Mandarin Weekly #161

This is Mandarin Weekly #161, a free newsletter read by more than 21,000 students of Chinese around the world.

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Talking about love All Vocabulary Video

Valentine’s Day was just last week, so what better time to talk about love (in Chinese)? Here’s an extended video on the subject:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbXhkfRv8UY

Twitter: @YoYoChinese

Get 10% off for Yoyo Chinese with coupon code “mweekly”

Forming words with 可 (kě) Beginner Grammar

The character 可 is sort of like the English suffix “able,” and can be used to create many different words:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLiKlNKsYsc

Twitter: @ChinesePod

Click here to sign up for ChinesePod

Why? Because Beginner Grammar

There are a number of ways to say “why? Because” in Chinese. Here is a nice list, summarizing them:

https://www.digmandarin.com/because-and-so-in-chinese.html

Twitter: @DigMandarin

New Year traditions Beginner Grammar Video

Fireworks and couplets are two traditions on Chinese New Year. Here is an explanation, and the Chinese you’ll need to know to enjoy them even more:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6H1meIoPbxg

Twitter: @ECLSchool

Sign up for ECL, and get one free week by mentioning “Reuven Lerner”

Introducing yourself Beginner Vocabulary

If you’re interviewing for a new job, then you’ll need to introduce yourself. How can you do that in Chinese? Here are some suggestions:

https://www.fluentu.com/blog/chinese/2018/02/12/introduce-yourself-in-chinese-for-interview/

Twitter: @FluentU

Listening challenge All Learning

It’s another Hacking Chinese challenge, this time for listening. It’s not too late to sign up and participate:

http://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-listening-challenge-february-2018/

Twitter: @HackingChinese

10 feared questions for Chinese New Year Intermediate Culture

Chinese New Year is a chance to see friends and family — and to be asked awkward questions. Make them less awkward, perhaps, by knowing how to answer in Chinese:

http://laowaichinese.net/top-10-most-feared-questions-for-chinese-new-year.htm

Internet slang Intermediate Vocabulary

Internet slang is always a fun and interesting aspect of language. Here are some recent additions to Chinese Internet slang. (Free registration required.)

https://www.chineseclass101.com/lesson/mustknow-chinese-slang-words-phrases-17-chinese-slang-expressions-related-to-the-internet/

Twitter: @chineseclass101

Click here to sign up for ChineseClass101

Dog phrases Intermediate Expressions

It’s the Year of the Dog, so you can expect to hear and see lots of discussion of dogs. Here are some common dog-related expressions in Chinese:

https://teachmechinese.wordpress.com/2018/02/10/chinese-idioms-involving-the-dog/

Super-vocabulary! Beginner Vocabulary

Superheroes are bigger than ever, in movies and on TV. Here’s how to say some of your favorite heroes’ names in Chinese:

https://www.livethelanguage.cn/superheroes-in-chinese/

Twitter: @Ltlmandarin

Did you get that? Beginner Grammar

How often have you said something in Chinese, and the other person didn’t quite get what you meant? Or how about the other way around — they spoke, and you didn’t understand? Here are some useful phrases to indicate that you didn’t quite understand:

https://mandarinhq.com/2018/02/check-understanding-chinese/

Twitter: @MandarinHQ

Body parts Beginner Vocabulary Video

Whether something isn’t feeling good, or you just want to know how to say some basic terms, here’s how you can describe body parts in Chinese:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-BBmpWflww

Twitter: @Mandarin_Monkey

Hospital vocabulary Intermediate Vocabulary Video

Not feeling well? I can’t help you there. But if you’re not feeling well in Chinese, and need to visit the hospital or doctor, here’s how you can talk to them:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ezaqQCyXUM

Twitter: @Mandarin_Monkey

Learn characters? All Characters Learning

Chinese characters take time to learn. Maybe you can and should skip them? I disagree — but if you need a longer answer than that, here’s a fuller argument:

https://www.mandarinblueprint.com/blog/2017/6/14/are-chinese-characters-a-barrier-to-fluency

Twitter: @MandarinBP