HSK 1–3 | 怎么开始用中文思考？| How to Start Thinking in Chinese
HSK 1–3 | 怎么开始用中文思考？| How to Start Thinking in Chinese
简介 / Introduction
在这期节目中，小月和小明讨论“翻译脑”为什么会让口语和听力变慢，以及学习者怎样逐步建立中文与真实世界之间的直接连接。节目围绕声调、汉字与拼音、量词三个中文学习难点，分享了小句子思考、合适的语言输入和自言自语三种实用方法。
In this episode, XiaoYue and XiaoMing explore why the “translation brain” slows down speaking and listening, and how learners can build a direct connection between Chinese and real life. They discuss tones, characters and pinyin, measure words, then share three practical methods: thinking in small sentences, using suitable input, and talking to yourself.
目录 / Table of Contents
✅ 要点 / Key Takeaways
• “翻译脑”会在理解和表达之间增加一道中间步骤，使口语变慢，也让听力更难跟上。
The translation brain adds an extra processing step, slowing speaking and making listening harder to follow.
• 学习中文时要保存“完整版本”：声调属于词，汉字、发音和意思要连接，量词要和名词一起学。
Store the complete version of Chinese: tones belong to words, characters connect with sound and meaning, and measure words should be learned with nouns.
• 从生活中的小句子开始，让眼睛、动作、经历和中文建立直接连接。
Start with small sentences from daily life so that what you see, do, and experience connects directly to Chinese.
• 输入要适合自己的程度；能理解大约七八成，比完全听不懂的“沉浸”更有效。
Use input that matches your level; understanding roughly 70–80% is more useful than “immersion” you cannot follow.
• 自言自语可以同时训练思考、发音和听觉；想不到某个词时，要学会换一种说法继续表达。
Self-talk trains thought, pronunciation, and listening together; when a word is missing, paraphrase and keep going.
• 规律比强度更重要；保持耐心，允许犯错，并让中文进入真实而有趣的生活。
Consistency matters more than intensity. Stay patient, allow mistakes, and make Chinese part of a real and enjoyable life.
使用方法 / How to Use This File
1. 先完整听一遍，不看文本。
Listen once without reading.
2. 第二遍看中文；需要时再看拼音。
On the second listen, read the Chinese and use pinyin only when needed.
3. 用英文确认意思，再回到中文重听。
Check the meaning in English, then return to the Chinese and listen again.
4. 选三到五句话大声跟读，并改成和自己生活有关的句子。
Shadow three to five sentences aloud and adapt them to your own life.
文本 / Full Transcript
Each dialogue turn includes Chinese, pinyin, and English. Speaker names are preserved from the original recording script.
A. Opening — are you thinking in Chinese right now?
小明 · XiaoMing
小月，我来问你一个问题——你现在脑子里在想什么？就是，这个问题刚出来的时候，你脑子里的第一反应是什么？
PINYIN Xiǎoyuè, wǒ lái wèn nǐ yī gè wèntí — nǐ xiànzài nǎozi lǐ zài xiǎng shénme? Jiùshì, zhège wèntí gāng chūlái de shíhòu, nǐ nǎozi lǐ de dì yī fǎnyìng shì shénme?
EN XiaoYue, let me ask you something — what's going through your head right now? When I just asked that question, what was your first reaction?
小月 · XiaoYue
嗯……我想的是'这是什么奇怪的问题'，哈哈，而且我是用中文想的！没有经过英文，直接就是中文。
PINYIN Ǹg…… wǒ xiǎng de shì 'zhè shì shénme qíguài de wèntí', hāhā, érqiě wǒ shì yòng Zhōngwén xiǎng de! Méiyǒu jīngguò Yīngwén, zhíjiē jiùshì Zhōngwén.
EN Hmm… my thought was 'what a weird question', haha, and I was thinking it in Chinese! No English in between, just directly Chinese.
小明 · XiaoMing
对，这就是关键！欢迎大家来到宝宝中文——BaoBao Mandarin，我是小明。
PINYIN Duì, zhè jiùshì guānjiàn! Huānyíng dàjiā lái dào Bǎobao Zhōngwén — BaoBao Mandarin, wǒ shì Xiǎomíng.
EN Right — that's exactly the point! Welcome everyone to BaoBao Mandarin, I'm XiaoMing.
