Mandarin Weekly (每周中文)

大家好！ (Hi, everyone!) This is Mandarin Weekly #95, a free newsletter with links and information for those of us learning Chinese.

Thousands of people from around the world now subscribe to Mandarin Weekly. If you enjoy it, please share it with your teacher and/or fellow students:

Full archives are at http://MandarinWeekly.com, as is our list of discounts for students of Chinese.

To receive Mandarin Weekly in your e-mail inbox every Monday, just use the box on our Web site, at MandarinWeekly.com. Or follow us on Twitter, at @MandarinWeekly! We’re also on Facebook, at http://facebook.com/MandarinWeekly, and Medium, at http://medium.com/@mandarinweekly.

Going to the supermarket

Beginner I love going to the supermarket when I’m visiting China; it’s both similar to my supermarket at home, and yet is so different. Here are some useful tips and vocabulary words to keep in mind when you next shop in China:

https://www.writtenchinese.com/food-vocabulary-and-shopping-in-a-chinese-supermarket/

Twitter: @WrittenChinese

Renting an apartment

Intermediate What questions should you ask before renting an apartment in China? I combination of vocabulary practice and insights into how you would go about renting a place to live:

http://www.echineselearning.com/blog/4-things-you-must-ask-when-renting-an-apartment-in-china

Twitter: @ECLSchool

Implicit and explicit learning

If your Chinese is going to improve, then you’ll have to use a combination of techniques. In this post, Olle Linge suggests what we can concentrate on to accelerate our learning, and how using both explicit and implicit techniques can help:

http://www.hackingchinese.com/learn-chinese-implicitly-exposure-seasoning-explicit-instruction/

Twitter: @HackingChinese

Gotta go

Beginner Three words all describe going somewhere, but mean different things. Here’s an introduction to the differences between 走 (zǒu)，去 (qù) and 到 (dào):

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/10/31/the-differences-between-%e5%8e%bb-qu-%e5%88%b0-dao-%e8%b5%b0-zou/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Socializing in China

Beginner How do Chinese people socialize? In all of the usual ways you would expect, but also in a few uniquely Chinese ways. Here is a description, plus vocabulary, for describing these Chinese forms of recreation:

http://www.yoyochinese.com/blog/4-Chinese-People-Socialize-Hangout-Friendship

Twitter: @YoYoChinese

More and more

Intermediate The word 越 (yuè) can be used in a few very useful ways, all of which have to do with something increasing over time:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/11/02/%e8%b6%8a-yue%e3%80%82%e3%80%82%e3%80%82%e8%b6%8a-yue%e3%80%82%e3%80%82more%e3%80%82%e3%80%82and-more%e3%80%82%e3%80%82%e3%80%82/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Using 把 (bǎ)

Intermediate The 把 construct allows you to change the order, and thus the emphasis, of a sentence. Here’s a guide to using this popular, and hard-to-understand (for many), grammar pattern:

http://www.saporedicina.com/english/ba-chinese-grammar/

Workplace vocabulary

Beginner Ready to work in China? Here are some useful phrases and terms you can use when you’re getting ready to go to the office, or when you’re just setting up there:

https://mandarinhq.com/2016/11/describing-workday-mandarin-chinese/

Twitter: @MandarinHQ

Chinese etiquette

Intermediate China has a long history and tradition of unwritten rules for social interactions. Here’s a guide, along with Chinese vocabulary, describing many of these behaviors, and how you can embrace them:

http://www.saporedicina.com/english/chinese-etiquette-the-complete-guide/

Voting in Chinese

Planning to vote in the US presidential election? Or just to watch the results? Here are some useful election-related terms; whether you’re delighted or horrified by the results, at least you’ll know how to talk about them in Chinese:

http://www.thechairmansbao.com/us-election-chinese-vocabulary/

Twitter: @TheChairmansBao

Using 对 (duì) and 给 (gěi)

Intermediate The words 对 (duì) and 给 (gěi) are used in a variety of ways, including to indicate to whom an action is directed. In this video from HanbridgeMandarin.com, we get a better understanding of how and when to use them:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLycU3vrRYA&feature=share

Twitter: @HanbridgeOnline

Nursery rhyme

Intermediate Enjoy this Chinese nursery rhyme, 大 风车 (dà fēngchē), with characters, pinyin, and translation:

http://www.echineselearning.com/blog/chinese-nursery-rhyme-da-fengchethe-big-pinwheel

Twitter: @ECLSchool

How have you been?

Intermediate A love song sung by 周兴哲 (Zhou Xingzhe), with characters, pinyin, and translation:

http://www.chinesetolearn.com/%e4%bd%a0%ef%bc%8c%e5%a5%bd%e4%b8%8d%e5%a5%bd%ef%bc%9f-ni-hao-bu-hao-%e5%91%a8%e5%85%b4%e5%93%b2-zhou-xingzhe-eric-chou-lyrics-pinyin-english-translatioin-also-english-versio/

Twitter: @ChineseToLearn

Breaking up

Intermediate It’s always hard to end a relationship — but thanks to this video from ChineseClass101.com, at least you’ll know how to do so in Chinese:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJzaRT1uuXQ

Twitter: @chineseclass101

Too late!

Intermediate Is it too late to do something? Use the phrase 来不及 (lái bu jí) to indicate that:

http://www.e-putonghua.com/zone/index.php/2016/11/01/grammar-40/

Twitter: @eputonghua

Using 的 (de) with people

Beginner The word 的 is used as a possessive, but when we’re describing people, we don’t always have to use it. When can we ignore it?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21711/using-%e7%9a%84-with-people

Are months 月 (yuè) or 月份 (yuè fèn)?

