Proven Mnemonics & Acronyms — fast to learn, hard to forget.
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🗣️ Mandarin
1-10: yī èr sān sì wǔ liù qī bā jiǔ shí
Mandarin Numbers 1–10
Numbers 1–10 — the foundation of Mandarin counting
Master these 10 numbers and you can count to 99. 11 = shí yī (10+1). 20 = èr shí (2×10). 99 = jiǔ shí jiǔ. The system is perfectly logical — no irregulars.
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🃏 Mandarin
Mandarin numbers 1–10?
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1-10: yī èr sān sì wǔ liù qī bā jiǔ shí
Mandarin Numbers 1–10 — Master these 10 numbers and you can count to 99. 11 = shí yī (10+1). 20 = èr shí (2×10). 99 = jiǔ shí jiǔ. The system is perfectly logical — no irregulars.
Essential Greetings — Nǐ hǎo (你好): hello. Xièxie (谢谢): thank you. Duìbuqǐ (对不起): sorry/excuse me. Add "nín" for formal "you" (instead of nǐ) when speaking to elders or superiors.
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🗣️ Mandarin
No verb conjugation in Mandarin — time words do the work
Mandarin Grammar Simplification
Mandarin verbs never change form — ever
Unlike European languages, Mandarin verbs don't conjugate. "I eat, he eats, I ate, I will eat" all use 吃 (chī). Time words (yesterday/tomorrow/now) or context indicate tense.
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🃏 Mandarin
Mandarin verbs — how is tense shown?
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No verb conjugation in Mandarin — time words do the work
Mandarin Grammar Simplification — Unlike European languages, Mandarin verbs don't conjugate. "I eat, he eats, I ate, I will eat" all use 吃 (chī). Time words (yesterday/tomorrow/now) or context indicate tense.
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🗣️ Mandarin
Measure words: yī + MW + noun
Chinese Measure Words (量词)
Every noun needs a measure word — this is non-negotiable
You can't say "one book" directly — you need "yī běn shū" (one [volume] book). 本 is the measure word for books. 个 (gè) is the general measure word when unsure. Learn it first.
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Mandarin measure words — the word order?
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Measure words: yī + MW + noun
Chinese Measure Words (量词) — You can't say "one book" directly — you need "yī běn shū" (one [volume] book). 本 is the measure word for books. 个 (gè) is the general measure word when unsure. Learn it first.
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Pinyin Pronunciation Guide
Pinyin: the romanization system for Mandarin. x = 'sh', q = 'ch', zh = 'j', c = 'ts', r = unusual English r
Pinyin Pronunciation Guide
Key Pinyin letters that don't sound like their English equivalents
X sounds like 'sh' in 'she': xiè (thanks) = 'shyeh'. Q sounds like 'ch': qǐng = 'ching'. Zh sounds like 'j': zhōng = 'jong'. C sounds like 'ts': cài = 'tsai'. R is between English r and zh — no English equivalent. U after j/q/x/y is actually ü (like German).
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🃏 Pinyin Pronunciation Guide
Pinyin — what is it, and the tricky letters?
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Pinyin: the romanization system for Mandarin. x = 'sh', q = 'ch', zh = 'j', c = 'ts', r = unusual English r
xSounds like 'sh'
qSounds like 'ch'
zhSounds like 'j'
cSounds like 'ts'
rUnique sound — no English equivalent
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Three Essential Verbs
是 (shì) = to be (for nouns). 有 (yǒu) = to have/there is. 在 (zài) = to be located.
Three Essential Verbs
The three most common verbs — each used differently
是 (shì): equates nouns — Wǒ shì xuésheng (I am a student). 有 (yǒu): possession or existence — Wǒ yǒu shū (I have a book), Nàlǐ yǒu shū (There are books there). 在 (zài): location — Wǒ zài jiā (I am at home). Never use 是 for location or adjectives.
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🃏 Three Essential Verbs
是 vs 有 vs 在 — what does each mean?
