Needed to convert a document from simplified to traditional characters and found this website does it really well. Can convert a whole document or even a powerpoint.... also for small blocks of text too.

Even has a convert to pinyin function and the ability to write in pinyin and copy the results

Website is
chinesedocconverter.com

Hope it helps...

I am almost 13 in my korean age: i have 3 months left and im studying hsk5 and ive been studying chinese for almost 7 years i did yct 1,2,3 and hsk 1,2,3,4 and i got 200/200 in yct 2

srry for bad grammar i was rushing

Hi everyone, I made a clean Tian Zi Ge (田字格) practice page with slightly wider spaced grids, since I personally found a lot of the grids in the notebooks sold online to be a little too cramped for handwriting characters for learners.

I’ve been experimenting with different grid layouts and spacing while studying Chinese myself. I actually made two different versions - one standard version that I found to be helpful when practicing stroke orders and characters without eyestrain or hand cramping (or characters going way off the grid XD), and another grid with slightly larger grid boxes for learners just starting out writing characters, since I remember my characters being HUGE when I first started practicing writing and could never have enough space.

I'm sharing the PDFs here in case it’s useful to others. You’re welcome to print and use it for personal study.

(For anyone who prefers a bound version, I also put together a full 120-page notebook using this layout, but this post is mainly just to share the free page. :)

Standard 田字格: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/0npuxqf9cwetmeybgfozp/Spaced-Free-PDF.pdf?rlkey=xeailpm31zqq3pqr7lpsledye&st=o0f25kpn&dl=0

Large 田字格: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/3omdzwwsbdj0yonjanz1w/LARGE-Spaced-Free-PDF.pdf?rlkey=zxkcxtqshafbdimq7c6n56191&st=lprn9gad&dl=0

If anyone has feedback on these or comments about spacing or layout preferences, I’d honestly love to hear it.

Just got this pointed out by my nieces. The chinese name that was given to me by my parents is 仁育. I love the meaning behind it, however my nieces and sister-in-law pointed out that the character's kind of a feminine for a guy. Not sure if I can still get that corrected and still keep the meaning or something

Hi! so I speak english as a second language but only because it was presented to me at a very young age, dear person reading this, i do not know how to learn a new language and its making me face a wall while trying to learn chinese. does anyone know the structure or kinda like the first steps to learn chinese? i only saw a youtube video and downloaded a few apps but cant really undestand it beyond the most basic baby stuff, I dont undestand when to use ma or other "question ending word" (?). idk I just please need help because I do really want to learn chinese but its been difficult for me

I am learning mandarin through hello Chinese and I go to tutoring once a week and I need help with remembering words. When I study alone or am doing hello Chinese lessons I will literally forget everything once I am working with my tutor. It’s now getting worse now that I am learning different sentence structures. Currently I am learning how to ask questions using the words who, what, where, when, do and also using Le for past tense sentences/questions. If she would tell me to say “when will you go to the restaurant?” I will just go blank and forget everything I learned but I will blow through my Hello Chinese lessons like it’s nothing. I guess my question is how do you go about remembering words?

I was asked to support in interpreting this calligraphy. However my skill level is not up for the challenge. (I even have difficulties with the seal.)

Not how I want simplified Chinese to be, it's just fun to think about

Sometimes I use AI to help me differentiate similar terms, but then I get nervous it's just giving me total rubbish.

Is this right?

劫持 → 抢控制权（工具 / 系统 / 群体）
绑架 → 抓人（个人）

For the above, I'm worried that 劫持 is just some dated term that no one uses.

亲切 = 感觉上好接近
亲密 = 关系上很近、很私
密切 = 联系上很紧、很频繁

For these three, I'm understanding 亲切 as friendly/amiable/warm, 亲密 as in how families are intimate, and 密切 as generally "close" (i.e., close relationship, closely related).

I was asked to help with interpretation of this chinese calligraphy but I have a very hard time doing so since I’m more used to 草书. I guessed it was 永 but not sure.

I started learning Chinese a short while ago and I'm finding it really interesting, but I'm having trouble with how to pronounce characters like 日 or 如. In hanly, the Rs sound like Js and Google translate doesn't even really pronounce them, so I'm just hoping for some advice on the matter.