Advanced Which word should be used when talking about months? The answer, of course, depends:

http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/%E6%9C%88-%E6%9C%88%E4%BB%BD-in-month-names.1410353/

One’s tone

Beginner How does the tone for 一 change, based on the following character’s tone?

http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/pronunciation-%E4%B8%80%E4%B8%AA-%E5%9B%9B%E4%B8%AA.3247682/

Chinese book club

Advanced Want to read and discuss a book in Chinese with other learners? This month’s book 临界·爵迹 by 郭敬民:

https://np.reddit.com/r/chinesebookclub/comments/5b03m5/the_november_book_is_%E4%B8%B4%E7%95%8C%E7%88%B5%E8%BF%B9_by_%E9%83%AD%E6%95%AC%E6%B0%91/

Organizational terms

Intermediate Someone asked a question about organizational terms, and the answers provided some insights into when and how to use each of them:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/5ac1ld/%E8%AF%B7%E9%97%AE%E6%9C%BA%E5%85%B3%E6%9C%BA%E6%9E%84%E9%83%A8%E9%97%A8%E5%8D%95%E4%BD%8D%E6%9C%89%E4%BB%80%E4%B9%88%E4%B8%8D%E4%B8%80%E6%A0%B7/

Bots

Advanced Software “bots,” which answer questions and otherwise interact with people and computers automatically, are a growing trend. How do you say “bot” in Chinese?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21756/how-do-you-say-bot-in-chinese

大家好！ (Hi, everyone!) This is Mandarin Weekly #94, with links and information for those of us learning Chinese.

Thousands of people from around the world now subscribe to Mandarin Weekly. If you enjoy it, please share it with others:

Full archives are at http://MandarinWeekly.com, as is our list of discounts for students of Chinese.

To receive Mandarin Weekly in your e-mail inbox every Monday, just use the box on our Web site, at MandarinWeekly.com. Or follow us on Twitter, at @MandarinWeekly! We’re also on Facebook, at http://facebook.com/MandarinWeekly, and Medium, at http://medium.com/@mandarinweekly.

Advice and opinions

Intermediate How can you express your opinion in Chinese? There are many verbs and nouns, each of which expresses a slightly different idea. Here is a collection of such words, along with many examples of how and when to use them:

https://www.writtenchinese.com/what-do-you-think-giving-advice-sharing-opinions-in-chinese/

Twitter: @WrittenChinese

Passive voice

Intermediate Constructing passive sentences in Chinese typically uses the character 被 (bèi). Here are two introductions to this structure:

http://www.saporedicina.com/english/%e8%a2%ab-bei-passive-structures-chinese/

http://www.digmandarin.com/chinese-bei-structure.html

Twitter: @DigMandarin

Is that really helping?

Beginner One word can make a difference: 帮忙 (bāng máng) means to help. But 帮倒忙(bāng dào máng) means that your help is more problem than solution. This description is followed by a nice introduction to “help” in Chinese:

https://themandarincornerblog.com/2016/10/24/thanks-for-nothing/

Words fail me

Intermediate You know how sometimes people say things to you that are so shocking, stunning, or ridiculous that you’re at a loss for words? That happens in Chinese as well, and there’s a great phrase to express that:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/10/25/%e7%9c%9f%e6%8b%bf%e4%bd%a0%e6%b2%a1%e5%8a%9e%e6%b3%95-i-give-in-you-leave-me-speechless-in-an-awkward-way/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Doctor, doctor

Advanced China seems to be suffering from many cases of silly-name-condition-itis. In this humorous blog post, we find out about new “diseases” and “conditions” in modern China:

http://carlgene.com/blog/2016/10/random-trivia-12-interesting-conditions/

Twitter: @carlfordham

From comfortable to fluent

How do you move from comfortable use of Chinese in everyday conversations, to fluency? Olle Linge summarizes his Chinese-learning biography with suggestions for how you can achieve true fluency:

http://www.hackingchinese.com/how-i-learnt-chinese-part-7-teaching-writing-learning/

Twitter: @HackingChinese

Sounding more polite

Intermediate Want to take a rough, or commanding, edge off of your statements? Use 一下 (yī xià) after a verb, and you’ll sound more natural and friendly, as we learn in this video from LearnChineseNow.com:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0GMSQy7hnE

Twitter: @LearnChineseNow

Unexpected

Intermediate Did things turn out differently than you expected? A good phrase to know is 事与愿违 (shì yǔ yuàn wéi):

http://www.e-putonghua.com/zone/index.php/2016/10/30/idiom-12/

Twitter: @eputonghua

Measure word 包 (bāo)

Beginner A bundle. A packet. A sack. All of these terms, more or less, are covered by the measure word 包, which can be used in a variety of ways:

http://www.e-putonghua.com/zone/index.php/2016/10/29/measure-word-bao/

Twitter: @eputonghua

Chinese cinema

Want to improve your Chinese, or at least your knowledge of Chinese culture? Here is a list of must-see Chinese movies:

http://www.saporedicina.com/english/chinese-movies/

Radicals and stroke order

Beginner If you want to read Chinese well, then you’ll need to identify radicals (and non-radical components) in characters. This post introduces many popular characters and their radical forms, and also mentions stroke order:

https://www.asianlanguageschool.com/chinese-characters-radicals-stroke-order/

Twitter: @AlsSydney

Glossika review

Intermediate Many people learning Chinese, looking to further their education, turn to Glossika. Here is a review of Glossika’s Chinese lessons, with the pros and cons laid out clearly:

http://www.fluentinmandarin.com/content/get-beyond-beginner-stage-language-review-glossika/

Twitter: @Fluent_Mandarin

Western food

Beginner If you’re in China, then you’re probably enjoying great Chinese food. But sometimes, you want to have some Western cuisine. How do you say your favorite Western foods in Chinese?

http://blogs.transparent.com/chinese/chinese-vocabulary-western-food/

Twitter: @ChineseLanguage

Why not just Pinyin?

Beginner When you first start to learn Chinese, you discover that you can read the language with characters (hard!) or Pinyin (much easier). So, why not just use Pinyin? Some ideas and resources on this subject:

https://chinesepod.com/blog/pinyin-just-isnt-enough/

Twitter: @ChinesePod

Using question words as pronouns

Beginner You can use “who,” “what,” and “how” words in Chinese (谁, 什么, and 怎么) as pronouns, or fillers, in your sentences, as described here:

http://www.chinese-forums.com/index.php?/topic/52661-flexible-use-of-interrogative-pronouns-%E8%B0%81%EF%BC%8C%E4%BB%80%E4%B9%88%EF%BC%8C%E6%80%8E%E4%B9%88%EF%BC%8C%E5%93%AA%E5%84%BF/

Potay-to, Potah-to

Beginner How do you say “potato” in Chinese? There are two terms to know:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Chinese/comments/59w8oh/%E9%A9%AC%E9%93%83%E8%96%AF_vs_%E5%9C%9F%E8%B1%86_any_difference/

Characters vs. pinyin

Beginner Does wǔ mean “dance” or “five”? With Pinyin, it’s not so clear. But with characters, it is. But wait, what about when you’re speaking (or listening)? A discussion of two characters, pinyin, and learning to listen for context:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/599syd/noob_question_wu3_5_or_dance/

Non-simple zero

Beginner Characters for numbers are pretty simple. Why, then, is the character for zero (零) so complex?

