“The Great Wall of China is a beautiful monument, but there are too many walls between men already.”
This quote from Mikhail Gorbachev during a visit to China in the late 80s came not too long before the fall of the Berlin Wall.
In a metaphorical sense, the language barrier also acts as a wall, and Chinese is probably one of the finest examples of it, especially when English speakers try to learn it.
Languages tend to be easier to learn if they're similar to our mother tongues, which is just one of the reasons that the Chinese language can be tricky for English speakers; it's just so different to our own language.
Mandarin Chinese, for example, shares very few similarities with English. For one, the pronunciation is completely different and as a tonal language, words are differentiated on the almost melodic manner in which you pronounce them.
Then there's the Chinese writing system, which doesn't represent the sounds that are used to pronounce words, but rather entire words and concepts themselves, which means you have to learn how to write again when you start learning Chinese.
With Chinese, you often have to do so much more than take just a few private Chinese lessons to learn the language.
Luckily for you, we have a bunch of tools and resources that you can use to complement your Chinese lessons or tutorials and learn Chinese fast.
Don't forget to check out the best ways to learn Chinese, too.
Learn Chinese Quickly with Apps
Language-learning apps, including those for learning Chinese, have exploded in recent years and there are so many different apps that you're bound to find one that works for you as you study Chinese.
It's a good idea to try a few different apps to see if you like them while also making sure that you're learning from them. It's all well and good to use an app you enjoy, but it's pointless if you're not actually learning the language while you use it!
There are so many options out there that you shouldn't worry about getting rid of one to try another.
Are you going to head to China to live and work or just go on a trip to visit some of the country's most popular sites?
Here are some of our favourite apps for learning Mandarin Chinese.
Hello Chinese
Hello Chinese is an app that's dubbed “The best Chinese learning app for total beginners” and we're inclined to agree.
This is an Android app that you can use to start learning Chinese and you can actually learn quite quickly with it.
One of the first things you'll do on the app is to learn about Pinyin transcription, one of the most common ways to write Chinese words using the Latin alphabet, which can be really helpful for learning how to say words before you can read and write in Chinese.
There are around 40 lessons each with 3 or 4 chapters that you'll unlock as you progress through them.
There are also quizzes to make sure that you're actually learning and that you aren't forgetting what you've learned the second your lesson is over.
The Hello Chinese app can help you to work on:
- Chinese pronunciation
- Tones in Chinese
- Reading Chinese
- How to write Chinese characters
- Speaking Chinese
- Politeness and formality in Chinese
- Chinese customs
One of the best things about Hello Chinese is that the app is completely free.
On the app, you can also listen to native Chinese speakers so you can hear how Chinese words are pronounced, just as you would if you were working with a private Chinese tutor.
Find out how you can learn Chinese quickly.
Other free apps
There are a lot of different apps for learning Chinese out there and here are just a few of the ones that we like:
- Mondly: This is a fun app with games that allow you to learn Chinese vocabulary, expressions, pronunciation, etc.
- Pleco: This app is a Chinese dictionary that will also help you learn how to pronounce words, write them properly using Chinese calligraphy, and improve your Chinese vocabulary.
- Skritter is another app that focuses on learning Chinese characters and how to write them. It's quite similar to Pleco so it's up to you to choose which one you prefer.
- Line dictionary: This site offers a dictionary and a lot of common expressions to help you learn set expressions in Chinese to get you through daily interactions.
- Mandarin MadnessL This is a game that focuses on Chinese pronunciation and vocabulary.
- Learn Chinese Mandarin Phrasebook: As the name suggests, this covers common phrases and expressions and are usefully organised into subjects and topics.
Looking for the perfect teacher to help you learn Chinese?
Great Websites for Learning and Studying Chinese
The important thing about learning a language is that you remember what you've learned once your lessons or study sessions are over.
In addition to all the smartphone apps, there are also a lot of websites that you can use to get better at Chinese or just start your journey towards Chinese fluency.
These are some of the websites that we like for studying Mandarin Chinese:
- Chinese Tools: This site features dozens of free Chinese lessons covering topics like phonetics, intials, tones, conversation, and Chinese calligraphy.
