@HackingChinese

Tips and strategies for how to learn Mandarin more efficiently. For learning resources sorted by level, topic and type, see @ChineseLinks.

 Stockholm, Sweden
hackingchinese.com
Joined September 2011
  • Tweets19.5K
  • Following228
  • Followers18.1K
3.8KMedia
New article and podcast episode: How to stop translating in your head and start thinking in Chinese: hackingchinese.com/how-to-st… #learnchinese #speaking #translation #listening

How to stop translating in your head and start thinking in Chinese

Translating everything in your head makes speaking and listening to Chinese slow and difficult. Here’s why it happens, and how to stop doing it and start thinking in Chinese instead.

hackingchinese.com
1
1
2
358
Why are you learning Chinese, and is your answer the same today as when you started? Survey where you can tell me why you're learning Chinese: forms.gle/jXZ1NnBtPfoSgUnXA Podcast where I discuss my motivations: hackingchinese.com/what-are-… #learnchinese #motivation #why #survey

Why are you learning Chinese?

This survey is about why people learn Mandarin Chinese. In particular, I’m interested in two questions: why you started learning Chinese, and why you continue learning Chinese today. These can be...

docs.google.com
2
3
233
New article and podcast episode: How to get the most out of your first semester of Chinese: hackingchinese.com/the-key-t… #learnchinese #course #semester

How to get the most out of your first semester of Chinese

Taking a Chinese course is a great way to get started, but following the syllabus alone can leave important gaps. Here’s how to avoid unnecessary detours and make your first semester count.

hackingchinese.com
1
1
3
285
New podcast episode: The forking path: A human approach to learning Chinese: hackingchinese.com/the-forki… #learnchinese #goals #approach

The forking path: A human approach to learning Chinese

Top-down, project management style learning often fails for a number of reasons, but there are alternative, softer approaches to learning Chinese. In this article, I introduce one such approach that...

hackingchinese.com
1
307
New article and podcast episode: Beginner Chinese listening practice: What to listen to and how: hackingchinese.com/beginner-… #learnchinese #beginner #listening #comprehensibleinput

Beginner Chinese listening practice: What to listen to and how

The best way to learn to understand spoken Mandarin is to listen as much as you can to engaging content you can make sense of without looking things up. In this article, I go through the best types...

hackingchinese.com
1
296
My storytelling game is now on Amazon! Nostalgia is a storytelling game for 2+ players. Play old, retired heroes who have lost much of their greatness, and some of their wits, but still remember the thrilling adventures and epic journeys of their youth. link.amazon/B06GxrfJ7
1
1
2
283
New article and podcast episode: No, ChatGPT can't analyse your Mandarin pronunciation: hackingchinese.com/no-chatgp… #learnchinese #pronunciation #chatgpt

No, ChatGPT can't analyse your Mandarin pronunciation

ChatGPT can offer valuable feedback on Mandarin word choice and grammar, but can it help you improve your pronunciation?

hackingchinese.com
5
296
I’ve now set up the Hacking Chinese Challenges for the rest of the year! Each starts on the 10th and runs for three weeks, with a different focus each month. September: Mimicking October: Listening November: Vocabulary December: Reading challenges.hackingchinese.co… #learnchinese
418
Replying to @gianfrancocont9
@gianfrancocont9 Hi! I'm a long-time user and proponent of your books for professional development purposes here in Sweden. Thank you! I have a question: You used to have a great blog post discussing creative products, but it's no longer available. Was this intentional? [1/2]
3
1
380
@gianfrancocont9 I'm talking about the post "Redefining ‘creativity’ in the foreign language classroom," which used to be available here gianfrancoconti.com/2015/07/…. I refer to it in one of my courses, and while I could use the Internet Archive, I thought I'd ask you![2/2]

Redefining ‘creativity’ in the foreign language classroom

I was taking part in a Twitter slow chat a while ago when someone started to wear their use of creativity in the classroom as a badge of honour. Worksheets should be ditched and one has to find way…

gianfrancoconti.com
1
58
Hacking Chinese contains over a million words about how to learn Mandarin better. I’ve distilled the most useful information and advice into four courses. Get $31 off any course or $128 off when buying 3, through September 9! hackingchinese.com/courses/ #learnchinese #discount