小月 · XiaoYue
我是小月，我在学中文——而且学了快三年了。今天我们来聊一个很多学中文的朋友都很关心的话题——怎么开始用中文思考，而不是在脑子里一直翻译。
PINYIN Wǒ shì Xiǎoyuè, wǒ zài xué Zhōngwén — érqiě xué le kuài sān nián le. Jīntiān wǒmen lái liáo yī gè hěnduō xué Zhōngwén de péngyǒu dōu hěn guānxīn de huàtí — zěnme kāishǐ yòng Zhōngwén sīkǎo, érbuShì zài nǎozi lǐ yīzhí fānyì.
EN I'm XiaoYue, and I'm a Chinese learner — nearly three years in. Today we're talking about something a lot of Chinese learners care about — how to start thinking in Chinese instead of constantly translating in your head.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，这个话题不只是关于中文，它关于你的大脑怎么处理一门新的语言。我作为母语者，来帮你分析一下，母语者的脑子里到底是怎么运作的。
PINYIN Ǹg, zhège huàtí bùzhǐ shì guānyú Zhōngwén, tā guānyú nǐ de dànǎo zěnme chǔlǐ yī mén xīn de yǔyán. Wǒ zuòwéi mǔyǔzhě, lái bāng nǐ fēnxī yīxià, mǔyǔzhě de nǎozi lǐ dàodǐ shì zěnme yùnzuò de.
EN Right, this topic isn't just about Chinese — it's about how your brain processes a new language. As a native speaker, let me help you analyse how a native speaker's brain actually works.
小月 · XiaoYue
对，而且我刚才说的那个——我用中文想了，没有翻译——不是一直都这样的。我刚开始学中文那段时间，脑子里的状态完全不一样。
PINYIN Duì, érqiě wǒ gāngcái shuō de nàgè — wǒ yòng Zhōngwén xiǎng le, méiyǒu fānyì — bùshì yīzhí dōu zhèyàng de. Wǒ gāng kāishǐ xué Zhōngwén nà duàn shíjiān, nǎozi lǐ de zhuàngtài wánquán bù yīyàng.
EN Right, and what I just described — thinking in Chinese without translating — wasn't always the case. When I first started studying Chinese, my brain was in a completely different state.
小明 · XiaoMing
怎么不一样？
PINYIN Zěnme bù yīyàng?
EN How so?
小月 · XiaoYue
有人问我'你叫什么名字'，我脑子里的过程是——先想英文：'My name is XiaoYue'，然后把每一个词翻成中文：'我'，'叫'，'小月'，然后排语序，检查声调——然后才说出来。你说这个过程快不快？
PINYIN Yǒurén wèn wǒ 'nǐ jiào shénme míngzi', wǒ nǎozi lǐ de guòchéng shì — xiān xiǎng Yīngwén: 'My name is XiaoYue', ránhòu bǎ měi yī gè cí fān chéng Zhōngwén: 'wǒ', 'jiào', 'Xiǎoyuè', ránhòu pái yǔxù, jiǎnchá shēngdiào — ránhòu cái shuō chūlái. Nǐ shuō zhège guòchéng kuài bù kuài?
EN If someone asked 'what's your name?', the process in my head was — first think in English: 'My name is XiaoYue', then translate each word to Chinese: 'wǒ', 'jiào', 'Xiǎoyuè', then arrange the word order, check the tones — and only then speak. Would you say that process is fast?
小明 · XiaoMing
哈，当然不快。那人家问完你，还要等好几秒你才能回答。
PINYIN Hā, dāngrán bù kuài. Nà rénjiā wèn wán nǐ, hái yào děng hǎo jǐ miǎo nǐ cái néng huídá.
EN Ha, of course not fast. After they ask you, they'd have to wait several seconds for your answer.
小月 · XiaoYue
对，而且我紧张，然后更慢，然后更紧张，就变成一个很痛苦的循环，哈哈。今天我们就来聊聊怎么打破这个循环。
PINYIN Duì, érqiě wǒ jǐnzhāng, ránhòu gèng màn, ránhòu gèng jǐnzhāng, jiù biàn chéng yī gè hěn tòngkǔ de xúnhuán, hāhā. Jīntiān wǒmen jiù lái liáoliao zěnme dǎpò zhège xúnhuán.