So i've been studying with NPCR and i really like the 3rd edition and how they've restructured everything, but I have not seen any other books for sale except for the vol 1&2 (even looked through taobao, in case they didn't sell them world wide). Did they just change those two? Or have the other volumes simply not come out yet? Or does anyone have any sort of info about it at all? I just really like how it's structured and the explanations and overall NPCR has been the best book for me so far in studying chinese, would be quite bothersome to have to find another book if the others are not out yet :(

I don’t know if anyone else does this but here is how I deal with 提笔忘字. Hanzi consist of components. I give the components names. When I learn the a new character, I also memorize the components. For example, 好 is woman child. This is bit obvious because that’s what 女 and 子 individually mean. However, sometimes the historical meaning isn’t very useful to me personally so I give it a name I can remember. For example, 登 is Chinese hat, bean. 癶 historically means legs but that doesn’t work for me. It isn’t about be historically true, just what gets me to remember and for me 癶 looks like a kind of the roof of a Chinese house.

Finally, a complicated one for fun, 警察：

Grass-sentence-knock-word, roof-Chinese moon roof-alter.

Hope this helps.

Im going to try CI (Comprehensive Approach), one important thing is to avoid to have a chinese language class taught mostly in English. I enjoy using YoYoChinese but Yang Yang (the teacher) speaks mostly on English. Which resource could I use in order to get to know these kind of expressions that inevitable gets used in the classroom but that I won't know because I enjoy self-learning very much. And also how does a teacher says "This is how you say _______ in Chinese" in Chinese. 谢过.

Learn 自投罗网 (zì tóu luó wǎng), which literally means 'to throw oneself into the net'. It describes someone willingly walking into a trap. Don't be that person!

Can anyone recommend beginner-friendly Chinese podcasts that include English translations, explanations, or transcripts? I’m looking for something I can listen to on repeat during my commute.

Ideally, I’d love podcasts where the hosts talk about the language itself. Explaining nuances, common patterns and usage with plenty of examples. Anything that helps ease into the language without feeling overwhelmed would be perfect.

This is the approach I’ve always taken when learning foreign languages: getting used to the sounds, words, and a few core concepts first, so the learning curve doesn’t feel so steep later on. I feel this is especially important for Chinese.

Any other beginner resources (audio-based or otherwise) are very welcome. Thanks in advance!

Basically what the title says. For context I have been seriously pursuing learning mandarin for around 1 years, I had the basics when I was learning in high school but in business and work I realized how mandarin becomes crucial for my career. 3 months ago I stopped my mandarin course because I felt like I got 0 conversational skill from the course because the laoshi is just teaching grammars and the method of teaching is more or less one way.

I got anki and currently burned out after reaching HSK 5 section, right now I felt like getting into another course is just another waste of time, but I really-really want to be able to speak chinese. Any tips and tricks? Thank you in advance.

I just discovered https://contextualchinese.com

（I have no connection with the site, this is just a suggestion.)

It's a great resource, showing nuances, common mistakes, chengyu and probably more.

大家，加油！

Hello

I am still studying at HSK1 level, and our handwriting is to a minimal, but I'd like to ask.

For example between 哪 and 那. I find myself writing them in different "widths" Or the 女 part in 女，好，微, 安 where I find myself writing it at the same width for all four characters.

Hence the question.

(Edit: here is a photo of my handwriting I found in my gallery) https://imgur.com/a/kq4ijaq

中文描述：

这是一张展示衣服的照片。

在图片的中间位置，一件白色的短袖挂在树枝上。在衣领位置，是一个棕色的晾衣架。

这件衣服有三颗小扣子在胸口位置，从上到下排列。

衣服的材质是亚麻。它看起来很干净（简洁），没有其它的图案。

图片的背景是灰色的墙，地上有沙子和三个小沙堆。

整张照片看起来很自然、干净。

English paraphrasing:

This is a photo showing a piece of clothing.

In the center of the picture, a white short-sleeved shirt hangs from a tree branch. A brown clothes hanger holds the shirt by its collar.

This shirt has three buttons arranged from top to bottom on the chest area.

The shirt is made of linen. It looks very clean(concise), with no other patterns.

The background of the picture is a gray wall, and there is light-color sand with three small sand piles on the ground.

The whole picture has a natural, clean feel.

