Mandarin From the Ground Up

A big part of being able to speak naturally and fluently is being able to convince yourself on some level that you're actually from the same place as other native speakers. It’s one thing to learn a bunch of words and phrases. But to be able to use them like a native speaker requires being able to think like one. In this episode, you'll learn how to tell people where you are, and where you're from.

If you were from, say, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, or China, what would that version of you be like? You can start to get a sense by paying close attention to the expressions native speakers use, especially to the feeling behind them. Imitating them, you might find yourself saying things whose equivalent you would never say in the same situation in your native language. And that’s one of the amazing things about learning a new language -- it lets you develop another side of yourself.

A note about pronunciation: The vocabulary list below includes the Chinese characters and the pinyin romanization system. The advantage of pinyin for English speakers is that it uses the familiar symbols of the Latin alphabet. The disadvantage is that English speakers are easily deceived into thinking these familiar symbols represent the same sounds they do in English. They don't. That said, pinyin can be a useful system to learn, but you must rely on your ears first, eyes second.

Don't expect to be able to pronounce anything just by reading the pinyin; the romanization is just a reference to jog your memory. the language exists primarily in its sounds, which is why daily listening and imitation practice is so important.

Episode vocabulary:

• 哪裡 :: nǎlǐ :: where
• 在 :: zài :: at/in
• 台灣 :: táiwān :: Taiwan
• 台北 :: táiběi :: Taipei
• 美國 :: měiguó :: USA
• 西雅圖 :: xīyǎtú :: Seattle
• 請 :: qǐng :: please
• 再 :: zài :: again
• 一次 :: yīcì :: one time
• 人 :: rén :: person
• 是 :: shì :: to be (am/are/is)
• 以為 :: yǐwéi :: to have mistakenly thought
• 真的 :: zhēn de :: really, truly

About learning Chinese characters
Teaching Chinese characters is outside the scope of this podcast, but if you are learning Chinese characters through another course or method, you can use the transcript below to follow along.

Learning characters can be a fulfilling project, and can help you to remember and differentiate similar-sounding words. And, of course, it opens up more avenues for practicing your Mandarin, such as reading (books, children's books, comic books) and corresponding with Chinese speakers via email and other messaging apps. I highly encourage you to give it a try!

However, if the thought of memorizing all those characters now gives you a headache, rest assured: you can start speaking Mandarin without being able to read or write. Millions of preliterate children speak Mandarin fluently, and so can you! If and when you are ready to start learning the characters, already speaking some Mandarin will make it that much easier.

The bottom line is this: Don't let anything stop you or discourage you. The best method is the method you actually use, and any method you choose is better than no method at all! Find a way to move forward. You can always make adjustments later.

Dialogue transcript

• L：嘿，你在哪裡？
• M：我嗎？我在台灣啊
• L：在台灣哪裡？
• M：在台北啊！你呢？你在哪裡？
• L：我... 我在... 我在西雅圖
• M：啊？
• L：喂？
• M：請再說一次
• L：我說，我在西雅圖
• M：西雅圖在哪裡？
• L：西雅圖在美國
• M：你在美國？！
• L：對，我在美國
• M：你是美國人嗎？
• L：對啊，我是美國人
• M：我以為你是台灣人呢
• L：真的嗎？

Thanks for listening!

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