Are you interested in how to learn Chinese effectively? I studied Mandarin Chinese 50 years ago. Within nine months, I could translate newspaper editorials, read novels, and interpret for others. I accomplished this long before the age of the internet, language learning apps, and other online resources available today.
Reflecting on my own experience, I have six pieces of advice to successfully learn Chinese. Although the amount of resources available for language learning has definitely changed, these tips are timeless for Chinese language learners.
1) Prioritize Listening
For the first month or two of your studies, just focus on listening. Just get used to the sounds and the rhythm of the language. If possible, you should also read whatever you are listening to. As a beginner, start reading with a phonetic writing system, such as Pinyin, in order to get a better sense of what you are hearing. You’ll have to learn the characters eventually, but the initial goal is to get a little momentum in the language.
A new language may sound like incomprehensible noise at the beginning. Your first step in learning Chinese is to build up an auditory memory: grow accustomed to the sounds, differentiate words and tones, and start letting some initial words and phrases reverberate in your brain.
I started learning Mandarin by listening to Chinese Dialogues, an intermediate, Romanized text. At first, the narrator spoke so fast that I found the resource slightly torturous. However, it worked. After about a month, I had a sense of the language. With each repetition, the initial slurry of words became more and more comprehensible.
Bonus Tip:
Start learning a language with intermediate level texts that include a lot of repetition and useful vocabulary. Overly simple, beginner texts are not a sufficient challenge. The Mandarin Chinese mini- stories at LingQ, for example, are intentionally written with essential vocabulary, basic sentence structures, and lots of repetition. This type of resource was not available to me 50 years ago.
LingQ’s library has lots of learning material and Chinese content to offer. If you have more specific interests, you can import your own content with LingQ’s browser extension. This feature is available in Chrome, Safari, Edge and Firefox.
2) Devote Time to Memorizing Characters
As you start gaining confidence with the language, it’s time to start learning Chinese characters. Work at learning these characters every day. Consistency is key. I recommend starting with 10 characters a day and gradually increasing to 30.
I can’t stress enough that this needs to be a daily habit. You will forget the characters almost as quickly as you learn them, and you may want to consider using Anki or some other spaced repetition system. For example, I developed my own spaced repetition system with a set of 1,000 flashcards for the 1,000 most frequent characters. I used these flashcards and sheets of grid paper to practice writing these characters. I would pick up one card, write the character down 10 times, and then write the meaning or pronunciation in the margins, repeating this process until I had a solid grasp on the entire set.
As you progress, learning new characters will become easier. There are many recognizable radicals, hints and patterns in the less frequent characters. Through ample exposure, you’ll start to notice these radicals and components that suggest sound and meaning. However, start with a constant and dedicated effort into learning the most frequent characters.
3) Recognize Patterns (Don’t Memorize Rules)
Focus on patterns. To learn Chinese, you do not want to lose yourself in complicated grammar explanations. As with any language, your goal is to build a sense of intuition. An overemphasis of precision can inhibit your ability to communicate fluidly (and kill your confidence). When I was studying Chinese, we had a wonderful book by Harriet Mills and P.S. Ni. It was called Intermediate Reader in Modern Chinese. Every lesson introduced patterns in the language, and I used those patterns to frame whatever I wanted to say.
I’m not well-versed in Chinese grammar. I am unfamiliar with many Chinese grammatical terms. Regardless, I am quite fluent. I have seen books that introduce special grammar terms for Chinese, but these materials aren’t essential to learn Chinese. Besides, Chinese has a rather uncomplicated grammar. This is one of the pleasures of learning Chinese. There are no declensions, conjugations, genders, verb aspects, complicated tenses, or other sources of confusion found in many European languages.
Bonus Tip:
If you would like a free grammar resource to help supplement your learning, then I recommend LingQ’s Chinese grammar resource. It’s simple, condensed, and full of examples.
4) Read As Much As You Can.
I progressed more quickly than my fellow students 50 years ago, and I’d attribute this to the fact that I read everything I could get my hands on. I didn’t limit myself to special texts for learners. I tackled a wide range of material on subjects of interest to me. In particular, I remember reading Chinese Dialogues, and then leveling up to a graded history text called 20 Lectures on Chinese Culture. This text was a fascinating means of learning about Chinese history and culture while engaging with the language.
You don’t need to power through boring content about fictional people in China. If you don’t find what you’re reading interesting, it’s not the best resource for you.
Intermediate Reader in Modern Chinese from Cornell University is another fantastic resource, filled with authentic texts about modern Chinese politics and history. Each lesson introduced patterns, but kept drills and explanations to a minimum. After seven or eight months, I read my first novel, Rickshaw Boy or 骆驼祥子 by Lao She, a famous novel about life in early 20th century Beijing.
Find Appropriate Reading Material for Your Level
Seek graded readers, glossaries, and context-based materials. In Hong Kong, I explored bookstores for books with 300 or 600 characters. Today, you have even more options online. Materials should match your level, allowing you to understand content while still challenging you to grow.
5) Use Online Tools to Learn Mandarin
Leverage every tool at your disposal: online dictionaries, apps like LingQ, Google Translate, and dictation software. I use LingQ because it consolidates all of these resources on one platform. For example, I can instantly look up, save, and review new words with just one click.
Nowadays, it’s possible to listen and learn Chinese anywhere. Fifty years ago, I had to sit down in front of my recorder, put on my earphones, and listen to a very limited collection of audio content. Today, content is abundant. YouTube, Netflix, online newspapers, etc. fill my library on LingQ. Furthermore, I’m able to take my learning material with me wherever I go: working out, washing the dishes, walking in my neighborhood. Online tools make constant listening a possibility.