- Mosalingua: This is a site with reading and writing exercises as well as tools to work on your Chinese pronunciation.
- BBC: The BBC website has lots of microsites for learning different languages including resources on learning Mandarin Chinese. There are online Chinese lessons where you can learn phrases and useful expressions for a trip to China or you can just read the news in Mandarin. While the site is no longer being updated (so the news will be out of date), you can still use it t work on your Chinese.
- Chinese Learner: This is a useful site for Chinese lessons, but they're not particularly structured so it's not that useful for absolute beginners, but it is a site you can bookmark to come back to later on once your Chinese starts to improve.
- FluentU: This site uses videos in Mandarin Chinese as lessons making it a refreshing change from some of the other sites, especially if you haven't found them to be as effective.
- The Chairman’s Bao: This is a news website for people learning Mandarin Chinese. It comes with useful tools like interactive vocabulary lists and a mini encyclopedia to help you understand the articles, but it's not a free resource. Once your Chinese skills are coming along nicely, you may want to look to this site and consider paying for it.
- Chengyu: This is a site that explains Chinese proverbs to help you understand them better.
Are you struggling to learn Chinese online on your own? It can be difficult to stay motivated or even just structure your lessons.
We get it.
There are lots of ways to learn how to speak Chinese other than using apps and websites. Consider looking into the cost of Chinese lessons with tutors on Superprof.
Learn Chinese with Language Exchanges
It can be quite uncomfortable being in a foreign country and not being able to speak the language.
Before you go to China, try to immerse yourself in the Chinese language and culture.
How exactly do you do that?
Look for Chinese nationals in New Zealand. They may be offering Chinese tutoring or willing to participate in a language exchange with you.
Here's how you can find a Mandarin or Cantonese native speaker to practise your language skills with.
Popular Language Exchange Sites
- Penpal Tradition also lets you correspond via snail mail
- My Language Exchange
- The Beijinger has traditional-style classified ads
- Expat.com
With these sites, you can match with people living in China and Taiwan who want to learn European languages like English, French, Spanish, and German.
As language exchanges are conversational, they can be a refreshing change from your typical Chinese language classes that have to follow a syllabus or curriculum.
They're also an excellent way to hear Chinese spoken by natives in a way that people would speak to you on a trip to China or Taiwan.
Other Ways To Find Chinese Language Exchanges
- Go to a local Chinese cultural centre
- If you live in a city with a Chinese neighbourhood or a "Chinatown", speak to them in Chinese once your Chinese gets good enough.
- Mention to your friends that you want to learn Chinese. They may know somebody who can help you. Don't underestimate the power of word-of-mouth.
- Join Facebook groups or look to social media for Chinese language communities.
Study About Chinese History
You can't learn a language completely without knowing the history and cultures of the people that speak said language.
When you study Chinese, use this as an opportunity to learn more about China's history.
China has an incredibly rich culture covering literature, art, music, and cinema.
The history of China is also fascinating and you can study all the emperors who all played a part in making Chinese culture what it is today.
For many, Chinese history really starts with the Yellow Emperor Huangdi in the 27th century BCE. Chinese culture isn't monolithic, though, and there are 56 ethnic groups in China today. The largest of these groups, the Han, accounts for 95% of China's population.
This group ruled over the northeast of China for over 400 years from 206 BCE to 220 CE.
While knowing the culture and history will help, Chinese is still a difficult language to learn and even though the language has been somewhat standardised for use in the modern age, traditional Chinese is over 2000 years old.
Watch Chinese Movies in the Original Language
An excellent way to improve your Chinese is by watching Chinese cinema. Initially, you'll want to watch these with English subtitles so you can understand what's going on.
After a while, you'll get familiar with the tones used in Chinese and start recognising some of the most commonly used expressions and phrases as you hear Chinese-speaking actors use them regularly.
This is particularly helpful if you learn best by seeing and hearing things rather than reading them.
The added bonus of watching Chinese-language cinema is that you'll also learn more about Chinese history and culture through it.
This is one of the most enjoyable ways to learn a language.
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