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/5949c9/why_didnt_%E9%9B%B6_get_simplified/

What does 子 do?

Beginner Many nouns consist of one character, followed by 子 （zi). What does this character do? Does it have any other uses?

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/58zjdd/what_is_the_purpose_of_%E5%AD%90/

大家好！ (Hi, everyone!) This is Mandarin Weekly #93, with links and information for those of us learning Chinese.

More than 3,500 people from around the world now subscribe to Mandarin Weekly. If you enjoy it, please share it with your teacher and/or fellow students! This newsletter will always be completely free of charge.

Full archives are at http://MandarinWeekly.com, as is our list of discounts for students of Chinese.

To receive Mandarin Weekly in your e-mail inbox every Monday, just use the box on our Web site, at MandarinWeekly.com. Or follow us on Twitter, at @MandarinWeekly! We’re also on Facebook, at http://facebook.com/MandarinWeekly.

As of last week, we’re also on Medium! Check out http://medium.com/@mandarinweekly, and read/recommend us there, if you prefer.

Giveaway: Five one-year subscriptions to Zizzle App!

This week’s giveaway is a one-year subscription to Zizzle App, a new smartphone app for learning to read Chinese. Five readers of Mandarin Weekly will receive a free subscription, for either iOS or Android!

Everyone who has learned Mandarin knows that Chinese characters are a unique challenge: For reading fluency, a staggering amount of 3000 characters is required, each character with its own shape, pronunciation, meaning and tone. And to complicate things even more, it is hard to infer this information just by looking at the character.

The developers of Zizzle App have experienced this problem first-hand while living in China. They try to solve this dilemma by turning Chinese characters into engaging visualizations and memorable short stories. For every single Chinese character, Zizzle creates a mnemonic story that employs techniques like association, visualizations and linkwords. Furthermore, Zizzle breaks down complicated Chinese characters into components to help you understand the structure of the Chinese language. The effectiveness of the Zizzle method was independently verified by the University of Munich.

Five readers of Mandarin Weekly will receive free, one-year subscriptions to Zizzle for either iOS or Android. But it gets better — for each friend of yours who signs up for the giveaway, you get another three entries! So if three of your friends sign up, you get a total of 10 entries in the giveaway.

Enter the giveaway by going here:

https://mandarinweekly.com/giveaways/win-a-one-year-subscription-to-zizzle-app-and-improve-your-chinese-reading-faster-than-ever/

When you don’t know the character

Intermediate If you’re like me, then you often find yourself faced with a character (or word) that you cannot read. Here are some excellent strategies for getting around this problem:

https://themandarincornerblog.com/2016/10/21/instantly-improve-your-chinese-reading-without-studying-more-characters/

Understanding 过

Intermediate The character 过 (guò) not only means “pass,” but also indicates that the preceding verb happened in the past. At the same time, it’s not quite the past tense. In this video from LearnChineseNow.com, we get an introduction to 过, and a better understanding of how and when to use it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcbjsEG45Ao

Twitter: @LearnChineseNow

Mimicking native speakers

Want to improve your pronunciation, and sound more like a native Chinese speaker? Of course! But how can you do that? In this post, we get some tips for sounding like a native by listening to natives:

http://www.hackingchinese.com/mimicking-native-speakers-way-learning-chinese/

Twitter: @HackingChinese

Tone changes

Beginner You’ve probably be taught that 不 (bù) is always pronounced with a 4th tone, right? Well, that’s mostly true. Sometimes, though, its tone changes. Here’s a fuller explanation:

https://ninchanese.com/blog/2016/10/19/ask-nincha-tone-sandhi-chinese/

Twitter: @ninchanese

Bad news

Intermediate You need to say that something is unfortunate, or a shame? 真不巧 (zhēn bù qiǎo) is a good phrase for you:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/10/16/%e7%9c%9f%e4%b8%8d%e5%b7%a7-unfortunately-such-a-shame/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Better memory, better Chinese

From ChinesePod.com, we get the second installment of a video interview/discussion with memory master Simon Reinhard, whose tips can help us (I hope!) to learn more Chinese, faster:

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

Twitter: @ChinesePod

What to see in Xi’an

Traveling to Xi’an? This ancient city has lots to see and do. Here are some highlights of what you can expect to see, including useful vocabulary:

http://www.saporedicina.com/english/travel-to-xian/

The story of 平 (píng)

Beginner The character 平 is an ancient one; tracing through its history can give you some interesting insights into modern form and usage:

http://www.theworldofchinese.com/2016/10/on-the-character-%e5%b9%b3/

Twitter: @WorldOfChinese

Or vs. or

Beginner There are two forms of “or” in Chinese: One, 还是 (hái shì), is for asking questions, and the other, 或者 (huò zhě), is for describing two things in a statement. Here’s a fuller explanation and introduction to these words:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/10/19/the-differences-between-%e6%88%96%e8%80%85-and-%e8%bf%98%e6%98%af-a-or-b/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Often

Beginner We think of the term “often” as a single idea, but Chinese actually uses two different words to express it: 常常(cháng cháng) and 往往(wǎng wǎng). How are they different, and in which context should you use each one, is explained here:

http://www.digmandarin.com/often-in-chinese.html

Twitter: @DigMandarin

Famous people

Chinese history is long and full of many people. But some of those famous people stick out in particular, even becoming part of everyday conversation. Here are some names you should know, and how (and when) you can drop their names:

http://www.yoyochinese.com/blog/5-Chinese-Historical-Figures-Learn-Chinese

Twitter: @YoYoChinese

A famous chef speaks

Advanced In this 4.5-minute video, chef and restaurant owner 吴国平 (Wú Guópíng) introduces himself, as well as his philosophy of cooking and managing restaurants:

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

None of your business!

