I’ve always wanted to compile a list of verbs in English and Chinese that involve physical actions, as I believe these are some of the trickiest types of vocabulary to master. They’re tricky because, although they’re the kind of things we do on a daily basis, we rarely think about how to express them clearly in our first language – let alone our second.
I’ve broken up this list into nine categories, covering almost any type of physical verb you could think of.
- Head, hair and face: 18
- Mouth and throat: 18
- Eyes and brows: 17
- Utterances: 20
- Hands and arms: 51
- Legs and feet: 20
- Whole body: 56
- Displays of affection: 18
- Acts of violence: 32
- Total: 250
Let’s get started!
Head, hair and face
- nod: 点头 He nodded to me as he quickly came over. 他边朝我点头,边快步走了过来。
- shake one’s head: 摇头 He shook his head, saying nothing. 他摇了摇头没说话。
- tilt one’s head back, forward, to the side: 把头向后仰;把头向前/侧倾(斜)Don’t tilt your head back when you get a nose-bleed. 流鼻血时不要把头向后仰。
- turn one’s head around: 扭头 Everyone stupidly turned their heads around and stared at us. 每个人都傻乎乎地扭头盯着我们瞧。
- pull a face: 做个鬼脸 That kid is pulling a face at me. 那个孩子正在向我做个鬼脸。
- scratch one’s chin, head: 抓下巴、头 He scratched his head in embarrassment. 他有些不好意思地抓了下头。
- comb, brush one’s hair: 梳头 I comb my hair every morning. 我每天早上梳头。
- play with one’s hair: 玩弄头发 She sat by herself in the corner, playing with her hair. 她独自坐在墙角不停玩弄头发。
- twitch (convulsion; tic): 抽搐 His face twitched a couple of times. 他脸上的肌肉抽出了几下。
- puff one’s cheeks out: 鼓起腮帮子 She puffs out her cheeks when she takes a selfie. 她自拍时鼓起腮帮子。
- sneeze: 打喷嚏 He couldn’t stop sneezing. 他不停打喷嚏。
- wipe one’s nose: 擦鼻子 He asked his mum if he could borrow a tissue to wipe his nose. 他问他妈借了一张纸巾擦鼻子。
- blow one’s nose: 擤鼻子;擤鼻涕 She urged her son not to blow his nose too hard. 她叮嘱她儿子擤鼻子的时候不能太用力。
- pick one’s nose: 挖鼻子 The boy loves to pick his nose and eat it. 这个小男孩爱挖鼻子,然后吃挖出来的鼻屎。
- twitch one’s nose: 抽鼻子;擦鼻根 He kept twitching his nose to stop the snot coming out. 他不断抽鼻子不让鼻涕流出来。
- flare one’s nostrils: 张大鼻孔 His nostrils flared up as he took in a big breath of fresh air. 他张大鼻孔用力呼吸新鲜空气。。
- tug one’s earlobe: 拉(拽、拖)耳垂 His earlobes are thick and long, when he tugs them he looks just like Maitreya Buddha. 他的耳垂又厚又长,一拉耳垂就像弥勒佛一样。
- wiggle one’s ears: 动耳朵 Can you wiggle your ears? 你能动耳朵吗?
