Hacking Chinese

A better way of learning Mandarin

Articles in the ‘Beginner’ category

  1. Real communication: What it is, why you want it and how to get it

    A language is a structured system used for communication, so the idea to focus on communication when learning Chinese sounds obvious, but it’s surprisingly new and rarer than you think!

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  2. How to learn Chinese in the long term with intrinsic motivation

    While strong motivation doesn’t necessarily accelerate your learning or improve your memory, without it you won’t spend enough time learning Chinese. So how can you stay motivated for months, years and even decades?

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  3. Chinese reading challenge, March 2024

    It’s time for a Chinese reading challenge! It starts on March 10th, so enrol, set your goal and read as much as you can before the end of the month. This article contains more information about the challenge, as well as some advice about improving reading ability in Chinese.

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  4. Student Q&A, March 2024: Reading aloud, finding word boundaries, and working actively with reading materials

    How can you improve your ability to read aloud in Chinese? How can you learn to see where a word starts and ends in a text? And how can you make sure you get the most out of your reading practice?

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  5. Outlier Chinese Character Masterclass review: Understand more, learn faster, remember longer

    Mastering Chinese characters, whether you find them enchantingly beautiful or overwhelmingly complex, is essential for literacy in Chinese. Outlier Linguistics will help you understand how the Chinese writing system works, making it easier to learn!

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  6. Hacking Chinese Pronunciation: Speaking with Confidence is now open!

    Hacking Chinese Pronunciation: Speaking with Confidence is now open for enrollment again! Take this opportunity to boost your pronunciation and improve your ability to communicate in Mandarin. The courses closes again on midnight Tuesday, February 25.

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  7. The Hacking Chinese guide to Mandarin tones

    Learning tones is a unique challenge for most learners of Chinese. What are tones? How important is it to learn tones? And how do you learn to both hear and pronounce them?

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  8. Chinese writing challenge, February 2024

    It’s time for a Chinese writing challenge! It starts on February 10th, so enrol, set your goal and write as much as you can before the end of the month. This article contains more information about the challenge, some important things to keep in mind as well as some advice about improving writing ability in Chinese.

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  9. Student Q&A, February 2024: Typing or handwriting, using new words in texts, and how to use AI to improve your writing

    Is it better to practise writing Chinese on a computer or by hand? How do you find the right words when writing? And how can you leverage AI to improve your writing ability?

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  10. Listen more and learn more by building a personal Chinese audio library

    The more you listen, the more you learn, but listening more is not as easy as it sounds. By building a personal Chinese audio library, you ensure that you always have something suitable to listen to, no matter what situation you’re in.

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