One of the first ways that I began to learn Chinese characters was by encountering them in restaurant menus. Many restaurants in China include English translations on their menus, but there are still plenty of places where this is not the case. The game is to go, select something randomly, and when the food comes,… Read More
When I first came to China, one of the first phrases I had to learn (much to my embarrassment) was 听不懂 (tīng bu dǒng) . Which, literally translated being ‘listen no understand’ or ‘I don’t understand what you’re saying’. Since then, I’ve learned a few more ways to say that I do (or don’t) understand… Read More
Do you have questions about learning Chinese? Well, we’re here to answer them! Even advanced learners of Chinese have questions about learning, so we’ve put together a collection of frequently asked questions about learning Chinese that some of our users have asked us. This is a growing list, so if you have a question… Read More
It will only take [est_time] to read this post! A lot of people enjoyed my earlier video where I shared my system and strategies for learning Chinese. Others joked that if I am just starting to learn 你 then how could I share my knowledge? Yes, I am a very early stage Chinese learner, but… Read More
It will only take [est_time] to read this post! I use my bullet journal to track my personal goals, such as exercising more often (obviously), saving money and baking the perfect scones! Although one of my goals is also to pass an HSK exam (Chinese proficiency test), I haven’t figured out how to use my… Read More
If you’re interested in art, painters or just want to learn some 美术用品 (art materials) vocabulary then keep reading! Da Fen Oil Painting Village is located within the Longgang District of Shenzhen and has become well known for supplying art materials, art prints and of course, oil paintings, worldwide. Not only is Da Fen a… Read More
It will only take [est_time] to read this post! Posted by Bethany from WrittenChinese.Com Added to by Hollie (July 2015) When I first moved to China, one of the most frustrating things was not being able to read anything. With learning Chinese, unless you know the proper stroke order or have a special character recognizer… Read More
It will only take [est_time] to read this post! Posted by Hollie from WrittenChinese.Com Recently, we’ve had lots of visitors at WrittenChinese.Com asking ‘Where do I start?’ ‘What should I do if I want to learn Chinese from the beginning?’ And these are great questions, because unless you can speak another Asian language such as Japanese… Read More
It will only take [est_time] to read this post! Mandarin Chinese is one of the most ‘learned’ languages in the world for adults studying for business, job prospects and even just for pleasure. Learning another language, especially Chinese has specific benefits such as better decision making and helping boost creativity. However, many people might argue… Read More
It will only take [est_time] to read this post! Here’s another informative post that was written by Bethany about a year ago, looking at some of the pros and cons of learning Chinese with Pinyin. Whilst Written Chinese certainly falls down on the ‘pro’ side of the argument, we understand how using pinyin as a… Read More
There are 31 different ‘strokes’ to learn when writing Chinese characters. A ‘stroke’ is a line or combination of lines that form a part of a Chinese character. Although at first glance, a character may look like it has 5 individual lines, in fact, may only have 4 strokes. This happens because a ‘stroke’, unlike… Read More
Many of your have already purchased your Written Chinese Learning Poster, some of you have ordered several (Thanks to all of you!), some of you might be thinking about it and are not quite sure how to really utilize it. Those of you who’ve already got one have probably come up with your own great… Read More
It will only take [est_time] to read this post! Written by WrittenChinese.Com Ambassador, Will Newcomb I never had a desire to go to China. And I certainly had no inkling that one day I’d be learning Chinese! But that was before I met Yvonne on the internet. In my ‘youth’ I’d always had the thought… Read More
When we first start handwriting Chinese characters, we’re often unprepared and lack the knowledge to know how to begin. It’s difficult to comprehend if English or other Germanic language is your native tongue, the subtle nuances of strokes in a Chinese character. When we learn to write English, there are only 26 letters to learn,… Read More
It will only take [est_time] to read this post! “千里之行﹐始于足下” (Qiānlǐ zhī xíng, shǐ yú zú xià) “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step….” – Chinese proverb For most people whose native language is English, learning a language is not only difficult and time-consuming but often not worth the time and… Read More
This is the second half of our article on how to handwrite Chinese characters addressing some more complex strokes. If you haven’t already, don’t forget to take a look at the first part of our post: How to Handwrite Chinese Characters with Finesse. 钩画的写法 (gōu huà de xiě fǎ) How to write the ‘Gou’ Stroke… Read More
It will only take [est_time] to read this post! Whilst Written Chinese are big advocates of mobile learning we know that when you’re at home with a cup of tea (or coffee, I’m not discriminatory) nothing beats a good book to study from. During our time in China, The Written Chinese kids have acquired quite… Read More
的, 得 & 地: Three characters, three meanings, one tone If you’re still riding the Pinyin wave, the Chinese ‘de’ particles are pretty difficult to learn as they all have the same 5th ‘neutral’ tone. Once upon a time, my method was to stick a ‘de’ in every sentence just in case it was necessary… Read More
It will only take [est_time] to read this post! The idea of preserving a language is not an uncommon one. All over the world, dialects are dying out and it’s up to the people to keep them alive. There are over 6500 languages spoken, but 2000 of those have less than 1000 speakers. Mandarin Chinese… Read More
Table of Contents How Do You Say Thank You in Chinese? The Basics1. 谢谢 (xiè xie)2. 多谢 (duō xiè)3. 你太好啦 (nǐ tài hǎo la) 4. 谢了 (xiè le) How to Write Thank You in ChineseHow To Pronounce Thank You In ChineseHow to Say No Thank You in ChineseRespectfully Saying Thank You5. 谢谢你 (xiè xie nǐ) Thank… Read More