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HSK 1 Chinese Grammar Lesson

Basics 1: How Mandarin Works

中文是什么

Zhōngwén shì shénme

5:22 min video · 18 sentences · 6 key words

Transcript with pinyin and English

Click a line to hear it, or loop it to shadow it.
  1. 0:01
  2. 0:09
  3. 0:15
  4. 1:29
  5. 1:35
  6. 1:44
  7. 1:52
  8. 1:59
  9. 2:09
  10. 2:20
  11. 2:28
  12. 2:38
  13. 2:46
  14. 2:55
  15. 3:02
  16. 3:12
  17. 3:17
  18. 3:24

About this lesson

Lin, a new office worker, meets her colleague Wang on her first day. He shows her that Chinese characters, pinyin and tones are the keys to saying her first word: 你好.

How to practise

  1. Read how the pattern works on the first card, then listen to each example sentence.
  2. Repeat every example out loud in the 跟读 · Your turn pause: the pattern should start to feel automatic.
  3. At the end, check the common mistake and say the practice sentence yourself.

Key words 生词

ChinesePinyinEnglishLevel
中文zhōngwénChinese (language)HSK 1
汉字hànzìChinese charactersHSK 1
拼音pīnyīnpinyin
你好nǐhǎohello
学xuéto learnHSK 1
说shuōto speakHSK 1

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