Mouth and throat
- smile: 微笑 He smiled at me. 他对我笑。
- grin: 露齒而笑 This child often has a naughty grin on his face. 这个孩子经常顽皮地露齿而笑。
- smirk: 得意地笑 The boy smirked at seeing his prank. 看着自己的恶作剧,小男孩得意地笑了。
- yawn: 打哈欠 Yawning is contagious. 打哈欠是会传染的。
- cough: 咳嗽 He coughed his lungs up. 他把肺都咳出来了。
- burp: 打饱嗝 He burped loudly. 他打饱嗝打得很响。
- hiccup: 打嗝;呃逆 He couldn’t get rid of his hiccups. 他打嗝打得停不下来。
- chew: 咀嚼 Food should be carefully chewed before swallowing. 食物在吞咽前要仔细咀嚼。
- swallow: 吞咽;吞吃;咽下 This decoction is very bitter and hard to swallow. 这种汤药太苦,很难吞咽。
- spit: 吐痰 Don’t spit on the floor. 不要随地吐痰。
- vomit: 呕吐 I got carsick, and vomited the whole way. 因为晕车,一路上呕吐不止。
- lick: 舔 The kids are licking their ice creams. 孩子们正舔吃着冰糕。
- poke one’s tongue out: 伸舌头 He poked his tongue out. 他把舌头伸了出来。
- pout: 噘嘴 She pouted at me. 她向我噘了噘嘴。
- purse one’s lips: 撇嘴 After tearing open the gift, the girl suddenly pursed her lips and started crying. 小女孩拆开礼物后突然撇起嘴哭了。
- grind one’s teeth: 磨牙 Some people grind their teeth while sleeping. 有些人睡觉时磨牙齿。
- suck on one’s thumb: 含大拇指 Babies like sucking on their thumbs while sleeping. 宝宝喜欢含大拇指睡觉。
- keep in the mouth (suck on): 含 He sucked on a lolly. 他嘴里含着糖。
Eyes and brows
- look at: 看;瞧 What are you looking at? 你在看什么?
- blink: 眨眼 He blinked back tears. 他眨眼的时候流泪了。
- wink: 使眼色;送秋波 He winked at me. 他对我使眼色。
- stare: 盯着看 He kept staring at me. 他一直盯着我看。
- glance (catch a glimpse): 一瞥;扫一眼 The woman glanced sideways at the man and turned her head around in disgust. 女人瞟了一眼男子,嫌弃的扭过了头。
- narrow one’s eyes: 眯眼 Grandpa clasped his hands behind his back, narrowed his eyes and smiled. 爷爷背着手眯眼笑了。
- glare: 瞪;怒视 She glared at him. 她狠狠瞪了他一眼。
- squint: 眯着看 He squinted at the blurry handwriting. 他眯着眼看着模糊的字。
- cross one’s eyes: 斗鸡眼 He went cross-eyed. 他变斗鸡眼了。
- roll one’s eyes: 翻白眼 He rolled his eyes after I finished speaking. 我說完後他翻了翻白眼。
- rub one’s eyes: 揉眼睛 Children often rub their eyes, which is an unhygienic habit. 小朋友经常揉眼睛,这是一个不卫生的坏习惯。
- maintain eye contact: 保持眼神交流 Maintaining eye contact is an important skill in communication. 保持眼神交流是很重要的沟通技巧。
- avert gaze (take one’s eyes from sth): 转移目光 The scenery in front of me was so beautiful I couldn’t take my eyes away from it. 眼前的风景美得让我无法转移目光。
- perve (ogle): 色迷迷地看 That drunk guy’s perving on the woman in the mini skirt. 那个酒鬼在色咪咪地看那个穿着迷你裙的女的。
- make eyes at sb: 抛媚眼 Don’t make eyes at that guy again, he doesn’t care about you. 别再对那家伙抛媚眼了,他是不会在乎你的。
- frown: 皱眉头 He frowned as he read the letter. 他读信时皱着眉头。
- raise one’s eyebrows: 抬眉(毛);挑眉头;翘眉 Raising your eyebrows can be a way of dropping a hint. 挑眉这个动作通常带有暗示性。
Utterances
- speak: 说话 I’m speaking now, don’t interrupt. 我正说话呢,你别打岔。
- greet (say hello): 打招呼 He said hello to me. 他冲我打招呼。
- laugh: 大笑 He laughed out loud. 他大笑起来。
- giggle: 傻笑 She giggles at everything. 她对什么事情都傻笑。
- shout (yell; raise one’s voice): 呼喊;喊叫;叫唤 What are you shouting about? Can’t you keep it down? 你呼喊什么!轻点儿不行吗?
