I am also happy.
我高兴，他也高兴。----- wǒ gāo xìng, tā yě gāoxìng ----- If I am happy then he is happy.
I'm a native Chinese speaker who's testing through the Duolingo Chinese program to review written Chinese. In Chinese, the verb is not necessary or can be implied by the adjective. Therefore, hen to me always means very. I can say I am happy with 我高兴. Also, "if" is not implied in "你高兴，我也高兴. ----- nǐ gāoxìng, wǒ[wó] yě gāoxìng. ----- If you are happy then I am happy" If someone said "你高兴，我也高兴" to me, I would understand it as "You're happy. I'm happy as well."
Thank you a lot for every thing you wrote !
Had there been a clarification like this for every comment , it would've been a blessing for mobile users.
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So if 很 is just a link between, for example, "I" and "happy", and doesn't mean "very"... how would one signify that "I am very happy"? Would this be 我很很高兴 ?
not 很很. There are other words you can use to increase the intensity of your happiness. You could say 我真高兴，or 我非常高兴, or even 我高兴及了
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Omg truth to be told; I always thought "hen" was "feel"; based on context (never learnt the text before; just had housemates who were really awesome and were teaching me some phrases ... however they were local South East Asians so it could be different... but I always found that assuming hěn was feel made many of the phrases make sense; "i feel warm" (wo hen re) wo hen hao (i feel good) etc
I think "You are happy, and I am too" should be accepted based on the way "too" is used in English.
how are commas and periods translated?
in the sentence, it has the comma in the middle, and ends with the circle period. however, the translation says each one is a sentence. Why does the chinese have the comma?
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Commas shouldn't be used here in the English translation. It should be either a semicolon or a period.
"Ah, you are happy, I am as well" "A, nǐ hěn gāoxìng, wǒ yě yīyàn" "啊， 你很高兴， 我 也 一样"
Please translate "hen" as very. Was taught mandarin in Shanghai, and the teachers there would not use it unless you actually wanted to say l am "very" happy (or anything else for that matter)
I am happy, you are happy too, is somehow not the same as you are also happy...?
You should accept 'I am happy too' along with 'I am also happy' since both are perfectly correct.
Imagine working on a project with someone and it has been rough going, finally they are satisfied with what you've presented and you are relieved to hear it. With a sigh of relief you say these words...
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It does. (I'm a native speaker.) As many native speakers like to exaggerate things, 很 is used so frequently that its effect has faded so much that some native speakers simply assume people don't really mean"very" when using 很. This has led some native speakers who have learned some English grammar but haven't learned certain Chinese grammar to misunderstand 很 and think it's the counterpart of "to be" (it's not).
i said i am happy too which is the same meaning of i am also happy !!!! why the answer is wrong ???
audio and my answer: 你很高兴，我也很高兴 correct solution: 你很高兴，我也很高兴... but then shows that is incorrect so...
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It'd be clearer to use add 如果 to the beginning of "you are happy" - 如果你很高兴，我也很高兴。 The word 如果 means "if." 如 means "follow," and 果 means "fruit; result." A way to remember 如果 is thinking of it as "follow the result of."
Hovering over the character for gao in this example shows "tall" and "high" as other translations of gao. Are these correct or is this a mistake? Does gao mean those things as well as "glad," "pleased," and happy? At the beginning of the lesson only hen was shown to also translate as "tall" and "high."
I'm no expert, but I am pretty sure that 高 does mean "tall" and "high." I think that when paired with different characters it shows different meanings as many characters can mean multiple things. I don't think that 很 ever means tall or high, though. Again, I haven't been learning Mandarin for very long, so I could be wrong about that, but I am almost certain that "tall" or "high" can be a translation for 高but not for “很." Hopefully, that was correct and helpful and not just me typing nonsense.
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高 means "tall," "high," etc. It doesn't mean "glad," "pleased," nor "happy"; however, when paired with 兴, which means "delight," here comes 高兴, which means "high level of delight," "happy," etc. 很 means "very"; it doesn't mean "tall" nor "high."