Intermediate The phrase 不关你的事 (bù guān nǐ de shì) means, “It’s not your matter,” or (more colloquially), “It’s none of your business.” Here is a fuller explanation:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/10/21/chinese-phrase-none-of-your-business/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Just kidding!

Beginner Did you make a joke in Chinese? Did your friends not realize that you were joking? Perhaps you should clue them in, by telling them you were only joking:

https://ninchanese.com/blog/2016/10/19/say-people-make-joke-china/

Twitter: @ninchanese

Making jokes

Beginner For me, one of the fascinating parts of learning Chinese is how characters come together to make a word — and that word often describes the bigger idea. Here’s an example, the word 玩笑 (wán xiào), to make a joke:

https://ninchanese.com/blog/2016/10/20/chinese-word-building-howto-say-to-joke/

Twitter: @ninchanese

Dial “I” for “incomprehensible”

Intermediate This is a fun little Web page: It starts off with a large number of fairly well-known characters. But using a slider, you can replace any number of those characters with obscure ones, dialing yourself a custom level of (in)comprehensible text:

https://www.primlo.com/blog/reading-chinese-at-different-levels-of-comprehension/

Some, not one

Beginner When should you use the word 些(xiē) to describe some things? Is it mandatory?

http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/%E5%81%9A-%E4%BA%9B-%E4%BB%80%E4%B9%88.3242221/

Children’s TV

Beginner Looking for Chinese-language children’s TV shows, either for yourself or for young students of Chinese? Here are some useful suggestions, both of native Chinese shows and some (e.g., Peppa Pig) that have been dubbed:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/58n0aw/chinese_childrens_tv_show/

Differentiating between consonants

Beginner Chinese has some sounds that don’t exist in Western languages, and which sound similar to others. For example, “ch” and “q” are similar, but distinct. How can you pronounce these — and how can you train yourself to hear the differences?

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/58h3yw/cant_notice_different_beetween_z_c_j_and_q/

It depends

Intermediate How would you say “it depends” in Chinese?

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/5873d0/could_someone_explain_exactly_how_to_express/

Throwing money away

Intermediate This short discussion was based in part on a typo in someone’s book, which used the term 废 钱 (fèi qián). However, I found it useful to learn about the character 废:

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21607/what-is-meant-by-%e5%ba%9f%e9%92%b1

Let’s talk later

Intermediate To chat is 聊天 （liáo tiān), but if you want to chat later, where does the 天 go? A short conversation about word order:

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21552/%e8%81%8a%e5%a4%a9%e4%b8%80%e4%bc%9a%e5%84%bf-or-%e8%81%8a%e4%b8%80%e4%bc%9a%e5%84%bf%e5%a4%a9

Pining for the fjords

Intermediate In English, we can say “passed away” as a softer version of “die.” How can we express the same softness in Chinese?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21515/what-is-the-polite-way-to-say-a-grandparent-has-passed-away

How much?

Beginner We can ask quantity questions with either 几 (jǐ) or 多少 (duō shǎo). When is each appropriate?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21509/when-should-i-use-%e5%a4%9a%e5%b0%91-or-%e5%87%a0

大家好！ (Hi, everyone!) This is Mandarin Weekly #92, with links and information for those of us learning Chinese.

More than 3,000 people from around the world now subscribe to Mandarin Weekly. If you enjoy it, please share it with your teacher and/or fellow students! This newsletter will always be completely free of charge.

Full archives are at http://MandarinWeekly.com, as is our list of discounts for students of Chinese.

To receive Mandarin Weekly in your e-mail inbox every Monday, just use the box on our Web site, at MandarinWeekly.com. Or follow us on Twitter, at @MandarinWeekly! We’re also on Facebook, at http://facebook.com/MandarinWeekly.

Reading Chinese

Beginner Some people say that reading Chinese is so difficult that it’s better to learn just to speak it. But reading Chinese brings numerous benefits, above and beyond being able to read signs in China and write to your friends and colleagues there. Here is a summary of the benefits, along with strategies for improving your reading:

http://www.fluentu.com/chinese/blog/2016/10/12/learn-chinese-reading/

Twitter: @FluentU

I want it!

Beginner There are two words that express wanting something in Chinese, 想 （xiǎng） and 要 (yào). When do we use each? This video, from LearnChineseNow.com, provides some good examples, to help us distinguish between them:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vb8BPhOohHs

Twitter: @LearnChineseNow

Tone problems

Ah, tones! They are so important in Chinese (because they affect a word’s meaning), but they’re so hard for non-native speakers to use. Even when you remember a word’s tone perfectly, instincts from your native language may creep in, affecting your tones. Here are seven tone problems, and some suggestions for how to avoid them:

http://www.hackingchinese.com/7-kinds-tone-problems/

Twitter: @HackingChinese

Ongoing action

Intermediate How do you express ongoing action in Chinese? In English, we would use a verb ending with “ing.” In Chinese, it’s a bit more complex, but this video and post explain it quite well:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/10/15/the-ing-in-chinese-%e5%9c%a8-and-%e7%9d%80/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

How are you doing?

Beginner How can you ask someone how they’re doing in Chinese? There are a variety of options, as demonstrated in this short video:

https://mandarinhq.com/2016/10/9-chinese-questions-find-someone/

Twitter: @MandarinHQ

New forum

Want to discuss Chinese in Chinese? Check out YapChina, a new forum in which people learning Chinese can try out their language skills:

http://yapchina.com/index.php

Science fiction

Beginner How do you say “science fiction” in Chinese? Learn this, and about famous Chinese science fiction author 刘慈欣, (Cixin Liu), here:

https://ninchanese.com/blog/2016/10/12/science-fiction-chinese-learn-word/

Twitter: @ninchanese

Everyone complains about the weather…

Intermediate It’s typical for new students to learn the words for “rain” and “snow,” as well as “hot” and “cold.” But what if you dislike the weather? How can you complain about it in Chinese? Here is a useful guide, with vocabulary and examples:

https://www.writtenchinese.com/learn-how-to-complain-about-the-weather-in-chinese/

Twitter: @WrittenChinese

Autumn foliage

Intermediate It’s autumn in China, which means that in many places, the leaves are turning colors. Here is a collection of beautiful autumn photographs, with the place names and descriptions in Chinese:

http://www.e-putonghua.com/zone/index.php/2016/10/15/travel-3/

Surfing the waves

Intermediate How do you say “surfing” in Chinese? Not only does this give you a chance to learn a new word, but you can also see how words are formed:

https://ninchanese.com/blog/2016/10/12/chinese-word-building-surf/

Twitter: @ninchanese

You rock!