- scream (screech; shriek): 尖叫 He made her scream in fright. 他吓得她尖叫一声。
- swear (curse): 骂脏话;说下流话 My husband often starts swearing when he’s passionate about something. 我老公激情时爱说下流话。
- hum: 哼 She hummed a little tune. 她哼着小曲儿。
- whistle: 口哨 He likes to whistle as he walks. 他喜欢一边走路一边吹口哨。
- cry (sob): 哭 She sobbed in despair. 她伤心地哭了
- cheer: 喝彩 The crowd cheered. 全场喝彩了。
- groan: 呻吟 He groaned in pain. 他痛苦地呻吟。
- moan: 呻吟;叫床 Many people believe that only women moan in bed. 很多人认为只有女人才会叫床。
- sigh: 叹气 Stop sighing all the time. 别总是唉声叹气的。
- clear one’s throat: 清嗓子 I keep clearing my throat, but it still feels like there’s something in there. 我老在清清嗓子,但还是感觉里面有东西。
- snore: 打呼噜;打鼾 As soon as he gets to sleep you can hear him start snoring. 他一睡着后,马上会有打呼噜的声音。
- mumble (murmur; mutter; grunt): 咕哝;含糊地说 What are you mumbling about? Speak up if you have something to say. 你咕哝什么呢?有意见就大声说。
- gargle: 漱口 He always gargles with salt water before going to bed. 他睡前总用盐水漱口。
- cluck one’s tongue (say tsk-tsk): 咂咂舌头 He clucked his tongue and said to her, “You failed the test again.” 他咂咂舌头对她说:“你这次又考不及格。”
- shush: 嘘 Shh! Be quiet! 嘘!别说话!
Hands and arms
- eat: 吃 Have you eaten? 你吃了吗?
- drink: 喝 Would you like to drink some tea? 你喝茶吗?
- scratch: 抓痒 When he scratches himself he does it very forcefully, which causes his skin to go red. 他抓痒时特别用力,把皮肤弄得很红。
- snap one’s fingers: 打了个响指 He snapped his fingers to attract the waiter. 他冲服务员打了个响指。
- put one’s hands up, down: 把手举起、放下 Those who agree with this plan, please raise your hand. 同意这个计划的,请举手。
- put one’s hands in one’s pockets: 把手插进衣袋里 He put his hands in his pockets to try and look cool. 他把手插进衣袋里装酷。
- put one’s hands on one’s head: 抱着头 He put his hands on his head in remorse. 他懊悔地抱着头。
- fiddle with sth: 瞎摆弄 He fiddled with his pencil while he waited for his father to come back. 他摆弄着他的铅笔,等着父亲回来。
- wave: 招手;挥手 I waved to him. 我向他挥手。
- clap one’s hands: 拍手 The audience clapped and said bravo. 观众拍手叫好。
- applaud: 鼓掌 As soon as the movie finished, the audience stood up and applauded. 影片刚一结束,观众就开始起立鼓掌。
- take: 拿在手上 The audience took the tickets and lined up to enter the venue. 观众把票拿在手上排队入场。
- carry: 携带 It is prohibited to carry flammables, explosives and other dangerous goods on board the train. 乘坐火车禁止携带易燃易爆等危险品。
- rub: 揉 He rubbed his sore shoulder. 他揉着酸痛的肩膀。
- rub one’s hands together: 搓手 The new student was nervous when introducing himself, and kept on rubbing his hands together. 新来的学生在介绍自己的时候很紧张,不断的搓手。
- wipe: 擦 He wiped away the sweat. 他擦了擦汗。
- salute: 敬礼 He saluted the flag. 他向国旗敬礼。
- tear (rip): 撕;扯开;剥开 He tore the newspaper up. 他把报纸撕破了。
- put one’s hands behind one’s back: 背手 He paced back and forth with his hands behind his back. 他背手来回走动。
- crack one’s fingers/knuckles: 把手指按响 I used to often crack my fingers, which has caused my thumb to be constantly in pain. 以前经常把手指按响,导致现在大拇指总是疼。
- flip the bird (give the middle finger): 竖中指 It’s rude to give the middle finger. 对人竖中指是很粗鲁的。
- give a thumb’s up, down: 竖起大拇指、倒大拇指 The teacher gave a thumb’s up to the students who had done well in class. 老师向课堂表现积极的学生竖起大拇指。
- point: 指 She pointed at her nose, and said, “Me?” 她指着自己的鼻子说:“我?”