EN Right, and then I'd get nervous, which made me even slower, which made me more nervous — it became a painful cycle, haha. Today let's talk about how to break that cycle.
小月 · XiaoYue
好，在我们正式开始之前——如果你觉得这个话题对你有帮助，请给视频点个赞，然后订阅宝宝中文——BaoBao Mandarin！你的支持真的很重要，能帮助更多想学中文的朋友找到我们！
PINYIN Hǎo, zài wǒmen zhèngshì kāishǐ zhīqián — rúguǒ nǐ juédé zhège huàtí duì nǐ yǒu bāngzhù, qǐng gěi shìpín diǎn gè zàn, ránhòu dìngyuè Bǎobao Zhōngwén — BaoBao Mandarin! Nǐ de zhīchí zhēn de hěn zhòngyào, néng bāngzhù gèngduō xiǎng xué Zhōngwén de péngyǒu zhǎodào wǒmen!
EN Alright, before we officially start — if you find this topic helpful, please like the video and subscribe to BaoBao Mandarin! Your support really matters and helps more people who want to learn Chinese find us!
小明 · XiaoMing
好，我们开始！
PINYIN Hǎo, wǒmen kāishǐ!
EN Alright, let's start!
B. The problem: Translation brain
小明 · XiaoMing
小月，我先问你——你觉得在脑子里翻译，最大的问题是什么？
PINYIN Xiǎoyuè, wǒ xiān wèn nǐ — nǐ juédé zài nǎozi lǐ fānyì, zuìdà de wèntí shì shénme?
EN XiaoYue, let me ask you first — what do you think is the biggest problem with translating in your head?
小月 · XiaoYue
最直接的就是慢。我想说'今天天气很好'，但是脑子里要先找'today'对应什么，'weather'对应什么，'good'对应什么，然后还要排语序——因为中文的语序和英文不一样……说出来已经慢了三四秒了。
PINYIN Zuì zhíjiē de jiùshì màn. Wǒ xiǎng shuō 'jīntiān tiānqì hěn hǎo', dànshì nǎozi lǐ yào xiān zhǎo 'today' duìyìng shénme, 'weather' duìyìng shénme, 'good' duìyìng shénme, ránhòu hái yào pái yǔxù — yīnwèi Zhōngwén de yǔxù hé Yīngwén bù yīyàng…… shuō chūlái yǐjīng màn le sān sì miǎo le.
EN The most immediate problem is slowness. If I want to say 'the weather is really nice today', my brain has to first find what 'today' maps to, what 'weather' maps to, what 'good' maps to, and then arrange the word order — because Chinese word order is different from English… By the time I say it, it's already three or four seconds late.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，而且你说的语序这个问题，在中文里确实很明显。比如时间和地点，中文往往要先说，英文可以放在后面。'我今天上午在图书馆看了一本书'，中文是这个顺序，英文的顺序完全不一样。
PINYIN Ǹg, érqiě nǐ shuō de yǔxù zhège wèntí, zài Zhōngwén lǐ quèshí hěn míngxiǎn. Bǐrú shíjiān hé dìdiǎn, Zhōngwén wǎngwǎng yào xiān shuō, Yīngwén kěyǐ fàng zài hòumiàn. 'Wǒ jīntiān shàngwǔ zài túshūguǎn kàn le yī běn shū', Zhōngwén shì zhège shùnxù, Yīngwén de shùnxù wánquán bù yīyàng.
EN Right, and the word order issue you mentioned is very noticeable in Chinese. For example, time and place usually come first in Chinese, but can go at the end in English. 'I read a book at the library this morning' — the Chinese version puts time and place upfront, completely different from English.
小月 · XiaoYue
对，所以每次说话，我不只是在翻译词，我还要同时重新排列语序，这个脑力消耗真的很大。
PINYIN Duì, suǒyǐ měi cì shuōhuà, wǒ bùzhǐ shì zài fānyì cí, wǒ hái yào tóngshí chóngxīn páiliè yǔxù, zhège nǎolì xiāohào zhēn de hěn dà.
