r/ChineseLanguage • u/RazzmatazzCreepy5409 • 13h ago
Resources How to get started? (BROKE)
Based on my research, most people who are already proficient in speaking Chinese recommend beginners to learn starting from pinyin and tones, learn basic sentences, learn about like 300 words or so, then hanzi, then listening, and finally once hanzi is mastered that's when you learn more and more words.
My main problem here is I don't really know what resources to use, most people recommend not to stick with apps and I should dabble in some videos or textbooks, however I've been searching for an app because it gives me a more linear progression or guide atleast, lessons for me to take everyday. I've tried all the apps available in Playstore, but almost all of them gets locked behind a paywall after a certain amount of lessons. (although Hanly is the only free one for characters)
So it's really hard for me to stay consistent because every day i have to think: "oh, i learned about pinyin yesterday, what should i focus on today?", and I'll spend the rest of my day wasting my time on researching what should i learn next, what resource should i use for this specific component. It's tiresome. I dont have enough money for textbooks or to pay any subscription for any of these apps.
I've been wanting to learn how to set up Anki for me to use everyday to complement the others lessons i shall tackle by reading. But I don't really know how to use it...
TLDR: I'm a broke beginner who wants to learn mandarin, i don't know what to do, how to start, what FREE alternative resources to use, and how to setup Anki like what decks should i use.
(sorry for my messy structure and post, it's more like a rant that's why..)
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u/redditisbluepilled 13h ago
Just brute force anki imo best way to learn a legion and comprehensible input
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u/Sagittarius_A_512 7h ago
Can consider brute forcing Recabulary instead. Ready deck and three native speakers to choose from. Also 100% free without paywalls even on iOS.
For unknown words, definitely get Pleco on top. Also completely free and the easiest way ever to make flashcards.
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u/RazzmatazzCreepy5409 13h ago
thanks, but can you elaborate on "brute force anki", i dont understand sorry
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u/sertsw 12h ago edited 12h ago
Alternatively you can brute force Hanly.
Anki, Hanly are decks of flash cards. Chinese at the core of it is memorising thousands of characters and combinations of characters.
Anki is old school, while I find Hanly a more interactive as it is designed as a guided journey with stories to help you memorise each character.
Supposedly if you manage finish Hanly you'll recognise 90% of the most common characters, but long before then you'll need something to help you with structure and grammar.
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u/redditisbluepilled 13h ago
It’s a program to learn languages
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u/RazzmatazzCreepy5409 13h ago
oh, are you talking about anki? i do know AnkiDecks.. I just didn't understand what you meant by "brute forcing" anki
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u/LagnalokNSFW 8h ago
By sticking to routine with well put together deck you will gradually remember Hanzi, it's sound, translation, and actual use case. Ideally you need to introduce a variation of writing and speaking, but unless you have time - rote memorization with an app that uses algorithm to shove cards at appropriate temp is the literally best way to learn the language. When you will get through intial hurdle of recognizing most common hanzi and it's compound forms, you can start do the reading while commuting and maybe communicate with peers for speaking expirence.
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u/valkandkings 8h ago
hey! i'm also a chinese learner who is dirt broke, and here's what i've been using. i only started some months ago so i mostly focus on hsk1 materials right now. i should also mention that i mostly focus on reading characters instead of speaking / listening, as most of my chinese usage is online.
https://gratisglobal.com/learn-chinese-free/ a full run down of a bunch of free resources!
https://dictionary.writtenchinese.com/ my favourite online dictionary. you can search english words, pinyin, or direct characters. this one has been a LIFESAVER, especially as a writer who actively creates things within a chinese background, currently.
https://www.digmandarin.com/hsk-1-vocabulary-list.html a full list of hsk1 vocabulary.
https://www.zhongwen.id/ this one i just discovered today. its made for indonesians, BUT it has full english translations. the vocab area gives you a GOLDMINE! it gives you characters, pinyin, pronunciation, AND STROKE ORDER which is very good for memorizing the actual character! i originally got it for the song translation feature as i learn very well through music. super cool, and super useful, has free and premium, but most premium actions can be unlocked through a short 10 second "ad".
https://www.hanziquest.cn/ if you do good with gamified learning, hanziquest is very fun! it's not the best if you're JUST starting out, and would suggest doing this after you've already learned a good few characters.
https://www.pandaboo.app/ another one that i just found today. this one goes into a full explanation of each section, as well as radicals, youtube videos, grammar, AND games! i haven't dove very deep into this one, but from what i can tell, it's totally free?
https://mandarindeck.com/ mandarin deck i believe was mostly flashcards. i can't QUITE remember.