- give the OK sign: 做OK手势 I asked her if she wanted to go out for a coffee, and she just gave me the OK sign. 我问她要不要一起去喝咖啡,她只是简单地向我做OK手势。
- give a timeout: 做暂停手势 The referee gave a timeout to suspend the competition. 裁判做暂停手势要求暂停比赛。
- reach: 够着 I want to pick that apple but I can’t reach it. 我想摘那只苹果,但是够不着。
- pull (tug): 拉 He pulled the door open. 他把门拉开了。
- drag: 拖 He ran into the open sea, dragging his surfboard behind him. 他拖着冲浪板,奔向大海。
- feel about (grope about; fumble): 摸索 He felt around in the dark. 他在黑暗中摸索着。
- push: 推 He pushed open the window. 他推开窗户。
- lift (raise): 抬起 He raised his head and looked at the sky. 他抬起头望着天空。
- hold: 握 He held a gun in his hand. 他手里握着一把枪。
- take out: 抽 He took a book out of the bookshelf. 他从书架上抽出一本书。
- pick: 摘 He picks cherries during the summer. 他夏天时摘樱桃。
- pick at: 抓;揭 Don’t pick at the scab on your arm. 别去揭你胳膊上的伤嘎巴儿。
- shake: 摇;抖 She shook her umbrella, while her husband shook the sand out of his shoes. 她抖了抖她的雨伞,她的先生把沙子从鞋子里抖了出来。
- shake hands: 握手 He enthusiastically shook our hands. 他和我们热情地握手。
- cross one’s fingers: 两指交叉为十字 Crossing one’s fingers signifies hope for success. 两指交叉为十字有为成功祈祷的意思。
- tap one’s fingers: 用手指轻触 He tapped his fingers on his laptop touchpad. 他用手指轻触笔记本电脑触控板。
- give a high five: 击掌庆贺 He gave me a high five. 他跟我击掌庆贺
- clench one’s fist: 握拳 He clenched his fists furiously. 他双手握拳,十分愤怒。
- pump one’s fist: 挥拳 He furiously pumped his fist at the person who provoked him. 他十分愤怒,挥拳打向那个挑衅他的人。
- raise a glass: 举杯 Let’s raise a glass to the newly weds. 让我们举杯向新娘和新郎祝贺。
- raise one’s fist: 高举拳头 Upon receiving his university offer letter, he raised his fist in excitement. 他收到大学录取通知书,兴奋地高举拳头。
- rest one’s chin on one’s hand (do ‘the Thinker’ pose): 手托着下巴 He rested his chin on his hand and contemplated the future. 他手托着下巴在思考着未来。
- make the namaste gesture: 那摩斯戴;合十礼;双手合十 The monk made the namaste gesture in front of the Buddha and kowtowed. 那个和尚双手合十对着佛祖磕头。
- make the heart gesture: 做心型的手势 Korean artists often make the heart gesture towards their fans. 韩国艺人经常对粉丝做心型的手势。
- pat one’s belly: 拍肚子 In Journey to the West, Pigsy habitually pats his belly. 在西游记中猪八戒的习惯性动作就是拍肚子。
- scull (chug): 干杯;走一个;一口气喝掉 He sculled an entire bottle of beer. 他一口气吹掉了整瓶啤酒。
- squeeze a pimple: 挤痘 How to pop pimples without leaving a scar? 怎么挤痘痘才不会留疤痕?
