Start Here · Your Zero-Beginner Guide to Learning Chinese

Hanyu ABC — Free Chinese Learning for Beginners: Pinyin, Tones, Characters and Quizzes

What Is Chinese? 汉语是什么

When people say "Chinese", they usually mean Mandarin (普通话 pǔtōnghuà) — the official language of China (including its Taiwan region) and Singapore, spoken by well over a billion people. 人们说的"中文"通常指普通话，是中国（包括中国台湾地区）和新加坡的官方语言，超过十亿人使用。

Unlike English, Chinese is a tone language: the same syllable said with a different pitch means a different word. For example mā means "mother" but mǎ means "horse". 中文是声调语言：同一个音节，声调不同意思就不同。

Chinese writing uses characters (汉字 hànzì) — about 3,500 are needed for daily life, but you only need a few hundred to start reading simple signs and messages. 中文用汉字书写，日常约需 3500 字，但认识几百个就能读懂简单内容。

Is It Hard? 中文难吗

The Good News 好消息

  • Only ~400 syllables — Chinese has very few distinct sounds compared with English. 音节只有约 400 个，比英语少得多。
  • No grammar conjugations — verbs never change tense, no gender, no plural endings. 没有时态变化、没有性别、没有复数变形。
  • Logical word order — Subject-Verb-Object, just like English. 主谓宾语序和英语一样。

The Challenge 挑战

  • The four tones — the only really new thing for beginners, but they are easy to hear with practice. 四个声调是新手最大的挑战，但练习后很容易分辨。
  • Characters — look strange at first, but they are built from a small set of parts. 汉字初看陌生，但由少量部件构成。

Bottom line: Spoken Chinese is easy; reading characters just takes time. Start with the sounds first. 一句话：口语容易，认字需要时间。先从声音开始。

The Six-Step Path 六步学习路径

Follow this order and you will make steady, real progress. 按这个顺序，稳步前进。

  1. 1

    Learn Pinyin 学拼音

    Pinyin is how every Chinese sound is written in the Latin alphabet — your key to pronunciation. Start here → 拼音用拉丁字母记录每个中文发音，是读音的钥匙。

  2. 2

    Master the Four Tones 掌握四声调

    The four musical pitches that change a word's meaning. Practise tones → 四个"音乐调"决定字义。

  3. 3

    Recognize Characters 认识汉字

    Learn characters the smart way: picture characters, meaning radicals and combinations — not by memorizing strokes. Start recognizing → 用象形、偏旁、会意的规律快速识字，不必死记笔画。

  4. 4

    Build Everyday Words 积累词语

    Start with greetings, numbers, family and food — a few words every day, always spoken out loud. 从问候、数字、家庭、食物开始，每天学几个，大声读出来。

  5. 5

    Build Sentences 学习句型

    Chinese grammar is simple — subject + verb + object, just like English. Start with short phrases. 中文语法简单，主谓宾和英语一样，从短句开始。

  6. 6

    Use It Every Day 日常使用

    15 minutes a day beats long, irregular sessions. 每天 15 分钟，胜过偶尔突击几小时。

Questions Beginners Ask 零基础常见问题

Do I need to learn characters before I can speak? 开口说之前必须先学汉字吗？

No. You can speak Chinese using only pinyin. Many learners speak for months before tackling characters. 不需要。只用拼音就能开口说中文，很多人学了好几个月才开始认字。

How long does it take to have a basic conversation? 多久能进行简单对话？

With 15 minutes a day, most people can handle simple greetings and orders in 2–3 months. 每天 15 分钟，大多数人 2–3 个月就能进行简单问候和点餐。

Should I learn simplified or traditional characters? 学简体还是繁体？

Simplified characters (简体字) are used in mainland China and Singapore; traditional (繁体字) in China's Taiwan region and Hong Kong, China. Start with simplified — it is used by the most people. 简体字用于中国大陆和新加坡，繁体用于中国台湾和中国香港。建议先学简体，使用人数最多。

Why do some syllables sound the same? 为什么有些音节听起来一样？

Chinese has only ~400 syllables, so tones distinguish meaning. mā (mother) and mǎ (horse) sound alike except for the tone. 中文只有约 400 个音节，所以靠声调区分字义。

Ready to Begin? 准备好开始了吗

It takes five minutes to learn your first pinyin sound. Tap the button below. 五分钟就能学会第一个拼音，点击下方按钮开始。

Start Learning 开始学习 Jump to Characters 直接学汉字