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是 (shì) = to be (for nouns). 有 (yǒu) = to have/there is. 在 (zài) = to be located.
是 shìTo be — equating nouns
有 yǒuTo have / there is
在 zàiLocated at
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Forming Questions in Mandarin
Question particle 吗 (ma): add to end of statement to make yes/no question. No word order change.
Forming Questions in Mandarin
Two ways to ask questions — particle ma and A-not-A pattern
Add 吗 (ma) to any statement: Nǐ shì xuésheng. → Nǐ shì xuésheng ma? (Are you a student?) A-not-A pattern: Nǐ shì bú shì xuésheng? (Are you or are you not a student?) — more emphatic. Question words (shéi, shénme, nǎr, wèishéme) stay in same position as answer would be.
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🃏 Forming Questions in Mandarin
Yes/no questions in Mandarin — how?
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Question particle 吗 (ma): add to end of statement to make yes/no question. No word order change.
Forming Questions in Mandarin — Add 吗 (ma) to any statement: Nǐ shì xuésheng. → Nǐ shì xuésheng ma? (Are you a student?) A-not-A pattern: Nǐ shì bú shì xuésheng? (Are you or are you not a student?) — more emphatic. Question words (shéi, shénme, nǎr, wèishéme) stay in same position as answer would be.
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Mandarin Word Order for Time
Time expressions go BEFORE the verb in Mandarin: Wǒ míngtiān qù — I tomorrow go (= I'll go tomorrow)
Mandarin Word Order for Time
Time comes before the verb — opposite of English tendency
English: I will go tomorrow. Chinese: Wǒ míngtiān qù (I tomorrow go). Larger time units before smaller: Wǒ xīngqīsān xiàwǔ liǎng diǎn yǒu kè (I Wednesday afternoon two o'clock have class). Time-manner-place order: Wǒ míngtiān zài túshūguǎn kàn shū.
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🃏 Mandarin Word Order for Time
Where do time words go in a Mandarin sentence?
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Time expressions go BEFORE the verb in Mandarin: Wǒ míngtiān qù — I tomorrow go (= I'll go tomorrow)
Mandarin Word Order for Time — English: I will go tomorrow. Chinese: Wǒ míngtiān qù (I tomorrow go). Larger time units before smaller: Wǒ xīngqīsān xiàwǔ liǎng diǎn yǒu kè (I Wednesday afternoon two o'clock have class). Time-manner-place order: Wǒ míngtiān zài túshūguǎn kàn shū.
11 = shíyī (ten-one). 12 = shí'èr (ten-two). 20 = èrshí (two-ten). 21 = èrshíyī (two-ten-one). 100 = yī bǎi. 1000 = yī qiān. 10,000 = yī wàn (unique unit — English has no equivalent). 100 million = yī yì. The system is completely regular once you know 1-10.
Mandarin Number System — 11 = shíyī (ten-one). 12 = shí'èr (ten-two). 20 = èrshí (two-ten). 21 = èrshíyī (two-ten-one). 100 = yī bǎi. 1000 = yī qiān. 10,000 = yī wàn (unique unit — English has no equivalent). 100 million = yī yì. The system is completely regular once you know 1-10.
Mandarin shows ASPECT not tense — how an action relates to completion
了 (le): completion — Wǒ chī le (I ate/I have eaten). 过 (guò): experience — Wǒ qù guò Zhōngguó (I've been to China before). 着 (zhe): ongoing state — Tā zuò zhe (She is sitting). Mandarin doesn't conjugate verbs for tense — time words and aspect markers do this work.
Four-character classical idioms that appear everywhere in Chinese
成语 (chéngyǔ): four-character phrases from classical stories and texts. 一石二鸟 (yī shí èr niǎo) = one stone two birds (kill two birds with one stone). 半途而废 (bàn tú ér fèi) = give up halfway. Understanding chengyu dramatically improves reading comprehension and sounds impressive in speech.