- cross one’s arms: 交叉双臂 She crossed her arms and looked at us, stamping her feet. 她交叉双臂望着我们,一面顿着脚。
Legs and feet
- walk: 走 He walks fast. 他走得很快。
- run: 跑 He ran away. 他跑掉了。
- sprint: 冲刺 The runner sprinted for the finishing line. 赛跑运动员向终点冲刺。
- jog: 慢跑 He jogs every day. 他每天慢跑。
- stride: 大步走 He strode towards the post office carrying a parcel. 他手里提着包裹,朝着邮局的方向大步走去。
- walk backwards: 倒着走;后退 I’m a slow walker, but I never walk backwards. 我走得很慢,但是我从来不会后退。
- limp: 一瘸一拐低走;跛行 The athlete sprained his ankle during the competition, but in the end still managed to limp to the finish line. 这位运动员在比赛中扭伤了脚踝,但最终他还是一瘸一拐地走到了终点。
- stagger (hobble): 蹒跚;摇摇晃晃 In our local area there is always an old man hobbling around collecting rubbish. 我们小区里总有个步履蹒跚的老人在收废品。
- tiptoe (tippy-toe): 踮着脚走;蹑足而行 He stood on his tippy-toes by the window to see the view downstairs. 他惦着脚站在窗边看楼下的景色。
- trudge: 步履艰难 They trudged their way home through the snow that had accumulated on the ground. 他们踩着积雪,步履艰难地往家走去。
- wade: 蹚水;趟水 I waded across the river. 我蹚水过河。
- stomp (stamp) one’s feet: 跳脚;跺脚;踏脚 He stomped his feet in anger. 他气得直跳脚。
- wipe one’s feet: 擦脚 Wipe your feet on the mat before you come in. 近来前请把脚在脚垫子上擦擦。
- put one’s feet up: 把腿抬起来 Put your feet up and relax. 高枕无忧。
- stand on one leg: 单脚站立 Usually it is difficult to maintain one’s balance when standing on one leg. 一般人很难在单脚站立时保持平衡。
- cross one’s legs: 翘二郎腿 When we got to work, the manager was there crossing his legs in front of the computer. 我们到公司的时候,经理正坐在电脑前,翘着二郎腿。
- march: 行军 The troops marched swiftly, and covered a hundred miles in one evening. 部队急行军,一夜走了一百英里。
- run on the spot: 原地跑步;原地踏步 Because of the rain, our PE teacher got us to run on the spot to warm up. 因为下雨的关系,我们体育老师叫我们原地跑步热身。
- do the splits: 劈腿 Can you do the splits? 你能做劈腿动作吗?
- do the horse stance: 马步 In traditional martial arts, the horse stance plays a considerably important role. 在传统的武术里,马步扮演了一个相当重要的角色。
Whole body
- dance: 跳舞 Her figure is suited to dancing. 她的身材适合跳舞。
- breakdance: 霹雳舞 He is an expert at breakdancing. 他是一个霹雳舞高手。
- moonwalk: 太空步 Many people want to copy the moonwalk. 很多人都想模仿太空步。
- bow: 鞠躬 He bowed to the guests. 他向客人鞠躬。
- curtsy: 万福;屈膝礼 She curtsied to the king. 她向国王行了屈膝礼。
- kowtow: 磕头;叩头 During Spring Festival, naughty children kowtow to their elders to ask for New Year’s money. 熊孩子春节时通过磕头的方式向长辈们索要压岁钱。
- shiver: 哆嗦 It suddenly got cold; I was so freezing that I started to shiver. 天气突然转冷,我冻得直打哆嗦。
- jump: 跳 The cat jumped off his lap. 猫从他的腿跳了下来。
- somersault: 翻筋斗;翻跟头 He can do a somersault like a gymnast. 他会像体操运动员那样翻筋斗。
- flip: 空翻 The flip an extremely common gymnastics manoeuvre. 空翻是最为常见的体操基本动作。
- backflip: 后空翻 Jackie Chan does a fantastic backflip. 成龙的后空翻非常帅。
- swim: 游泳 He loves swimming. 他很喜欢游泳。
- dive: 跳水 Diving is prohibited in the shallow-water area. 浅水区是禁止跳水的。
- do a handstand: 手倒立 A good sense of equilibrium is required to be able to do a handstand. 人要有很好的平衡感才能够手倒立。
- do a headstand: 头手倒立 The headstand is one of the supreme poses for Yoga practitioners.头手倒立式是瑜珈练习者的最高境界。