Intermediate A new, fun expression — and a cute story about how it was created:

https://ninchanese.com/blog/2016/10/11/expression-lihailewodegege/

Twitter: @ninchanese

Why? Because!

Beginner A short, but good, introduction to the construct 因为 (yīn wèi). . . 所以 (suǒ yǐ):

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/10/10/%e5%9b%a0%e4%b8%ba%e3%80%82%e3%80%82%e6%89%80%e4%bb%a5%e3%80%82%e3%80%82because-so/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Try your luck

Intermediate Do you feel lucky? If you want to try your luck, you can use the phrase 碰碰运气 (pèng pèng yùn qì):

http://www.e-putonghua.com/zone/index.php/2016/10/13/slang-peng-peng-yun-qi/

Measure words

Beginner What are measure words? How do we use them? And what are the most common measure words? This short video introduces the idea, and some examples:

http://www.hanbridgemandarin.com/course/demo/common-chinese-measure-word

Twitter: @HanbridgeOnline

的, 地, and 得

Beginner These three characters are all pronounced “de,” and they all help to modify other words. But how do we use each of them?

http://www.hanbridgemandarin.com/course/demo/de-de-de

Twitter: @HanbridgeOnline

Stood someone up?

Intermediate Did you fail to show up for a meeting? Here’s a great phrase in Chinese that you can use to describe it:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/10/12/%e6%94%be%e9%b8%bd%e5%ad%90-to-release-a-pigeon/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Working in Chinese

Many people learn Chinese so that they can use it in their work. But what do you need to do in order to get to that point, to have enough Chinese fluency in order to use it every day, in a job? An interesting collection of experiences:

https://chinesepod.com/blog/jobs-requiring-chinese-so-you-want-to-work-in-chinese/

Twitter: @ChinesePod

80% comprehension

Advanced We might think that at the 80% comprehension level, we can figure out the rest from context. But it turns out that if we don’t understand 20%, we are missing out on a lot, as John Pasden demonstrates:

http://www.sinosplice.com/life/archives/2016/10/13/simulating-80-comprehension-in-chinese

Visiting Xi’an

Traveling to China? You might want to stop in 西安 (xī ān), an ancient city with many interesting things to see. Here’s a photo tour with Xi’an-related vocabulary:

http://blogs.transparent.com/chinese/48-hours-in-xian-part-two/

Twitter: @ChineseLanguage

Ticket scalpers

Beginner How do you describe scalping tickets in Chinese? As oxen, of course! The full story, along with examples of how to use this word, are here:

http://www.echineselearning.com/blog/tickets-are-sold-out-better-find-a-huangniudang

Twitter: @ECLSchool

Chinese languages

Is Chinese a language? A set of languages? A family of dialects? These questions are common among newcomers to Chinese, but also among natives. What’s not debated is the fact that there are many dialects, each of which is spoken in a different area of China. Here is a map and discussion of where each dialect is spoken, and some details about it:

http://www.digmandarin.com/how-to-learn-chinese-regional-dialects.html

Twitter: @DigMandarin

Improve your memory, improve your Chinese

Learning Chinese requires memorizing a lot of stuff. If you can improve your memory, then your Chinese will probably improve as well, right? In this video from ChinesePod.com, a memory master suggests some ways that you can improve your recall, and thus improve your Chinese more quickly:

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

Twitter: @ChinesePod

 

 

“in” vs. “ing” endings

Do native Chinese speakers distinguish significantly between the “in” and “ing” endings? If so, where and how?

http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/pinyin-pronunciation-in-ing.3239142/

Saying “again”

Intermediate The words 再 (zài) and 又 (yòu) both mean “again,” but are used differently. How?

http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/%E5%86%8D-%E5%8F%88.3238572/

Bothering you

Beginner Why would I use the phrase 麻烦你 (má fan nǐ)?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21470/what-does-%e9%ba%bb%e7%83%a6%e4%bd%a0%e4%ba%86-mean

哥 or 哥哥?

Beginner The word 哥哥 (gē) means “older brother,” but you can also say just “哥.” What’s the difference?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21433/difference-between-%e5%93%a5-and-%e5%93%a5%e5%93%a5

Using 成语

Intermediate 成语 (chéng yǔ) are four-character expressions. They can be interesting and even poetic, but how often are they really used in conversation?

https://www.reddit.com/r/Chinese/comments/578k93/practical_uses_of_%E6%88%90%E8%AF%AD/

Computer words

Intermediate If you work in the computer industry and want to know technology-related terms, here is a discussion of where you can find them:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/57enoe/it_vocab/

Words your teacher never taught you

What are some cool words you’ve learned, but which you aren’t likely to learn in class? This discussion raised some fun ones:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/574ml1/stuff_you_dont_find_in_textbooks/

大家好！ (Hi, everyone!) This is Mandarin Weekly #91, with links and information for those of us learning Chinese.

More than 2,500 people from around the world now subscribe to Mandarin Weekly. If you enjoy it, please share it with your teacher and/or fellow students! This newsletter will always be completely free of charge.

To receive Mandarin Weekly in your e-mail inbox every Monday, just use the box at MandarinWeekly.com. Or follow us on Twitter, at @MandarinWeekly! We’re also on Facebook, at http://facebook.com/MandarinWeekly.

Giveaway: “Hacking Chinese” ebook

Gossip!

Intermediate Have you seen what he’s wearing? Or how she talks about herself? Or what about that show-off in the marketing department? We all love to gossip, and with this vocabulary list, you’ll be able to gossip in Chinese in no time:

https://www.writtenchinese.com/chinese-words-gossiping-friends/

Twitter: @WrittenChinese

Come again?

Beginner So, you’ve learned some Chinese, you go to China, you start to speak with someone, and then (horrors!) they answer you. The problem? They are so impressed by your Chinese, that they speak at native speed, with word you haven’t yet learned. How can you ask someone to slow down, or tell them that you don’t understand?