Chengyu — 成语 (chéngyǔ): four-character phrases from classical stories and texts. 一石二鸟 (yī shí èr niǎo) = one stone two birds (kill two birds with one stone). 半途而废 (bàn tú ér fèi) = give up halfway. Understanding chengyu dramatically improves reading comprehension and sounds impressive in speech.
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Negation — Bu and Mei
不 (bù) negates present and future. 没 (méi) negates past and 有 (yǒu). Use 不 by default.
The two main negation words in Mandarin and when to use each one
不 before most verbs. 没 before 有 (to have) and for completed actions.
不 (bù): general negation — negates most verbs, adjectives, and future actions. 我不去 = I am not going. 他不高 = He is not tall. 没 (méi): negates 有 (to have) — 我没有钱 = I don not have money. Also negates completed actions (where 了 would appear in the positive). 我没吃 = I did not eat. Tone change: 不 is normally 4th tone but becomes 2nd tone (bú) before another 4th tone word.
不 (bù)
General negation — present, future, adjectives, most verbs
Essential location words — always follow the noun they describe
Location words come AFTER the noun in Mandarin — the opposite of English prepositions
Structure: Noun + location word + 面/边 (optional). 桌子上 = on the table (table-on). 箱子里 = inside the box (box-inside). With 在: subject + 在 + place + location word. 书在桌子上 = The book is on the table. 在 (zài) marks location — always before the place. Common pairs: 上下 (up/down), 里外 (inside/outside), 前后 (front/back), 左右 (left/right).
Two 3rd tones in a row: first one becomes 2nd tone. 3+3 → 2+3. 你好 (nǐ hǎo) is actually pronounced níhǎo.
Tone sandhi — how tones change when certain tones appear together
This is why 你好 sounds like níhǎo even though both characters are individually 3rd tone
The most important tone sandhi rule: when two 3rd tone syllables appear together, the first changes to 2nd tone. 你好 (nǐ hǎo) → pronounced níhǎo. 也许 (yě xǔ) → yéxǔ. Three 3rd tones: first two become 2nd, last stays 3rd. 不 (bù) tone change: 不 is 4th tone but becomes 2nd (bú) before another 4th tone. 一 (yī) changes: 2nd tone before 4th, 4th tone before 1st/2nd/3rd. Pinyinized pinyin in dictionaries shows original tones, not sandhi.
3+3 → 2+3
First 3rd tone becomes 2nd — 你好 sounds like níhǎo
不 change
不 (4th) becomes bú (2nd) before any 4th tone word
一 change
一 (1st) becomes 2nd before 4th, 4th before 1st/2nd/3rd
Radicals are building blocks of characters — knowing them unlocks meaning and pronunciation clues
Recognizing radicals lets you guess the meaning and sometimes the pronunciation of unfamiliar characters
Semantic radicals hint at meaning: 氵(water) appears in 河 river, 海 sea, 游 swim, 泳 swim. 木 (tree/wood) in 树 tree, 桌 table, 椅 chair. 口 (mouth) in 吃 eat, 喝 drink, 说 speak, 唱 sing. Phonetic component: the other part of many characters hints at pronunciation. 请 (qǐng), 清 (qīng), 情 (qíng), 晴 (qíng) — all share the qing sound from 青. Knowing radicals reduces the learning burden from thousands of random shapes to recognizable patterns.
Phonetic clueThe non-radical part often hints at pronunciation
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比 Comparison Structure
A 比 B + adjective: A is more [adj] than B. No word for "more" — just put the adjective directly after 比.
The 比 (bǐ) comparison structure — the standard way to say one thing is more than another
Never use 更 (more) in a 比 sentence — the adjective alone expresses the comparison
Structure: A 比 B + adjective. 我比他高 = I am taller than him (I compare-to him tall). 今天比昨天冷 = Today is colder than yesterday. Negation: A 没有 B + adjective = A is not as [adj] as B. 我没有他高 = I am not as tall as him. Equality: A 跟 B 一样 + adjective = A is as [adj] as B. 他跟我一样高 = He is as tall as me. Common mistake: saying 比他更高 — the 更 is redundant and sounds unnatural.