- do a sit-up: 仰卧起坐 If an unsuitable amount of exertion is applied when practising sit-ups, the muscles in the waist can get damaged. 练习仰卧起坐时,如果用力不当会导致腰肌受损。
- do a push-up: 俯卧撑 Push-ups are a great way to exercise the chest muscles. 俯卧撑是一种很好的锻炼胸肌的方法。
- turn around: 转身 Just as I turned around I saw someone knicking something out of my knapsack. 我一转身看见了一小偷正在偷我背包里的东西。
- spin around: 迅速转身 The police officer spun around, took out a handgun and pointed it at the gangster. 那个警察迅速转身,拔出手枪指向匪徒。
- skip: 跳着走 The children were skipping happily. 孩子们正高高兴兴地跳着。
- flex a limb, joint, muscle: 活动四肢、关节、肌肉 It is necessary to warm the body up before exercise by flexing the limbs. 做运动之前要做热身运动,活动一下四肢。
- skip rope: 跳绳 The children skipped rope under the supervision of their parents. 儿童在父母的监督之下跳绳。
- hop: 单脚跳 Hopping is a good way of testing one’s coordination skill. 单脚跳很考验人的协调能力。
- crawl: 爬行 The child has just learnt how to crawl. 这个孩子刚学会爬。
- stand up: 站(起来)The teacher said to stand up to answer questions. 老师说要站起来回答问题。
- stand up straight: 站直 During military training if we didn’t stand up straight we were made to run laps. 在军训中如果我们不站直就会被罚跑步。
- sit down: 坐(下)Please take a seat. 请坐。
- sit up straight: 坐直 Sit up straight in class, don’t hunch.上课要坐直了,不要驼着背。
- sit cross-legged: 盘腿而坐 We sat cross-legged on the tatami. 我们在塌塌米上盘腿而坐。
- sit in the lotus position: 打坐;莲花坐 Every day the Master sits in the lotus position for a very long time. 法师每天打坐很久。
- slouch: 耷拉地坐、站 He slouched in his chair. 他耷拉着坐在椅子上。
- lie down (lie on one’s back): 躺下 He’s lying in bed. 他在床上躺着。
- lie on one’s tummy (prostrate oneself; fall flat on the ground): 趴下;俯卧 In case of an air raid, immediately lie flat on the ground. 如果遇到空袭,请迅速趴下。
- lie on one’s side: 侧卧 Many people like to sleep on one side. 很多人喜欢侧卧着睡觉。
- kneel (get on one’s knees): 跪下 In ancient times ordinary people had to kneel when meeting with the emperor. 在古代所有普通人见到皇上都要跪下。
- crouch down (squat): 蹲 He was crouching on the ground, pulling out weeds. 他蹲在地里拔草。
- bend down (bend over): 弯腰 She bent over to tie her shoelaces. 她弯下腰系鞋带。
- do a star jump (do a jumping jack): 跳跃运动;开合跳 Star jumps are a great work-out routine. 跳跃运动是一种良好的健身方法。
- shrug: 耸肩 He just shrugged and didn’t look interested. 他耸了耸肩,一副不感兴趣的样子。
- stretch out one’s arms, legs: 伸展双臂、双腿 He stretched out his arms to prepare to take a dunk shot. 他在伸展双臂,准备跳起来扣篮。
- strike a pose: 摆姿势 That model’s pose is so alluring. 那个模特儿摆的姿势特别诱人。
- plank: 玩仆街 They got in trouble from their teacher for planking. 他们玩扑街被老师教训了一顿。
- go into the fetal position (curl up; huddle up): 蜷缩 Seeing that frightening scene of that little girl made me want to get into the fetal position and hide in a corner, not saying a whimper. 看见那吓人的一幕小孩吓得蜷缩在墙角不敢出声。
- fall (fall down; have a fall): 摔倒 It’s easy to fall down on an icy road. 路上有冰,很容易摔倒。
- bump into (knock against): 碰 His head bumped into the door frame. 他的头碰到了门框上。
- slip over: 滑倒 He slipped on a banana peel. 他不小心踩在香蕉皮上滑倒了。
- stub one’s toe: 踢到脚趾 I accidentally stubbed my toe while I was going for a stroll. 我散步时不小心踢到脚趾了。
- roll: 翻滚 She rolled about on the bed in laughter. 她笑着在床上翻滚。
- slide (glide): 滑动 I slid down the hill. 我从山顶上滑了下来。