This looks correct to me, but I doubt I would ever actually say that. It is an incredibly awkward phrase that I doubt is used, at least the English translation. It sounds like you are insisting someone else is happy. "You ARE happy. I'm telling you, you ARE!"
"You are happy, I am happy too" was rejected. Despite too and also beig swapped on other problems and being accepted.
This has been my most problematic section.
My answer is 100% the same as the app's answer but why it said my answer was wrong
I'm beginning to stop using English punctuation in translations. Not good. I might stop using it at work :-)
I just mixed up the words i said "I am happy you are also happy" you think it would be right this is crazy driving me nuts!!!!
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高: high, tall
兴: interest, delight
快: (things going) smoothly, smooth
乐: happy
They're pretty similar, but 高兴 indicates a higher level of happiness, even excitement while 快乐 emphasizes how things are going smoothly and going well.
Native speaker here. Many learners are confused about why “很” is not translated "very" here. In a "subject + 很 + adjective" structure, “很” is a linking verb meaning "to be". It only means "very" when a verb is present in a sentence. I.e “I feel very good” is “我感觉很好”. "I sing very well" as “我很会唱” or "我唱歌很好" . There are other different types of linking verbs as well such as "了”，“过了”. The rule of thumb is, there has to be one and only one verb in a simple sentence, contrary to a complex sentence.
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Please see my post regarding 很: https://forum.duolingo.com/comment/25268640?comment_id=39552216
Duolingo rejected 'I'm' for 'I am'. As a native English speaker they are interchangeable and should both be accepted.
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In the example page I could swear they translate the first part as "IF you are happy..." If I am correct, why there and not here?
There is a small difference between the sentences. Watch for the 很 (hěn) character! It literally means "very", but can affect sentence meaning in other ways.
Examples (from Tips and Notes):
This sentence DOES NOT HAVE 很 (hěn), and translates WITH IF... 你高兴，我也高兴。nǐ gāoxìng, wǒ yě gāoxìng. If you are happy then I am happy.
This sentence DOES HAVE 很 (hěn), and translates WITHOUT IF... 你很高兴，我也很高兴。nǐ hěn gāoxìng, wǒ yě hěn gāo xìng. You are happy, I am also happy.
As a native speaker, who also consulted with other native speakers, I can vouch that the verb "to be" is often implied in Chinese. Therefore, contrary to so many people's claims, 很 is not needed to connect the subject (ex. 我) to the adjective (ex. 高兴). Think of the common questions 你好吗? or 你好不好? There's no "to be" or any verb in those sentences. The sentences 我病了, 我生病了 and 我有病 (literal translation "I have sickness.") all mean "I'm sick," but the first one contains NO verb. Therefore, please ONLY use 很 if you want to express "very." (Yes, people may use 很, similarly to the "very" used in "Very happy to meet you" without truly meaning it, as in being polite/welcoming, but this doesn't make 很 a connector word.)
@GaMic - fact tip. Not all native speakers of English score a band 9 in IELTS assessments. Spotting something in the language at one place does not make it true elsewhere. English example - "He reads a book" CORRECT, "I reads a book" INCORRECT.
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I wonder if when you want 很 to mean "very" in this sentence you have to provide the verb 是 - as in 我是很高兴。 Or would you have to say 我是很地高兴。 Does anyone know?
Nope. The statement "我是很地高兴。" is an ungrammatical construction in Chinese. "我很高兴。" by itself already means "I am very happy", wherein "am very" is denoted by "很" in this case. It's rather similar to "我非常高興", where "非常" denotes "am extremely".
You are very happy, I am also very happy. They didn't include 2x of the word "very"
how come in one of the corrections it showed "You are happy, and I am also happy", but here it shows as 2 seperate sentences "You are happy. I am also happy" ? (note it accepts I am happy too as correct)
iirc, the use of 很 and similar modifiers is often a consideration of cadence, rhythm, etc. it doesn't sound right to a native speaker if the wrong number of syllables are spoken. Kinda like in English songs, where you things are described as "old" or preceded with a "this" or "that", because the line has fewer beats than the melody.
