Mandarin Weekly #166

Hi, {{! This is Mandarin Weekly #166, a newsletter read by more than 21,000 students of Chinese around the world. Mandarin Weekly is sent to paying subscribers every Monday, and to everyone else every Thursday.

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Work at Concordia Language Villages All Sponsored

森林湖 (Sēn Lín Hú), Concordia Language Villages’ Mandarin language and culture immersion program, is currently accepting employment applications for Summer 2018. To apply, just follow the link:

https://hr.cord.edu/postings/4064

Intro to tones Beginner Pronunciation

Tones are an essential part of speaking (and understanding) Chinese. Here is an intro to this topic that will make a big difference in being understood:

http://www.chinese-breeze.com/chinese_tones/

Extremely important! Beginner Grammar

How can you indicate that something is very, extremely, or especially good/bad/ugly? Use these adverbs:

https://www.decodemandarinchinese.com/list-of-adverbs-of-degree/

Twitter: @DecodeChinese

About this many Intermediate Grammar Video

How can you talk about an approximate number of things, such as “a few skirts” or “several bottles of beer”? Use 几 (jǐ):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_t3hjb3d0s

Twitter: @ECLSchool

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

Laughing online Beginner Characters Culture

Ever write “ha, ha” in an online forum or chat? Of course you have. How do you do this in Chinese, and what connotations might it have? Here’s an introduction to the subject:

https://chinesepod.com/blog/2018/03/22/laughing-mandarin-get-trouble/

Twitter: @ChinesePod

Click here to get thousands of Chinese lessons from ChinesePod!

Using 甚至 (shèn zhì) Intermediate Grammar Video

Working so hard that you forgot to eat? So tired you didn’t do your homework? You can indicate just how serious something is with this word, as described here:

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

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Enclosure component 囗 (wéi) Intermediate Characters

Many characters sit inside of the “enclosure” component. Here is some background on it, and a list of characters that use it?

https://www.decodemandarinchinese.com/enclosure-%e5%9b%97/

Twitter: @DecodeChinese

Hot pot! All Food

Hot pot is one of the most famous (and, if I may add, most delicious) dishes you can get in China. Here’s a history of hot pot, along with some suggestions for how to eat it:

https://www.livethelanguage.cn/how-to-eat-chinese-hot-pot/

Twitter: @Ltlmandarin

Making suggestions Beginner Grammar Video

How can you turn a statement into a suggestion? The 吧 (ba) character is what you’re looking for, as described here:

http://www.fluentinmandarin.com/content/make-suggestion-chinese-ba/

Twitter: @Fluent_Mandarin

Ten music videos Intermediate Video Culture

It’s always nice to listen to music, and listening to Chinese music is an especially good way to increase your comprehension of both language and culture:

https://www.fluentu.com/blog/chinese/2018/03/21/chinese-music-video/

Twitter: @FluentU

Jokes! Intermediate Grammar

Here are some jokes you can tell in Chinese. Or you can just laugh at them yourself; we’re not going to judge:

https://www.fluentu.com/blog/chinese/2018/03/19/jokes-in-chinese/

Twitter: @FluentU

Your parents’ favorite phrases Intermediate Expressions

Parents are always telling their children to do things. Here are 10 such phrases, in Chinese, that you have probably heard and/or said:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4axKjDCqKA

Twitter: @chineseclass101

Click here to sign up for ChineseClass101

The hardest character All Characters

Think you have learned some hard Chinese characters? Try this one:

https://medium.com/lalingua/hardest-chinese-character-around-d8bc074306f4

Animated films for kids Intermediate Video

Are your children learning Chinese (or are you happy to watch childrens’ TV)? Here are some animated films you can watch, in Chinese, to improve your comprehension:

https://www.misspandachinese.com/chinese-animation-films-for-kids-top-5-chinese-animation-for-children/

Twitter: @MissPandaChines