- dodge (evade): 躲;闪躲;闪开;躲闪 He dodged the ball coming towards him. 他躲过了迎面而来的求。
- moon: 亮屁股 During the soccer riot, the fans mooned the anti-riot police. 在一场球迷骚乱中,球迷亮屁股对抗防爆警察。
- do a nude run (streak): 裸奔 He did a nude run today at school because he lost a bet he made with his classmates. 因为跟同学打赌输了,他今天在学校裸奔。
- flash (have a wardrobe malfunction): 走光 Female celebrities who wear revealing clothing are more likely to experience wardrobe malfunctions. 女明星穿得暴露容易走光。
- leap: 跳跃 The coach got us to take big leaps as a kind of warm-up exercise. 教练让我们用向上跳跃的运动方式热身。
- hunch (hunch over; stoop): 弯腰驼背 After the torrential rain, the villagers hunched over to tidy up the things left at the front entrance. 暴雨过后,村民们弯腰驼背,开始收拾门前的东西。
- writhe: 扭动 He writhed in pain on the floor. 他在地上痛苦地扭动着。
- pace: 来回走动 She paced up and down the room with a frustrated look on her face. 她一脸失意,在房间里来回走动。
Displays of affection
- hold someone’s hand: 拉手;牵手 She held her boyfriend’s hand. 她拉着她的男朋友的手。
- kiss: 亲吻 She kissed him on the cheek. 她亲吻了他的脸颊。
- blow a kiss to sb: 飞吻 I blew a kiss to my wife. 我给我老婆一个飞吻。
- make out with someone (give sb a French kiss): 舌吻 They made out on the lawn. 他们在草坪上舌吻。
- hug (embrace; hold): 拥抱 He held his girlfriend tightly. 他紧紧拥抱着他的女朋友。
- slap sb’s back (pat sb’s back): 拍某人的背 The old man patted the back of the young man next to him, and encouraged him not to give up. 那个老头拍拍旁边一个小伙子的背,鼓励他不要放弃。
- give sb a bear hug: 熊抱 As soon as she saw her boyfriend she gave him a big bear hug. 她见到她男朋友马上熊抱着他。
- cuddle: 抱在怀里 Before going to sleep my daughter has to cuddle her little toy bear. 我女儿在睡觉前一定要把玩具小熊抱在怀里。
- link arms with sb: 挽着手 They linked arms and looked up at the starlit sky. 他们俩挽着手,仰望星空。
- nestle against sb (snuggle up to sb): 依偎 She nestled her head against her boyfriend’s shoulder. 她将头依偎在男朋友的肩上。
- play with sb’s hair: 抚摸头发 He played with her hair. 他抚摸着她的头发。
- pat: 拍 He patted her on the head. 他拍了她的头。
- tap: 轻拍 He tapped her on the shoulder. 他轻拍了她的肩膀。
- poke: 戳 He poked him in the belly. 他戳了他的肚子。
- fondle (stroke): 抚摸 He fondled her arm. 他抚摸了她的胳膊。
- massage: 按摩;推拿 Massage can stimulate blood circulation. 按摩可以促进血液循环。
- pinch: 捏;拧;掐 He pinched her face. 他在她脸上拧了一把。
- squeeze: 榨;挤;紧握 He squeezed her hand. 他紧握着她的手。
Acts of violence
- hit (strike): 打 He hits his children sometimes. 有时候他打他的孩子。
- punch: 用拳头打 He punched him in the stomach. 他打了他肚子一拳。
- bash: 猛击;猛打 They bashed his head with a baseball bat. 他们用棒球棍猛打他的头。
- kick: 踢 He kicked him in the balls. 他踢了他的裆。
- block (get in sb’s way): 堵住;妨碍 Don’t get in my way. 不要妨碍我。
- block (guard against attack): 挡住 He blocked his attack. 他挡住了他的袭击。
- duck: 低头 He ducked a punch. 他低头躲开过一拳。
- grab: 抓 He grabbed him to stop him from leaving. 他抓住他不让他离开。
- bite: 咬 He bit his hand. 他咬了他的手。
- slap: 扇 She slapped him in the face. 她扇了他的脸。
- choke: 掐脖子 He was choked to death. 他被掐死了。
- strangle: 勒 The victim was strangled with a scarf. 受害者是被用围巾勒死了。
- choke on sth: 卡住喉咙 He choked on a piece of bread. 一块面包卡住了他的喉咙。
- throw (chuck): 扔 He threw a piece of paper in his face. 他把一个纸团扔到他的脸上。
- throw (send to the ground): 摔倒 The wrestler threw his opponent. 摔跤手摔倒了对手。
