Articles in the ‘Beginner’ category Page 10
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Don’t try to improve everything at once when learning Chinese
To communicate in Chinese, many skills need to work in unison, but trying to improve all of them at once is a recipe for frustration. Instead, limit your focus to make progress and stay motivated!
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Learn Chinese by playing Mahjong (麻将, májiàng)
Playing games is a wonderful way of learning Chinese, and 麻將 (májiàng) works for all beginners and advanced students alike! Apart from the numbers 1-9, you only need a handful of extra words to play. The game is extremely popular and as such, it can open up many doors, both cultural and social.
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Can ChatGPT pass the HSK?
ChatGPT has been all over the news for its remarkable ability to interact in a human-like manner, understand questions and respond in a meaningful way. It has even been used to pass university exams. But how good is it at Chinese? Can it pass the HSK?
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Beginner Chinese listening practice: What to listen to and how
The best way to learn to understand spoken Mandarin is to listen as much as you can to engaging content you can make sense of without looking things up. In this article, I go through the best types of beginner Chinese listening practice!
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Using the HSK as a roadmap to learning Chinese
For some students, the HSK is not just a proficiency test, but also a roadmap to learning Chinese. Is treating it as such a good idea? And if you do, what should you keep in mind?
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Learn Chinese efficiently, not quickly
Learning Chinese efficiently is a better goal for most people than learning Chinese quickly.
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Beyond tīng bu dǒng, part 3: Using what you already know to aid listening comprehension in Chinese
Listening comprehension is not only about extracting information from the spoken Mandarin you hear, it’s also about applying what you already know and expect.
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Standard pronunciation in Chinese and why you want it
What should you learn if your friends and your teacher tell you different things? How should you navigate the space between standard pronunciation and regional accents? Standard pronunciation will help you communicate, but a regional accent might help you fit in.
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How to study Chinese when you don’t feel like it
The more you study the better, but what if you don’t feel like studying at the moment? Instead of giving up, gear down and find ways of learning Chinese that suit your current state of mind.
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Are there any shortcuts for learning Chinese?
Some say that there are no shortcuts for learning Chinese, others say that there are many. So which one is it, are there any shortcuts for learning Chinese or not?
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