Local newspapers jumped on a story this week on the topic of Chinglish. "Chinglish" is not a new word. I heard it for the first time 30 years ago. At times Chinglish can be charming. At the wrong moment, however, Chinglish can annoy readers, and embarrass non-native English speakers. A fellow named Oliver Radtke published "Chinglish: Found in Translation" in 2007. He is particularly interested in the Chinglish he finds on a spate of signs, menus and the like in China. Radtke said recently that Chinglish is "so much more than just incompetent or incorrect English," but communicates "a certain Chinese way of thinking," and he may be right. Many English teachers believe that Chinglish may indicate some Chinese sensitivities about nature or human behavior, and charm or a gentle humor may be a pleasant byproduct of those indications. But Chinglish can also be a kick in the pants to anyone who wants to learn English well. One of my students recently wrote: "This poem is point out that her appearance is of look beauty under moonlight." My student's meaning is clear. But I owe it to my students to tell them the truth: bad English is bad English. We can all improve in our second languages, myself included. We'll never do that if native speakers won't tell us when we're wrong.

charming (adj.) 迷人的；有魅力的 Anna is the most charming person I have ever met.

fellow (n.) 家伙；人 The fellow sitting over there was in the news last night.

particularly (adv.) 尤其；特別 Today's youth are particularly fond of computer games.

spate (n.) 大量 We can choose from a spate of restaurants for lunch.

incompetent (adj.) 无法胜任的；无能力的 An incompetent mother left her baby on the steps of the Church.

behavior (n.) 行为，举止The boy was punished for his bad behavior in the theater.

byproduct (n.) 副产品；意想不到的結果 Angry children are often byproducts of dysfunctional families.

to jump on 立刻做… The students jumped on the chance to be in the movie.

a kick in the pants 刺激；激动 The bad grades on the midterms were just the kick in the pants I needed to actually start doing my homework.

to owe it to 对某人有…责任 Doctors owed it to their patients to stay alert during surgeries.