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/10/03/please-speak-slowly-i-dont-understand-a-single-thing/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Using 了 (le)

Beginner The use of 了 (le) can be difficult for many people learning Chinese. In this video from MandarinMonkey.com, we get additional insights into when and how to use 了 — this time, in describing things that are “too much”:

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

Twitter: @Mandarin_Monkey

Small talk

Intermediate When your Chinese gets good enough to start having simple conversations with friends and coworkers, you’ll need a stable of words and topics to include (and avoid). This post provides an introduction to small talk in Chinese:

http://www.yoyochinese.com/blog/How-To-Make-Small-Talk-In-Chinese-Conversation

Twitter: @YoYoChinese

Business etiquette

Going to have a meeting in China? Make sure you’re familiar with Chinese etiquette — what to say, who to greet (and how), and not to offend anyone by mistake. And of course, use the appropriate Chinese phrases:

http://www.digmandarin.com/chinese-business-culture-etiquette.html

Twitter: @DigMandarin

Internet slang

Intermediate The Internet is, of course, causing many changes throughout the world. In China, one of those changes is the rapid introduction and use of new words. Here is a list of new words that have taken hold online:

http://www.digmandarin.com/popular-chinese-words-internet.html

Twitter: @DigMandarin

Using 就 (jiù)

Beginner The word 就 (jiù) has many uses and meanings, and learning to use it can take some time. In this video from LearnChineseNow.com, we get an explanation and examples of how to use 就:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPEaP1IC_6s

Twitter: @LearnChineseNow

Character challenge

Olle Linge has a new challenge: Work on learning and reviewing as many characters as possible! Learn more, and sign up, here:

http://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-character-challenge-october-10th-31st/

Twitter: @HackingChinese

Improving your reading

How can and should you approach improving your Chinese reading?

http://www.hackingchinese.com/introduction-extensive-reading-chinese-learners/

Twitter: @HackingChinese

Other than that…

Intermediate Ever want to answer a question with a two-part answer? That second part will often start with, “besides…” In this post + video, we learn how to use 再说 (zài shuō) to connect two thoughts in this way:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/10/07/4-chinese-transition-words-for-besides%ef%bc%8c-moreover/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Add oil!

Beginner A phrase that you’re likely to hear is 加油 (jiā yóu). This literally means to “add oil,” but it is really used to talk about encouraging someone, or rooting for your favorite team. More on 加油 here：

https://themandarincornerblog.com/2016/10/02/one-chinese-word-you-really-should-know/

Using 把 (bǎ)

Intermediate For many people learning Chinese, the 把 (bǎ) structure is daunting. How do we use it to alter the standard subject-verb-object word order?

http://blogs.transparent.com/chinese/how-to-use-the-ba-structure/

Twitter: @ChineseLanguage

“Erhua” words

Intermediate The Beijing dialect often adds an 儿 (er) sound to the ends of words. But which words? Here is a list of 100 words that end with 儿, which can help you to sound a bit more native:

http://www.chinesehskblog.com/2016/10/vocabulary-100-chinese-erhuayin-words.html

Chinese calendar

You often hear about the “Chinese New Year” and “lunar months,” but what do those really mean? And why don’t they align with the standard (Gregorian) calendar we use? Here is an explanation, along with vocabulary to understand it better:

http://nihaohello.blogspot.com/2016/10/chinese-calendar-nongli.html

Twitter: @NihaoHello

Love in spring

Intermediate It might be autumn in the northern hemisphere, but here’s a song about love and springtime — with a video, pinyin, characters, and translation:

http://www.chinesetolearn.com/%e6%8b%9c%e8%a8%aa%e6%98%a5%e5%a4%a9-bai-fang-chuntian-visit-spring-%e6%96%bd%e5%ad%9d%e6%a6%ae-shi-xiaorong-lyrics-pinyin-english-translation/

Twitter: @ChineseToLearn

Complements

Intermediate While Chinese verbs aren’t inflected, they can take a number of complements — characters and words that come afterward, which describe the action’s time, quantity, or direction:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/10/02/complement-%e8%a1%a5%e8%af%ad-chinese-grammar-point/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Week

Intermediate The words 周 (zhōu) and 星期 (xīng qī) can both mean “week.” What’s the difference between them?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21318/whats-the-difference-between-%e5%91%a8-and-%e6%98%9f%e6%9c%9f

Placing

Advanced What’s the difference between 摆 (bǎi) and 放(fàng)?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21372/is-there-a-difference-between-%e6%91%86-and-%e6%94%be

Chinese book club

Advanced Looking to read more in Chinese, and to discuss the book with others? This month, the Chinese book club is reading 蒙着眼睛的旅行者 by 朱岳

https://np.reddit.com/r/chinesebookclub/comments/56a52z/this_october_we_are_reading_%E8%92%99%E7%9D%80%E7%9C%BC%E7%9D%9B%E7%9A%84%E6%97%85%E8%A1%8C%E8%80%85_by_%E6%9C%B1%E5%B2%B3/

Only speaking Chinese

Beginner Is it possible to learn Chinese only as a spoken language, without learning to read and write it?

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/5604jb/only_speakinglistening_chinese_language/

Pouring

Beginner How can we say that we want to pour a liquid? As always, there are multiple ways to describe this action:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/55wosi/looking_for_the_correct_way_to_say_pour/

What mistakes do natives make?

Those of us learning Chinese make mistakes all of the time. But what mistakes do native speakers commonly make?

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/55ghug/what_are_some_common_chinese_mistakes_that_native/

Using 刚 (gāng) and 了

Advanced If you want to say that you “just did X,” do you use 刚 (gāng) and also 了? Or is 刚 sufficient on its own?

http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/%E4%BD%A0%E5%88%9A%E8%B5%B7%E5%BA%8A-%E4%BA%86-%E5%90%97%EF%BC%9F.3236789/

Natives learning tones

Do native Chinese speakers learn the tones at school, at home (via conversation), or both?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21351/do-native-speakers-learn-about-4-tones-in-school-or-do-they-naturally-pick-them

大家好！ (Hi, everyone!) This is Mandarin Weekly #89, with links and information for those of us learning Chinese.

If you enjoy Mandarin Weekly, please share it with your fellow students of Chinese, and with your teacher! This newsletter will always be completely free of charge.

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This week’s links include a level indicator, saying either “beginner” or “intermediate.” Feedback on the accuracy of these labels will be greatly appreciated; just reply to this e-mail to indicate what you thought. Also, we’re always looking for advanced resources to fill out our list; if you know of blogs or sites we should be checking, just let us know, and we’ll try to include them.

