How Chinese Works: A Clear Map of the Language

The big picture

Most learners are told that Chinese is hard. It is different, and different in a few specific ways that you can learn one at a time. Here is the whole map before you start walking it.

1. Sound: every syllable has a tone, and tones tell words apart. See Chinese tones.
2. Writing: Chinese is written in characters, not letters; pinyin shows the pronunciation. See Chinese characters and words.
3. Words: most everyday words are built from one or two characters, like small building blocks.
4. Grammar: no verb endings, no plurals and no genders. Word order and a handful of small words do the work. See Chinese word order.

No verb endings, no plurals, no genders

A Chinese verb has one form. 去 means go, goes, went and gone. Who does it is shown by the subject, and when it happens by a time word or a particle. Nouns do not change for plural either: 书 is book or books, and a number or context tells you how many.

• 我昨天去学校。

  Wǒ zuótiān qù xuéxiào.

  I went to school yesterday.

  昨天 says when; 去 does not change.

• 我明天去学校。

  Wǒ míngtiān qù xuéxiào.

  I'll go to school tomorrow.

• 我有三本书。

  Wǒ yǒu sān běn shū.

  I have three books.

  书 does not change for the plural; 三本 shows the number.

Word order carries the meaning

The basic order is subject + verb + object, as in English. Two rules cover most differences: time and place come before the verb, and anything that describes a noun comes before that noun.

• 我今天在家吃饭。

  Wǒ jīntiān zài jiā chī fàn.

  I'm eating at home today.

  Subject, time, place, then the action.

• 很大的房子

  hěn dà de fángzi

  a very big house

  The describer 很大 comes first, joined by 的.

Full guide: Chinese word order.

Small words do big jobs

Where English changes a word, Chinese often adds a small one. 吗 makes a question, 了 shows that something has happened or changed, 过 that you have done it before, and 的 links a describer to a noun. Measure words stand between numbers and nouns.

• 你喝茶吗？

  Nǐ hē chá ma?

  Do you drink tea?

• 我吃了。

  Wǒ chī le.

  I've eaten.

• 两个朋友

  liǎng ge péngyou

  two friends

Guides: particles and separable verbs and measure words.

Words are built from characters

Once you know a few hundred characters, new words start to explain themselves. 火 is fire and 车 is vehicle, so 火车 is a train; 电 is electricity, so 电话 (telephone) and 电视 (television) share an obvious family resemblance.

• 火车

  huǒchē

  train

• 电视

  diànshì

  television

Later on: the topic comes first

As your level rises you will meet sentences that start with what they are about, then comment on it. This topic-comment structure feels natural once you notice it, but you can leave it until around HSK 3.

• 这本书我看过。

  Zhè běn shū wǒ kànguo.

  This book, I've read (it).

Common beginner mistakes

• Not: 我是很忙。

  But: 我很忙。 Wǒ hěn máng.

  Adjectives describe the subject directly; they do not take 是.

• Not: 我去学校明天。

  But: 我明天去学校。 Wǒ míngtiān qù xuéxiào.

  Time goes before the verb.

• Not: 三书

  But: 三本书 sān běn shū

  A number needs a measure word before the noun.

Practice

1. Grammar

   Which sentence means "I'm busy"?

   1. 我很忙。
   2. 我是很忙。
   3. 我是忙。
   Show the answer

   Answer: A, 我很忙。.

   An adjective follows the subject directly, usually with 很: 我很忙.

2. Grammar

   How does Chinese show that 我去学校 happened yesterday?

   1. by adding the time word 昨天
   2. by changing the verb 去
   3. by adding an ending to 学校
   Show the answer

   Answer: A, by adding the time word 昨天.

   Verbs do not change. A time word such as 昨天 says when: 我昨天去学校.

3. Meaning

   火 is fire and 车 is vehicle. What is 火车?

   1. a train
   2. a fire engine
   3. a bicycle
   Show the answer

   Answer: A, a train.

   The "fire vehicle" is the steam train, and the word stayed: 火车 is any train.

4. Word order

   Build: "I'm eating at home today."

   • 吃饭
   • 在家
   • 今天
   • 我
   Show the answer

   我今天在家吃饭 Wǒ jīntiān zài jiā chī fàn.

   I'm eating at home today.

   Subject, time, place, action: 我 + 今天 + 在家 + 吃饭.

Where to go next

Start with HSK 1: it walks through tones, first characters and the core sentence patterns with practice on every step. Then read a short story from the story library to see the patterns in action.