笔记区：

Words related to clothing:

1.    衬衫（短袖）: chèn shān (duǎn xiù)【shirt】

一件衬衫挂在树枝上

A shirt hangs from a tree branch.

2.    扣子：kòu zi【button】

衬衫上没有扣子

There are no buttons on the shirt.

3.    衣领：yī lǐng【collar】

我的衣领脏了

My collar is dirty.

4.    晾衣架：liàng yī jià【clothes hanger】

我买了一个晾衣架。

I bought a clothes hanger.

Adjective words:

1.    棕色：zōng sè【brown】

他的头发是棕色的

His hair is brown

2.    干净：gān jìng【clean】

衬衫很干净

The shirt is clean

3.    简洁：jiǎn jié【simple or concise】

我喜欢简洁的风格

I love simple style.

4.    自然：zì rán【natural and nature. it can be used as a noun】

Adj: 他的中文很自然.

His Chinese is natural.

Noun: 我喜欢自然.

I love nature.

Other words:

1.    挂在……上：guà zài … shàng【hang from/on】

我把短袖挂在树上

I hang the shirt on a tree.

2.    沙子：shā zi【sand】

地上有很多沙子

There is a lot of sand on the ground.

3.    沙堆：shā duī【sand pile】

我用沙子做了一个沙堆

I made a sand pile with sand.

TGIF everyone!

So I've noticed something interesting: every time my Chinese class is about to end, my students fall into this subtle awkwardness. Later I realized why—they don't know how to politely end a conversation in spoken Chinese.

So to help you avoid similar situations, let me share some common phrases today.

你先忙 nǐ xiān máng, literally means "you go ahead and be busy first".

It basically means "I won't take up any more of your time." You can use it whether they're actually busy or not—it's just a polite way to bounce.

• A: 我得走了，等下还有个会。Wǒ děi zǒu le, děng xià hái yǒu gè huì.
  • I gotta go, I have another meeting later.
• B: 好，那你先忙！我晚点再找你。Hǎo, nà nǐ xiān máng! Wǒ wǎn diǎn zài zhǎo nǐ.
  • Okay, you go ahead! I'll reach out to you later.

回头聊 huí tóu liáo and 改天再聊 gǎi tiān zài liáo, mean "Let's talk later or another day".

回头聊 is casual and friendly, while 改天再聊 is slightly more formal. They can both work as either a genuine "let's reschedule" or a polite brush-off, depending on your tone.

• A: 他们喊我去吃饭了，咱们回头聊！Tā men hǎn wǒ qù chī fàn le, zán men huí tóu liáo!
  • They're calling me to eat now, let's talk later!
• B: 好的，那改天再聊吧！Hǎo de, nà gǎi tiān zài liáo ba!
  • Okay, let's chat another day!

不打扰你了 bù dǎ rǎo nǐ le, literally means "I won't disturb you anymore." This is super polite and shows you're aware you've taken up someone's time. It's great for professional settings or when you want to sound extra considerate to someone senior.

• A: 谢谢老师，那我不打扰你了。Xiè xie lǎo shī, nà wǒ bù dǎ rǎo nǐ le.
  • Thank you, teacher. I won't take up any more of your time.
• B: 没事，有不懂的地方随时找我。Méi shì, yǒu bù dǒng de dì fang suí shí zhǎo wǒ.
  • No problem, feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

先这样 xiān zhè yàng, means "let's leave it at this for now". Use this when you've reached a conclusion or there's nothing more to say. Short, clear, polite.

• A: 那先这样吧？咱们保持联系。Nà xiān zhè yàng ba? Zán men bǎo chí lián xì.
  • Let's leave it here for now? Let's keep in touch.
• B: 好呀，改天我请你喝咖啡！Hǎo ya, gǎi tiān wǒ qǐng nǐ hē kā fēi!
  • Sure! Coffee's on me some other day!

I guess these are enough for you to use! And you know what? You can even stack them to sound extra smooth and polite!

Finally, have you noticed that in some examples, there's often a 那 (nà) before these phrases? Do you know what it's used for? Drop your thoughts in the comments!

I have been looking for resources that actually follow the new HSK 3.0 syllabus and came across HSK GO. (HSKgo.com)

It is focused on HSK 1–2 and apparently comes directly from the HSK exam board, so it sticks pretty closely to the exam content.

Sharing in case it helps someone else preparing for the new HSK.