Articles in the ‘Distinctively Chinese’ category
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A minimum-effort approach to writing Chinese characters by hand
Chinese characters are beautiful and fascinating, but learning to write them by hand is time-consuming. If you want to learn to write Chinese characters by hand with the least possible time investment, what’s the best approach?
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How to talk about Chinese characters in Chinese
How do native speakers talk about Chinese characters? The writing system is not phonetic, so you can’t spell out words, but it is still possible to talk about Chinese characters.
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What a big Rubik’s Cube taught me about Chinese characters
How small can Chinese characters be while still being legible? How much information do they contain per unit area? And what can a big Rubik’s cube teach us about Chinese characters?
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7 ways to learn to write Chinese characters
There are many ways of practising writing Chinese characters and they all have their pros and cons. In this article, I discuss seven different ways of practising and what advantages and disadvantages they have for you as a learner. Which do you use?
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Same building blocks, different characters: How component placement changes meaning in Chinese
Chinese character components are usually placed in predictable ways. If you remember the components, you can often write the character. But not always. Some characters share components but differ only in how they’re arranged.
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16 myths about learning Chinese that are holding you back
Believing the wrong things about learning Chinese can waste time and lead you astray. Let’s explore 16 myths that might be holding you back!
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Classroom Mandarin: Essential expressions for learning Chinese in Chinese
The fastest way to learn to communicate in Chinese is to learn classroom expressions first. Master essential phrases that help you learn Mandarin without relying on English!
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16 reasons to learn to write Chinese characters by hand
Does handwriting still have a place in modern Chinese learning? Let’s explore 8 popular arguments in favour of writing characters by hand, each critically examined to see which ones truly stand up to scrutiny.
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Zi.Tools: A powerful free resource for exploring Chinese characters
Zi.Tools is a great free resource for exploring Chinese characters. See what it offers and how you can use it to boost your learning!
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The 10 best free Chinese reading resources for beginner, intermediate and advanced learners
Reading is the best way to expand vocabulary and learn new things in Chinese. What are the best free resources out there for beginner, intermediate and advanced learners? This article collects and introduces the ten best free reading resources in each category!
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