Courses on Hacking Chinese

This page lists all available courses on Hacking Chinese.

hackingchinese.com
1
1
2
420
New article and podcast episode: How to nail dictation tests in Chinese: A guide to 听写/聽寫 (tīngxǐe): hackingchinese.com/how-to-na… #learnchinese #dictation #tingxie #test #chinesecharacters #hanzi

How to nail dictation tests in Chinese: The ultimate guide to 听写/聽寫 (tīngxiě)

Dictation tests, or 听写/聽寫 (tīngxiě), are common in Chinese courses, but many students struggle with them. Here is a guide for how to nail any dictation test!

hackingchinese.com
236
New article and podcast episode: Communicative handwriting: Writing Chinese with a real purpose: hackingchinese.com/learning-… #learnchinese #characters #hanzi #handwriting #communication

Communicative handwriting: Writing Chinese with a real purpose

Flashcards can teach you to write Chinese characters, but they can be boring and hide problems. Communicative handwriting is more engaging and prepares you for real-world tasks.

hackingchinese.com
1
329
New article and podcast episode: How to create mnemonics for general, abstract or overlapping character components: hackingchinese.com/how-to-cr… #learnchinese #mnemonics #characters #components #vocabulary

How to create mnemonics for general, abstract or overlapping character components

Mountains, trees and rocks are easy to use in mnemonics. But what do you do with character components whose meanings are general, abstract or overlapping?

hackingchinese.com
1
3
313
New podcast episode: Why you should listen to the Hacking Chinese Podcast: hackingchinese.com/podcast/ This also means The Hacking Chinese Podcast is in its 7th year of weekly episodes! #learnchinese #podcast #hackingchinese

Hacking Chinese Podcast

This page contains a list of all episodes of the Hacking Chinese Podcast.

hackingchinese.com
1
1
7
3,440
New article and podcast episode: The Chinese iceberg: Why speaking more isn’t enough to speak better: hackingchinese.com/the-chine… #learnchinese #speaking #input #iceberg

The Chinese iceberg: Why speaking more isn’t enough to speak better

90% of an iceberg is underwater, yet we mostly pay attention to the bit that sticks up. The same is true for proficiency in Chinese: speaking ability is easy to see, but relies on a much larger...

hackingchinese.com
338
New book: Hacking Chinese: The Snake Collection: hackingchinese.com/new-book-… #learnchinese #anthology #hackingchinese #snake

New book: Hacking Chinese: The Snake Collection

I have published a book! It's called Hacking Chinese: The Snake Collection and contains articles I wrote in 2025, the Year of the Snake. The articles cover a wide variety of topics, but characters,...

hackingchinese.com
2
1
3
769
New article and podcast episode: 30 minutes of podcast, 3 minutes of Chinese: hackingchinese.com/30-minute… #learnchinese #listening #podcast #english #input

30 minutes of podcast, 3 minutes of Chinese

Most learners know they should “listen more”, but what they listen to matters. To improve, you need to make sense of spoken Mandarin, not listen to people explain Mandarin in English.

hackingchinese.com
206
New podcast episode: Dealing with Chinese characters you keep mixing up: hackingchinese.com/dealing-w… #learnchinese #characters #vocabulary #forgetting

Dealing with Chinese characters you keep mixing up

The more Chinese characters you learn, the harder it becomes to keep similar characters distinct. If you're not careful, a pair or group of characters can generate a lot of extra work and frustrati...

hackingchinese.com
1
2
233
New article and podcast episode: How much Chinese should you listen to every day? hackingchinese.com/how-much-… Question for you: How much Chinese do you listen to each day, on average? #learnchinese #listening #time #practice #immersion

How much Chinese should you listen to every day?

Listening is the most important skill. To improve your listening ability in Chinese, you need to listen a lot, but how much should you listen every day?

hackingchinese.com
1
2
433
New article and podcast episode: How technology can stop you from learning Chinese: hackingchinese.com/technolog… #learnchinese #technology #traps #ai

How technology can stop you from learning Chinese

Technology can make learning Chinese easier, but only if it helps you engage more with the language. Used poorly, the same tools can get in the way of learning instead of supporting it.

hackingchinese.com
1
364
Load more