6) Speak & Make Lots of Mistakes
You’ll need to get comfortable with making mistakes while speaking. Find a tutor on LingQ, italki, or Preply to put your knowledge to the test. Speaking does not need to be emphasized very early in yoru learning journey, but as you progress, it becomes more useful.
Speaking is feedback. You quickly discover what concepts you’re conversant in, what structures or vocabulary you’re lacking, and whether or not you’re able to clearly communicate. A tutor or language exchange partner can help guide you in the right direction.
Every time you use the language, you are practicing, adjusting, and improving. Don’t worry about perfection while speaking. Let the language flow out, and you’ll see gradual improvement.
Sample Daily Routine:
If I were to learn Chinese all over again, what would my routine look like? Given that I’d only be able to devote an hour a day to studying, here’s what I’d do:
Review (10 minutes)
I like to start my day with review. This could be reviewing characters, re-reading familiar material, etc. It builds confidence and helps reinforce knowledge.
Passive Listening (30 minutes)
Normally, I can find more than 30 minutes in my day to listen to my target language. However, preparing breakfast is often an ideal time for me. I can easily listen to Mandarin audio while cutting fruit, making coffee, or tidying up the kitchen.
Closer Reading (20 minutes)
Later in the day, I like to prioritize reading. I sit down, open up LingQ, and start reading. Whether saving words, reading transcripts, and reviewing phrases, I need to have devoted time in which I fully focus on the language.
italki Tutoring (1-2 times per week)
I’ll meet with a tutor once or twice a week, depending on my level and current goals. I prefer for the tutor to write down vocabulary and mistakes for me to look over after the session. During our time together, I just want to have interesting conversations.
Final Thoughts:
Learning Mandarin is a journey that requires time, patience, and consistent effort, but the rewards are truly unparalleled. By embracing these strategies, you’ll unlock a gateway to connecting with over 20% of the world’s population. Mandarin isn’t just a language—it’s a key to understanding one of the richest cultural and historical tapestries in human history. Stick with it, and you’ll find that the connections, opportunities, and insights you gain make every moment of effort worthwhile.
Enjoyed this post? You might also enjoy my post on the best way to learn a language for broader tips that are applicable to any language.
FAQs1. Can I become fluent in Mandarin in six months?
Not fully, but you can reach a level of comfort to interact, read basic material, and continue improving rapidly.
2. Should I learn characters from day one?
No, focus on listening and speaking first. Introduce characters gradually once you understand words and meaning.
3. What’s the best way to practice listening?
Listen to natural-speed dialogues repeatedly. Even if it is too fast at first, your comprehension will improve over time.
4. How can I learn Mandarin vocabulary efficiently?
Consistently read and listen to the language, and avoid relying solely on dictionaries for isolated words.
5. Is speaking with natives essential?
If your goal is to interact with native speakers, yes. But I recommend emphasizing speaking once you have a basic understanding of the language.
52 comments on “How to Learn Chinese: My Top 6 Tips”
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In your Youtube “6 Hacks” you said that in this blog post there would be a link to download some Chinese material free of charge. I can’t find any link in this post.
While learning Mandarin, I remember listening over and over to Chinese 相声 (xiang sheng comic dialogues), and to artists like 侯宝林, even when I didn’t really understand them all that well. I remember my sense of satisfaction at reading 骆驼祥子 (The Rickshaw Boy) by 老舍 (Lao She). I remember listening over and over to the NHK radio special on the history of the Showa Era in Japan, 昭和の記録, while driving around in Tokyo.
kaufmann, i’m impressed
everyone is going on about hacks and you’ve included it in your blog
keeping up to date, the sign of an agile mind
also experimenting with shadowing
i’ve tried it and it does feel like you’re learning something when you do it
and i suppose copying accents is shadowing, something we do already
i haven’t seen big results from it, but i’ll continue testing it to see what happens
one of the reasons i’m good with languages, is because i test every method at least once
These hacks are great and easy to follow. Chinese characters and language do have patterns, and keeping an eye out for it will help you understand your language learning better. Reading a lot will also boost your learning in so many ways, as the more you are exposed to the language, the better your brain will receive it.
Chinese is a difficult language to learn. There are dozens of regional dialects and such, and even speaking Mandarin is hard. Mispronouncing even just a single vowel can change the meaning of an entire word completely.
These six tips are indeed very helpful in that challenging path to learning Chinese.
I’ve been learning Chinese for a long time now, and I’m confused by this….
Could anyone explain? What is a “pattern” and how does one “focus” on it?
Thanks!
All languages have their own special ways of saying things. There are the patterns of their language.
Chinese sentences have less flexibility in structure but the grammar is easier. Once you learn a verb you can use it and the sentence pattern is the same. For example:
Yesterday, I eat. Today, I eat, Tomorrow, I eat.
One cannot put yesterday after eat but it is easier to learn than many languages as you just learn patterns and then fill in the blanks.
Hope this helps.
I.m a Chinese, what do you mean? can you show me an example of using “pattern”
It was really impressive videos in Youtube it was of great help.
Really It was really impressive videos,
it was of great helpful
I was looking the solution for language learning hacks. Very good article on tips to learn foreign language, thank you for keeping us updated. thank you for sharing this article with us.
Thanks this article was very insightful . I have studied Chinese language for a brief time and I can say its not as hard as it looks . Even though the vocabulary is enormous there are easier techniques and concepts to learn the language quicker and with more ease .