I tried "you're pleasured", but the test said that was wrong and that the answer was "You're pleased". Both don't make much since in English...
I keep mixing up 你 and 我 for some reason...Anyone have any tips on not getting Me and You mixed up because it's frustrating to be below on my skills level because I'm interpreting it wrong :/
I got a dodgy way of remembering.
The character for I: 我 (wǒ) looks similar to the japanese kanji for I: 私 (watashi).
我 and 私 both look similar and begin with a "w" sound
So then 你 (nĭ) by elimination is "You"
我 is actually used in Japanese too, but it's われ (ware), which is one of many 1st person personal pronouns in Japanese. (私 (watakushi, watashi, atashi, washi)、我 (ware)、僕 (boku)、俺 (ore), etc.)
Check the pattern. I used to think that "Ni" is there's like a one slide on a stick while "Wo" has a 3 slide, and a bended stick. I this thing didn't, try to write it ten times on a paper. It's the best way to memorize.
Try this; wo/WOW I'm to cool (look at the symbol until you see a man learning cool against the door). And "you'r NOT/ni" (look at the symbol til you see a man just standing with his arms hanging down)
"You're happy so I am also happy" wasn't an accepted translation, is it because of my use of the word "so?"
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Sorry. This is the kind of thing you'd say if you were on drugs. You are happy! I am happy!
I didn't use "also", but I used "I am happy, too", and I got it wrong =.=...
Please allow some flexibility for similar expressions...
I like it when you get it correct and then yu can wipe out the answer and just say you did nothin' XD
I'm Chinese, though not from China so I can't exactly vouch for their use. Where I'm from, "你很高兴，我也很高兴。" is usually (if ever) spoken as "你高兴，我也很高兴。", where the second "很" is optional. It's generally used as a phatic tool mark agreeability, etc. It's not really commonly used, tbh...
I wrote: "If you are happy, I am also happy." Why was this marked wrong? Please help.
I would also agree that any instance using 很 should accept 'very.' Thus, if we write 很高兴 it should translate to 'happy' as well as 'very happy.' The intended meaning may not need the 'very' but I'm sure I'm not the only one that gets frustrated when getting that one wrong.
um so i had exactly the same answer as it should be but it was marked as wrong? What?
I had no idea what tne answer was will have to start it all over again i guess
I typed the exact sentence given as the correct translation and was still told that my translation is incorrect.
Check for grammar and spelling mistakes. Be sure you haven't forgotten any words. Sometimes, you could have dropped some or many words. Those are my recommendations.
I think that i've got my lifetime dose of 很高兴 with Greetings 2. If i'll ever hear it again afterwards, i'll probably start screaming.
What the ❤❤❤❤! Is it appropriate to say "I are" and "You am?" Dictionary makes the answer incorrect!
I used abbreviations for you are (you're) and I am (I'm) and got this question wrong
este simbolo "很" siginifica "very" en todos los contextos ? , quiero saber si de verdad la puedo usar para una oración tipo " This is very sad/ that city is very far away " , se puede usar 很 en esas oraciones?
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Does it imply that "as long as" you are happy, I'm happy too? Could I use this sentence with that in mind?
I just finished typing it was the same as the translation but they said it was wrong . I don't understand !!!!?
I thought 很 means very but why is there no "very" on the sentence and why is it marked wrong when i say it as "你高兴，我也高兴"??? DUDE
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Duo must have known I wasn't having a good day. Thank you for bringing positive vibes my way! <3
Because "correct translation" is the wrong answer. The right answer is "You are happy, I am also happy".
I used the keyboard and type "你很高兴， 我也很高兴"
Then it told me it was wrong.
Correct solution: 你很高兴，我也很高兴。 Meaning: You are happy, I am also happy.
Side by side mine then the "correct solution"
你很高兴， 我也很高兴 你很高兴，我也很高兴
So putting two spaces is a crime now? ❤❤❤ Duo?
Why doesn't "You are happy, I'm also happy" work?! From my understanding, I am is the same as I'm.