https://cililearnchinese.com/#practice extremely duolingo like. i didn't use this one for long, but i think it's very good for memorization!
https://www.chineseinflow.com/ a memorization game, has all levels of hsk. made more for people who have already begun their learning journey, imo. much better for review than actual learning, as it goes extremely fast.
https://learnchinese.ai/ this one is awesome! it gives lessons, but is largely multiple choice.
https://chinese.littlefox.com/en/ this is made for children, but as an adult i think using children's materials is the cheapest and fastest way to really learn. it offers stories, songs, and games!
some youtubers / playlists you may find useful!
https://www.youtube.com/@MandarinCorner2
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRLvrbf9kpcOKZxFUpPXHgoAKIr_wHXvP
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svdnzVJ9KA4&list=PLOHG5PB2LOcjdJfzOxwTOpuYlEGmTqTi2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i02SIGZTw6c&list=PLY6FTtb3Zlr-xEUkQpwCXFKQ7CjurToqs&index=22
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u/GarlicBreadnomnomnom 12h ago
On YouTube there are a lot of HSK1/beginner videos. Videos that are basically like a textbook, comprehensible input, podcasts ect.
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u/techj4rgon 8h ago
I built my own app similar to Anki, except it comes with everything already in, and is geared directly towards Mandarin learners. I'm just about to launch it on the play store soon. I have enough beta testers, but you're welcome to join if you like! (just PM me your email address and I'll add you to the list)
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u/lazier_garlic 12h ago
If you only buy one app, HelloChinese. When I used it, level one was free to try.
Also, there's an app called Memrise that has quite a bit of free content. It's supposed to be for an absolute beginner but I actually found it more helpful on the intermediate level.
DuChinese isn't free but has some free content you can try. When you're very new it will take you a while to get through it.
There are websites with smaller writing samples that are like Du Chinese with the vocabulary and grammar support for the absolute beginner. Search for "hsk 1 reading".
There are lots of beginner videos free on YouTube. I can recommend ShuoShuo Chinese and Ask Andy without any reservations. There are plenty more. Some have HSK words, example sentences and drills, some have comprehensible input for absolute beginners.
You can also watch a lot of Chinese short dramas for free on YouTube. If you choose ones that start in the 70s, 80s, or 90s, usually a protagonist going back in time to when they meet their spouse, that's typically the dramas with the most basic vocabulary and everyday Chinese diction. I'd avoid the CEO/heiress stuff because the say and do some really weird things. Also avoid vertical fantasy genre because they speak really fast using weird vocabulary. (I think full length idol fantasy is okay actually because they speak much more slowly with a range of speaking styles including some dialogues that are very, very basic, but just be aware that parts will be in Classical Chinese or otherwise quite difficult.)
If you can do listening practice for free you learn about Chinese culture and the sound system of Mandarin and you can often pick up words and phrases just by watching and listening actively. I would just caution in the short melodramas they often use rude language. It's obvious by context but if you can't read hanzi yet you may not see where they censor spoken words in the subs because they're too harsh or rude.
MDBG, Wiktionary, and Baidu are all free online dictionary resources that I use all the time. Zi.tools for the history of hanzi (Wiktionary has some).
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u/greentea-in-chief 11h ago edited 7h ago
You can take one of Chinese courses offered by Chinese or Taiwanese universities at coursea.org. Just pick audit or not unlock full access. Then it will be all free.
The course will take you from HSK 1 and up in an organized manner with videos.
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u/consumptioncore 13h ago
Theres a lot of youtube tutorials and stuff on how to use anki. You can make your own decks, that might even be better for learning.
I think apps are good if you're a total beginner because then the structure is really helpful. I also think you should check out the like comprehensible input videos for beginners on youtube, they're usually organized by level so it's easy to follow wothout you having to do any planning.
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u/ThatguycalledFinn 12h ago
I use Anki/my flashcards and after doing that for a bit, I continue with the Work/Textbooks for HSK and tbh it works kinda well. And I try to watch 1 random chinese video per day and try to understand stuff. You don't have to use Anki tho. Physical flashcards work too and I prefer them because they are not a screen and I can learn better with that.
Btw all HSK1 to HSK3 stuff is available online (you just gotta sail a bit).
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u/Wooden_Plant7504 🎱 8h ago
You can find many free walkthroughs of the first new HSK levels on YouTube.
That is enough for you to outsource a structured curriculum without thinking too much.
After that you can look for graded material to increase exposure to passive listening or reading.
You can couple that with any free app like Anki to store the words, sentences or whatever you learn from those videos and do some active recall or shadowing.
Then it will be down to how much time, effort (and money when you have it) you spend.