Have you filled our our survey?

The online survey of Mandarin Weekly readers will be up for one more week. I’m already acting on some of the received suggestions, such as the indication of Chinese level for each posting. If you haven’t yet filled it out, please do so here:

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Sponsor

The Chairman’s Bao is the first online Chinese newspaper, written and simplified for students of Mandarin. With an archive of over 1,300 HSK (3-6+) graded news-based lessons, with up to five more published daily, TCB has four times more content than any other Chinese news-based reader. Throw in cross-platform access and synchronization – website, iOS and Android apps – as well as a whole host of exclusive features to aid language learning such as: comprehensive grammar points, live dictionary, and intelligent flashcard system, TCB is the ultimate Chinese learning companion. Learn in a way that’s compelling, engaging and current. I highly recommend this resource, especially if you wish to really improve your reading and listening skills in a fun and contextual manner!

Online HSK1 course

Beginner Are you still at the earliest stages of learning Chinese? Peking University is offering an HSK1 (i.e., beginner) online course via Coursera. The video lectures and course materials appear to be available for free, to anyone who registers:

https://zh.coursera.org/learn/hsk-1

Delicious measure words

Beginner Measure words are important, and you’ll find many different kinds when you go out to eat. Here is a collection of useful food- and drink-related measure words from ChinesePod:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzc5k4QbH6U

Twitter: @ChinesePod

Deciphering menus

Intermediate So, you go to a restaurant in China, and you’re handed a menu. Now is when your Chinese reading skills are really put to the test. However, understanding a menu is easier when you get how Chinese meals are constructed, and what types of food will be offered:

https://chinesepod.com/blog/6-simple-tricks-deciphering-chinese-menu/

Twitter: @ChinesePod

Mocking yourself (and others)

Intermediate I often use self-deprecating humor when I lecture. How can we say this in Chinese? Moreover, how can we say that someone is teasing you, or that you are teasing them? The word 黑 (hēi), which means “black,” is the key:

http://www.echineselearning.com/blog/show-humility-and-learn-self-mockery

Twitter: @ECLSchool

Understanding 才 (cái)

Intermediate The word 才 (cái) means “only,” but not exactly “only” in the English-language sense. This video from LearnChineseNow.com provides an introduction an explanation of when and how to use 才:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebwgMkQ3jMo

Twitter: @LearnChineseNow

Family tree

Intermediate When I started to learn Chinese, and asked how you say the word “brother,” I was surprised to discover that there are different words for “older brother” and “younger brother.” Other relatives are often described based on their relative age, as well as whether they’re from your mother’s or father’s side. This can all get confusing, so the following post and chart is handy:

https://www.writtenchinese.com/what-should-we-call-friends-and-family-members-in-chinese/

Twitter: @WrittenChinese

Different types of thinking

Intermediate The verb “think” has a number of different meanings, and Chinese uses different words for each. In this video, we learn the differences between them:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/09/24/different-words-for-to-think-in-chinese/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Saying @

Beginner How do you pronounce the symbol @ in Chinese?

http://nihaohello.blogspot.com/2016/09/how-do-you-say-in-chinese.html

Twitter: @NihaoHello

Multitasking

Intermediate How can you describe doing two things at once? Use the 一边。。。一边 (yì biān…yì biān) grammar pattern:

http://www.e-putonghua.com/zone/index.php/2016/09/25/grammar-39/

Coulda shoulda woulda

Intermediate How can you express the ideas of “could have,” “should have,” and “would have” in Chinese? Another video from Chels explains it all:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/09/22/how-to-express-could-would-should-in-chinese/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Hanging out with your friends

Intermediate If you’re standing around and chatting with your friends, what do you talk about? Moreover, if you want to do something other than just stand around with your friends, what can you do? Here’s an introductory vocabulary list and phrasebook for the next time you are doing nothing but want to talk about something:

https://www.writtenchinese.com/phrases-vocabulary-for-hanging-out-with-chinese-friends/

Twitter: @WrittenChinese

Homophones and culture

Intermediate Chinese is full of homphones, words that sound the same. These similar-sounding words have led to many cultural expectations and beliefs. Here are some simple ones to learn from (and possibly avoid):

http://www.yoyochinese.com/blog/Chinese-Homophones-Chinese-Customs

Twitter: @YoYoChinese

All smiles

Beginner The word 笑 (xiào) means “smile,” but it’s used in a number of other words:

 

Fall has arrived

Beginner Autumn (fall) has arrived! This short article describes some basic fall-related vocabulary, as well as the use of 了 (le) to indicate that an action has occurred:

https://ninchanese.com/blog/2016/09/22/fall-is-here-say-it-in-chinese/

Twitter: @ninchanese

Passive voice with 被

Intermediate How does the 被 character let us express passive voice?

http://answers.echineselearning.com/questions/2016-09/23/095738992EMMKTOEJ.html

Take out?

Intermediate If you want to order something from a restaurant “to go,” how would you say it in Chinese? The term 外带 (wài dài) mgiht be right… but it might not, as this discussion shows:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Chinese/comments/53bp9x/strange_reaction_after_ordering_food_%E5%A4%96%E5%B8%A6/

Getting someone’s number

Intermediate How do you ask for someone’s (phone or room) number? There are a number of expressions, discussed here:

http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/whats-your-telephone-number.2829417/

What kind of frying?

Beginner The word 煎 (jiān) means to fry in a pan, but what is the equivalent cooking term in English?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21225/for-the-character-word-%e7%85%8e-which-of-the-english-words-braise-pan-fry-saut%c3%a9

Ancient use of 辣

Intermediate In modern Chinese, the word 辣 means “spicy”。 But spicy food in China is the result of introducing chili peppers — which are from after the time of Columbus. Was this character used before then, and if so, how?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21172/how-was-%e8%be%a3-used-before-the-columbian-exchange

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大家好！ (Hi, everyone!) This is Mandarin Weekly #88, with links and information for those of us learning Chinese.

If you enjoy Mandarin Weekly, please share it with your fellow students of Chinese, and with your teacher! This newsletter will always be completely free of charge.

