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Audio will be uploaded by 31st March 2025. Vocabulary (20 words) The Chinese character 哪 (nǎ) is a commonly used interrogative pronoun in Mandarin Chinese. It primarily The Chinese character 哪 (nǎ) is a commonly used interrogative pronoun in Mandarin Chinese. It primarily means “which” or “where” and is often used in questions to indicate […]
Vocabulary (20 words) The word 谁 (shéi / shuí) in Mandarin Chinese is primarily used as an interrogative pronoun meaning “who” or “whom.” It is commonly found in questions to inquire about a person’s identity. However, 谁 can also function in different sentence structures, including rhetorical questions and indefinite references. 谁 as a Subject in […]
Vocabulary (20 words) The interrogative pronoun 什么 (shénme) is commonly used in Chinese to ask questions about objects, people, or abstract concepts. It translates to “what” in English and appears in various sentence structures. Asking About Objects When you want to ask about an object or thing, “什么” (shénme) is used to replace the unknown noun in […]
Vocabulary (20 words) In Mandarin Chinese, the verb 是 (shì) is often used to express equivalence or identification, similar to the English verb “to be” (e.g., “is,” “am,” “are”). However, its usage in Chinese differs from English in several ways. This article explores how 是 (shì) is used in different sentence structures, along with sentence […]
Vocabulary (20 words) Grammar The Chinese character 吗 (ma) is a fundamental question particle used in Mandarin Chinese to form yes-no questions. Unlike English, where we change word order or add auxiliary verbs (e.g., “Do you like apples?”), Mandarin Chinese keeps the word order the same and simply adds 吗 (ma) at the end of […]
Mandarin Chinese has 21 initials (consonant sounds that appear at the beginning of syllables), which can be categorized based on how they are pronounced. These initials vary in aspiration, airflow, and tongue placement, making them crucial for accurate pronunciation. 1. Unaspirated vs. Aspirated Initials Some initials are unaspirated, meaning they produce a softer sound with […]
Nasal finals include endings such as “an,” pronounced like “an” in “man;” “ang,” which sounds like “ang” in “hang;” “en,” which is like “un” in “under;” “eng,” similar to “ung” in “lung;” as well as “in, ing, un, and ong,” which follow similar nasal patterns. Nasal Finals an ang en eng in ing ong un […]
Compound finals are vowel combinations such as “ai,” which sounds like “eye,” “ei,” which sounds like “ay” in “say,” “ao,” which is similar to “ow” in “cow,” “ou,” which sounds like the “o” in “go,” and blends like “ia, ie, iu, ua, uo, ue.” Compound Finals ai ao ei er ie iu ou ui üe
Single vowels are vowels such as “a,” pronounced like “ah” in “father;” “o,” which sounds like “aw” in “law;” “e,” pronounced like “uh” in “sofa;” “i,” which sounds like “ee” in “see,” though it can also be pronounced “ih” after z, c, s, zh, ch, sh, and r; “u,” which is similar to “oo” in […]
Mandarin Chinese is a tonal language, meaning that the tone used when pronouncing a word can change its meaning. While Mandarin is typically described as having four tones, there is also a neutral tone, which, though less common, is equally important. Tone marks are placed above the vowel in a syllable: on “a” or “e” […]
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