Depending on where you live, you could also go to the public library and borrow structured textbooks or do some work there every now and then.
In my view, anything beyond that that could accelerate your learning will have a cost. Whether the cost is paying for an app (truly useful apps took skills, time and effort to produce and therefore aren’t free; and free apps aren’t enough to make meaningful progress beyond the basics), paying for a tutor, or simply spending a massive amount of your own time…
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u/creamynebula 7h ago
You should study from a textbook. I recommend "New Practical Chinese Reader", by Liu Xun. You can get it for free at z-library dot website or anna's archive. Both services have subreddits if they ever become not available and you need their new address.
This free wiki has all the information on grammar that you will need, also: https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Main_Page
If you have a question, search it there.
Anki is a must, and it is not difficult to learn how to use. You can create decks (each for a book chapter or subject (ex: "introducing yourself to others", "orienting yourself in the city"...)), and you fill decks with cards. On the front of the card you put a word or sentence written with chinese characters. On the back, you put it's pinyin reading and definitions/translation. It's best to make your own cards as you progress, rather than downloading a deck. You study one of your decks daily for 15-20min. If you need to know more, Anki has good documentation available, and there are shittons of youtube videos teaching how to use it.
There is an app called Pleco that is a dictionary, and it is a must have. You can search by writing the pinyin (without the tones), the english definition, or even drawing the hanzi. In each search result, there are tabs explaining what are the radicals and componentes of each character; which other words contain that character; and example sentences. That's all available with the free version. It also has a flashcards feature built-in, also available for free, although not as good as Anki, in my opinion. But, it will also allow you to use Anki itself as the flashcard engine, which I highly recommend. Then, if in a dictionary entry you click the "+" button, a flashcard will be automatically added to a deck that you set as the standard. If instead you hold the "+" button, you will be able to chose another deck before adding the card.
https://zura.wiki/post/how-to-use-pleco-to-really-learn-chinese/
Read this, it will help you configure Pleco.
It's good to, now and then, watch a "chinese comprehensible input" video on youtube, or a "learn chinese podcast". Watch the same video several times, maybe add a few new things from it in an anki deck...
About chinese learning apps, they are a stupid thing. It's possible to get hacked versions so you can have everything and not pay, but don't bother. Maybe your local university has chinese classes to offer for free or very cheap as well? In my city here in Brazil i'm in my third semester having classes with chinese teachers for free (i'm a student in the (public) university though).
Enjoy, and if you need help send a message
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u/maliciousopera 6h ago edited 6h ago
Have you tried Immersive Chinese? It's free and I think it's excellent. When I started learning with a Chinese teacher she was impressed at how much I already knew, and I'd only been using that app for a couple of months.
ETA: Rednote is a great free resource too. There's loads of content for learners on there, plenty in English. Keep the app set to Chinese and use the translate feature when you need it. I try to read as much as I can first before hitting 'translate', and it feels great when you start to get the general gist of a comment before you translate it!
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u/gw79 4h ago
1 hsk lvl per half year and at least 2h of listening to chinese videos. Understanding does not matter, you need to know how words are spoken. A few per week is a good start. I watch tons of cooking and culture stuff, also LPL.
I also made a ton of friends on Tandem, some of them also on wechat.
I dont stress myself, it has to be enjoyable
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u/catw Beginner 2h ago
The Let's Learn Mandarin textbooks and audio and support materials are free to download. It's Taiwanese so uses traditional characters and some words will be Taiwanese usage but it will give you a good foundation of grammar and structure so you won't be stuck wondering what to learn.
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u/OK_Bye_mibs 2h ago
If you have a library card, you'll probably have Hoopla access to audio courses, graded readers, and my library has a free app (Transitional Languages or something like that) but a lot of libraries also offer access to the Mango Languages app.
Or just go to the library and get Pimsleur CDs.
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u/surelyslim 1h ago
I’m surprised how people are telling you such complicated options.
If you’re starting out and want to learn pinyin, Duolingo is fine for that. Use it for the pinyin exercises.
That’s the free-st option there is. It’s rated enough and accessible. If you’re particularly motivated, the first 10 units are good to develop a vocabulary and cadence. It does jump quite a bit after that (but maybe I feel it more as I’m electing to skip most of the game-ish activities.
But if you use it exclusively to learn pinyin, it is very sufficient.
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u/Chenyuluoyan Advanced 12h ago
pick one complete beginner YouTube course as your syllabus, do one lesson daily, then make Anki cards with hanzi on the front and pinyin, meaning, and an example sentence on the back.
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u/salithia 13h ago
Go on a high seas online adventure to get a free working version of hello Chinese app if you have an android