To receive Mandarin Weekly in your e-mail inbox every Monday, just use the box at MandarinWeekly.com. Or follow us on Twitter, at @MandarinWeekly! We’re also on Facebook, at http://facebook.com/MandarinWeekly.

Have you filled our our survey?

A number of you were oh-so-helpful and kind, and filled out our first-ever survey. I’ve gotten a great picture of our readership, but I’d like to hear your voice, as well!  If you haven’t yet filled out the survey, it would be super-helpful for you to do so:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/NY9PGZH

Sponsor

The Chairman’s Bao is the first online Chinese newspaper, written and simplified for students of Mandarin. With an archive of over 1,300 HSK (3-6+) graded news-based lessons, with up to five more published daily, TCB has four times more content than any other Chinese news-based reader. Throw in cross-platform access and synchronization – website, iOS and Android apps – as well as a whole host of exclusive features to aid language learning such as: comprehensive grammar points, live dictionary, and intelligent flashcard system, TCB is the ultimate Chinese learning companion. Learn in a way that’s compelling, engaging and current. I highly recommend this resource, especially if you wish to really improve your reading and listening skills in a fun and contextual manner!

Do the math

How can you express basic math operations in Chinese? This video from ChinesePod.com will help you out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvKP0gnJOMU

Twitter: @ChinesePod

Passive voice

How can you use 被 (bèi) to express the passive voice? This video from LearnChineseNow.com provides some context and examples:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VzCDfUbFsw

Twitter: @LearnChineseNow

I have no idea

How can you say that you have no clue as to the answer? Use this phrase:

http://www.e-putonghua.com/zone/index.php/2016/09/17/slang-5/

Too many words

Learning Chinese means learning lots of new words, and then practicing them. Is it possible that you’re trying to learn too many words at once? How can and should you study, to ensure that you build your vocabulary not only quickly, but with optimal retention?

http://www.hackingchinese.com/overcoming-problem-many-chinese-words-learn/

Twitter: @HackingChinese

Using 了

How do you use 了(le)? In this video from MandarinMonkey.com, we see how to use it to express more complex past events:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyskqL6IXUE

Twitter: @Mandarin_Monkey

Mid-autumn festival

Last week, China marked the mid-autumn festival. What is this holiday about? Is it only mooncakes?

https://chinesepod.com/blog/mid-autumn-festival-%e4%b8%ad%e7%a7%8b%e8%8a%82-everything-mooncakes-myths/

Twitter: @ChinesePod

Pleco’s clipboard reader

Did you encounter some Chinese characters, and don’t know how to translate them? Here’s an introduction to the use of Pleco’s clipboard reader, a good way to get a quick translation:

http://www.sinosplice.com/life/archives/2016/09/06/plecos-hidden-gem-the-clipboard-reader

Pokemon instructions

If you want to play Pokemon Go, then you’ll need to read the instructions, right? And you’ll obviously want to do so in Chinese, right? (OK, perhaps I’m wrong on both counts.) This post reviews some of the more interesting vocabulary in the instruction guide:

http://chinesehacks.com/games/pokemon-card-game-rules-in-chinese/

Internet slang

Want to sound cool and hip? (If so, then perhaps you should avoid the use of the word “hip.”) Chinese has a growing number of Internet-related slang words; in this video, we learn about three of them:

https://chelseabubbly.com/2016/09/17/3-popular-chinese-internet-slang/

Twitter: @Chelsea_bubbly

Survey results

Improve your listening skills with this short video quiz from ChineseClass101.com. This time, they ask about the results of a survey:

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

Twitter: @chineseclass101

A short story

Here’s a short story (parts 3 and 4), read out loud with characters and pinyin:

http://justlearnchinese.com/beginner-to-elementary-level-chinese-story-%e6%b2%b3%e5%b9%b3%e9%9d%a2%e9%a6%86-he-ping-eatery-3/

http://justlearnchinese.com/beginner-to-elementary-level-chinese-story-%e6%b2%b3%e5%b9%b3%e9%9d%a2%e9%a6%86-he-ping-eatery-4/

Twitter: @graceJLC

Cat cafes?!?

Yes, it turns out that this is a thing: Cat cafes. Listen to Angel’s interview with the owners:

https://ninchanese.com/blog/2016/09/16/trending-china-cat-cafes-purrsonality/

Twitter: @ninchanese

Daily chengyu

Chengyu, or four-character expressions, are an important part of gaining Chinese fluency. This new Web site (Hanping Chengyu) is from HanpingChinese.com, an Android app for translation and improving your Chinese. Visit this Twitter feed every day to learn new expressions!

https://twitter.com/HanpingChengyu

Emergency Chinese

Going to China very soon? Need to learn Chinese super-fast? What are the best resources and methods to learn some of the language?

https://www.reddit.com/r/learnmandarin/comments/52sxjp/tangible_goals/

From HSK5 to HSK6

If you are at HSK5, how quickly and easily can you get to HSK6?

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/52v4d9/how_hard_is_it_to_move_from_hsk_5_to_hsk_6/

才 vs. 只

Both 才(cái) and 只 (zhǐ) mean “only,” but they have different uses. How can we use each of them?

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/52vvaw/difference_between_%E6%89%8D_and_%E5%8F%AA_to_express_only/

Traditional vs. simplified

A common question among students of Chinese has to do with the character set you learn. How easily can you move from one to the other? The consensus seems to be that it’s not that hard to read both:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/52nmq4/can_traditional_chinesewriters_read_simplified/

Walking around

Someone is walking around Taiwan — as in, walking the entire perimeter of the island. What verb should he use for “walk”?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21166/im-currently-walking-mostly-around-taiwan-when-telling-locals-this-which-of

Being careless

What does the phrase 一不留神 mean, if 留神 () means to be “careful”?

http://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/21159/what-is-the-meaning-of-%e4%b8%80%e4%b8%8d%e7%95%99%e7%a5%9e-in-this-sentence

Using 是

Why do you not use 是 (shì) when saying how old you are? This seemingly mundane question led to an interesting discussion of what 是 really means:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/52eejz/why_do_you_not_use_%E6%98%AF_when_expressing_your_age/

Different types of “late”

What is the difference between 迟 (chí) and 晚 (wǎn)? Both mean “late” in English, but in a different sense:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ChineseLanguage/comments/5317ff/what_exactly_is_the_difference_between_%E8%BF%9F_and/

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