Good ways to learn Chinese?

[krwell]

Hey guys whats a good way to learn chinese?... without going to China or moving to a China town. I'm dating a chinese girl and sooner or later I'm going to meet her family who mainly speak chinese.

 

[gopunk]

eh i dunno, unless you're willing to dedicate a sh!tload of time to it, i wouldn't try. most people end up with skills where chinese people just smile and nod, not knowing what the hell he/she was saying. i have seen some non-chinese people speak really good chinese, but it's because they're majoring in it or something.

 

[virtuamike]

I agree. Just give it up. You'd be amazed at how well some Chinese people speak English.

 

[krwell]

yea but there has to be a good way?

 

[gopunk]

<< yea but there has to be a good way? >>



okay, if i had to recommend something, it would to learn from a chinese person. i dunno where you are, but if there is a good chinese program at a university close by, maybe take it from there. or maybe even hire a private tutor. basically you want a real person who can speak it. i don't think it's possible to learn from a book or website or whatever.

 

[pillage2001]

<< I agree. Just give it up. You'd be amazed at how well some Chinese people speak English. >>



Are you talking about me??

 

[Bluga]

chinese girl

 

[pillage2001]

<< Hey guys whats a good way to learn chinese?... without going to China or moving to a China town. I'm dating a chinese girl and sooner or later I'm going to meet her family who mainly speak chinese. >>



Do you even know a least bit???

 

[krwell]

i know known... not even a word of chinese

 

[pillage2001]

<< i know known... not even a word of chinese >>



You're screwed. Try asking her to teach you?? What kinda chinese are we talking about?? Mandarin? Cantonese?? Some older dialects??

 

[krwell]

My girlfriend speaks Cantonese, and her parents speak both Mandarin, and Cantonese. She thinks they are going to have a big problem with me since I'm not chinese.

 

[gopunk]

<< My girlfriend speaks Cantonese, and her parents speak both Mandarin, and Cantonese. She thinks they are going to have a big problem with me since I'm not chinese. >>



ehehe... i hate to break it to you but speaking it doesn't make you chinese

sounds like you want to learn cantonese then? since that seems to be the main language. anyways, my advice remains the same, get a tutor or take a good class on it. actually a tutor might be best, since classes will make you learn how to read and write, and it sounds like all you need is conversational skills.

 

[pillage2001]

<< My girlfriend speaks Cantonese, and her parents speak both Mandarin, and Cantonese. She thinks they are going to have a big problem with me since I'm not chinese. >>



If that's the case. I don't think you can learn chinese that soon. Ask her to teach to speak a few polite words. I'm pretty sure the parents understand english???

 

[Ionizer86]

I agree. Just give it up. You'd be amazed at how well some Chinese people speak English.

LOL, I'm Chinese and I speak English.

Anyway, it's not worth the time you want to devote. Even after like 20 years, few English people can master Chinese well enough to sound Chinese (You know, those situations where others don't see your face, but they listen to your Chinese).

In addition, why learn Cantonese? IMHO, Cantonese is losing popularity. Almost every Chinese person understands Mandarin...but Cantonese....eh....uh....um....not that many people speak Cantonese.

 

[krwell]

Mandarin is fine with me

 

[atom]

Coming from a Chinese family, trust me, you knowing Chinese is not gonna smooth things over with the family. If that is the only reason for you to learn Chinese, give it up.

Take 10 minutes to learn the basics (Hello, Thank You, This dog is delicious.......) and hope for the best.

 

[OS]

Don't bother. Chinese is so different from english that if you haven't had atleast some childhood exposure, you are screwed. No verb tenses, 25 strokes a character, tens of thousands of unique characters. It's a battle that was lost before it even began.

 

[habib89]

<<My girlfriend speaks Cantonese, and her parents speak both Mandarin, and Cantonese. She thinks they are going to have a big problem with me since I'm not chinese. >>

well i also think her parents would have a problem with you since you're not chinese... but whatever.. if you two are good with each other, then so be it... as for the speaking, since your girlfriend only speaks cantonese, then try to learn cantonese.. just look to your local community college, or university...

 

[PeeluckyDuckee]

cantonese is hard, not as easy as abc's 123's I'm asian and have done self-study writing and reading chinese since 8 or 9. I'm 22 now, can barely write chinese, but can read some of it and recognize many characters when I see it. Its way different from english. Takes a lot of time to become decent at writing and speaking the language. Best advice would be to find yourself a tutor and know the general things like greetings.

 

[krwell]

wow this looks like a losing battle

 

[Unsickle]

I'd agree with most of the statements before. I think it's too difficult for an adult westerner to learn to speak Chinese well. You'll have an accent that's almost too difficult to understand. And good luck understanding what Chinese people say, because we talk fast and there's a HUGE variation in how people speak.

 

[Unsickle]

oh, and did I mention synonyms up the wazoo?

mai3 = buy
mai4 = sell

 

[toant103]

go to chinatown

 

[luvya]

and nobody is asking pics?
PICS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[pillage2001]

<< wow this looks like a losing battle >>



It was never a battle, you would win, to begin with.