Hacking Chinese

A better way of learning Mandarin

Articles in the ‘Advanced’ category Page 20

  1. Learning Chinese through comprehensible input

    Comprehensible input for learning Chinese

    Comprehensible input is a key component to learning Chinese. This article focuses on the importance of understanding when listening and reading Chinese.

    Read →

  2. ChinesePod review: Your companion to Mandarin fluency

    In this ChinesePod review, we take a close look at one of the best resources available for learning Mandarin online. Can you beat 3,700 lessons?

    Read →

  3. Chinese characters that share the same components but are still different

    Some Chinese characters consist of the same components in different places, creating completely different characters. This article discusses this phenomenon and its implications for language learners.

    Read →

  4. Listen before you read: Improve your listening ability

    Listen before you read

    Listening ability is often overlooked when learning Chinese. Make sure you get the most out of the listening resources you do have and improve your Chinese listening ability.

    Read →

  5. Learn Chinese faster by leaving your comfort zone

    If you want to learn Chinese faster, you have to make sure you leave your comfort zone and challenge yourself as much and as often as you can. There are many things of doing this, including immersing yourself in language above your current level or putting yourself in situations that demand a higher level of performance. Leave your comfort zone!

    Read →

  6. Can you use English learning materials to study Chinese?

    There’s a very large number of books available for Chinese people learning English, but even if it’s tempting to think that we can use these to learn Chinese, doing so comes with several problems. ESL books have their use, but not as many as you might think.

    Read →

  7. How to verify that you use the right Chinese font

    For second language learners, using the wrong font can make learning characters very confusing. In this article, I will help you verify that you have the right fonts installed and discuss what happens if you don’t. This is a follow-up to an earlier article about Chinese fonts for students.

    Read →

  8. Chinese character variants and fonts for language learners

    Chinese character variants and regional font standards can be really confusing for language learners. As if simplified/traditional wasn’t enough, characters can look different depending on the font used or where the text was printed! This article will help you understand what’s going on.

    Read →

  9. Learning to pronounce Mandarin with Pinyin, Zhuyin and IPA: Part 3

    As adults, understanding is important when learning pronunciation. One way to achieve this is through the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), which will allow you to see the sounds your ears might fail to hear. Learning IPA also means learning basic phonetics, and that will do you good in the long run!

    Read →

  10. The real challenge with learning Chinese characters

    The real challenge when learning Chinese characters is not to commit a large number of them to memory, it’s to relate them to each other, including how they are used, how they are different and how they are similar. Creating such an interconnected web is a lifelong project.

    Read →