- break: 打断 He broke his nose. 他打断了他的鼻梁。
- smash: 砸 He smashed a beer bottle in his face. 他把啤酒瓶砸在他脸上。
- burn: 烧伤 He burned him with a lighter. 他用打火机烧他。
- cut: 划破 He cut his face with a knife. 他用刀子划破了他的脸。
- pull: 拽;扯He pulled his hair. 他拽了他的头发。
- push: 推 He pushed him against the wall. 他把他推到墙上。
- stab: 刺 He stabbed him in the chest. 他刺中了他的胸部。
- tie sb up: 绑 He tied him up with rope. 他用绳子把他绑起来。
- headbutt: 用头撞 He headbutted him in the face. 他用头撞他的脸。
- knee: 用膝盖撞 She kneed him in self-defense. 她用膝盖撞他是为了自卫。
- elbow: 肘击 She elbowed him in the ribs. 她肘击了他的肋部。
- trip: 绊倒 He tripped him over. 他把他绊倒了。
- tackle: 按倒 He tackled him down to the ground. 他把他按倒在地。
- pinch sb’s ears: 揪耳朵 She berated him by pinching his ears. 她揪着他的耳朵训斥着。
- flick: 弹指 He flicked him in the face. 他弹了他的脸。
- run into (crash into): 撞 The car crashed into the wall. 汽车撞到墙上了。
- trample (tread on; stamp): 踏;踩 Don’t trample on the flowers. 别踩踏花朵。
Notes
Chinese words not included: 踹 (“kick with the sole of one’s foot”), 甩 (“swing back and forth”), 扛 (“carry on the shoulders”), 请安 (“make obeisance by drooping the right arm in front of oneself and bending the left knee”), 顾左右(“look from left to right”), 撩“(lift or hold upa curtain or skirt from the bottom”), 摇头晃脑 (“bob one’s head in a self-satisfied manner”), as well as the following characters which are too complicated to translate: 扒,蹿, 撸, 捋, etc. English words not included: “play footsies”(在桌底下偷偷碰脚) and “twist” (has too many meanings). There are probably many more I’ve left out too. Feel free to let me know in the comments section.
Wow, this is really helpful
This is a great list. Especially because it has sample sentences that contain the the key words! Thanks for the the effort!
Your blog is really helpful and interesting. I am so happy I found it. I would be so happy for pin yin. 🙂
Google Translate has a hanzi->pinyin conversion function, copy and paste the list in there and give it a try.
I use the plugin “Perapera Chinese Popup Dictionary” (for Firefox; apparently there’s also one for Google Chrome) which, as well as pinyin, gives a dictionary entry for one or more characters. It’s extremely convenient as all you have to do to see the popup with the info is place the cursor over the character(s) you’re interested in. Much, much better than having to copy/paste to another window.
The website is: http://www.perapera.org.
Very nice article, it’s great study material! Thanks for sharing it.
I’m not so good at Chinese, but I did spot a few typos.
• 他脸上的肌肉抽出了几下。 should be …抽搐了几下。
• In 我說完後他翻了翻白眼。:
“我說完後” ⇒ “我说完后”
• 一瘸一拐低走” ⇒ “一瘸一拐地走”
• I saw someone knicking ⇒ I saw someone nicking
Cheers
Oh my, thank you SO much for this. I’ve been studying Mandarin for over 10 years, and have written countless academic essays, speeches, etc, but still struggle with simple verbs cause I was just never taught them. Can I talk about post-structuralism in Chinese? Yup. Could I tell you to tap your fingers in Chinese? Not until now haha!
Bueatiful work done there! very useful!
For ‘Slouch’, i think it is very close to ‘瘫着’ in Chinese.
‘He slouched in his chair.’ 他瘫躺在椅子上