EN Right, so every time I speak, I'm not just translating words — I'm also simultaneously rearranging the word order. That's a huge mental load.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，还有一个很多人忽略的问题——翻译脑不只影响你说话，也影响你听话。你听别人说中文，你也在脑子里把中文翻成英文来理解？
PINYIN Ǹg, háiyǒu yī gè hěnduō rén hūlüè de wèntí — fānyì nǎo bùzhǐ yǐngxiǎng nǐ shuōhuà, yě yǐngxiǎng nǐ tīnghuà. Nǐ tīng biérén shuō Zhōngwén, nǐ yě zài nǎozi lǐ bǎ Zhōngwén fān chéng Yīngwén lái lǐjiě?
EN Right, and there's a problem many people overlook — translation brain doesn't just affect your speaking, it affects your listening too. When you hear someone speaking Chinese, are you also translating it into English in your head to understand it?
小月 · XiaoYue
哦，这个更严重！我听别人说话，每一句话都要先转成英文。然后等我理解完了第一句，人家已经说了第三句了，我完全跟不上，就很崩溃。
PINYIN Ó, zhège gèng yánzhòng! Wǒ tīng biérén shuōhuà, měi yī jù huà dōu yào xiān zhuǎn chéng Yīngwén. Ránhòu děng wǒ lǐjiě wán le dì yī jù, rénjiā yǐjīng shuō le dì sān jù le, wǒ wánquán gēn bù shàng, jiù hěn bēngkuì.
EN Oh, that's even worse! When listening, I convert every sentence into English first. And by the time I've processed the first sentence, the other person has already said the third — I can't keep up at all. It's really crushing.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，说白了，你在用英文理解中文世界，而不是直接用中文。这就是翻译脑最根本的问题——它让你永远隔着一层，没办法真正进入这门语言。
PINYIN Ǹg, shuō bái le, nǐ zài yòng Yīngwén lǐjiě Zhōngwén shìjiè, érbuShì zhíjiē yòng Zhōngwén. Zhè jiùshì fānyì nǎo zuì gēnběn de wèntí — tā ràng nǐ yǒngyuǎn gé zhe yī céng, méi bànfǎ zhēnzhèng jìnrù zhè mén yǔyán.
EN Simply put, you're understanding the Chinese world through English instead of directly through Chinese. That's the most fundamental problem with translation brain — it means you're always separated by one layer and can never truly enter the language.
C. What does thinking in Chinese actually feel like?
小月 · XiaoYue
嗯，'隔着一层'。这个说得太好了。那'用中文思考'是什么感觉？你能描述一下吗？
PINYIN Ǹg, 'gé zhe yī céng'. Zhège shuō dé tài hǎo le. Nà 'yòng Zhōngwén sīkǎo' shì shénme gǎnjué? Nǐ néng miáoshù yīxià ma?
EN Hmm, 'separated by one layer'. That's a great way to put it. So what does it feel like to 'think in Chinese'? Can you describe it?
小明 · XiaoMing
怎么说呢……就是你不会意识到你在'使用语言'。就像你现在呼吸，你没有在想'我现在要吸气'，就是自然发生的。用中文思考也是这样——我看到一只猫，脑子里直接就是'猫'，没有任何中间步骤，也没有任何其他语言。
PINYIN Zěnme shuō ne…… jiùshì nǐ bù huì yìshí dào nǐ zài 'shǐyòng yǔyán'. Jiùxiàng nǐ xiànzài hūxī, nǐ méiyǒu zài xiǎng 'wǒ xiànzài yào xīqì', jiùshì zìrán fāshēng de. Yòng Zhōngwén sīkǎo yě shì zhèyàng — wǒ kàndào yī zhī māo, nǎozi lǐ zhíjiē jiùshì 'māo', méiyǒu rènhé zhōngjiān bùzhòu, yě méiyǒu rènhé qítā yǔyán.
EN How to put it… you don't even notice that you're 'using a language'. Like how you're breathing right now — you're not thinking 'I need to inhale now', it just happens. Thinking in Chinese is like that — I see a cat, and my brain directly has '猫', no steps in between, no other language involved.
小月 · XiaoYue
哇，'直接就是猫'。我第一次体会到这个感觉的时候，是在超市，看到旁边有个阿姨在找东西，我想上去帮她，脑子里直接冒出'你需要帮忙吗'——是中文，没有翻译，就直接这个句子出来了。我当时站在那里愣了一下，觉得'哦，我刚才在用中文想了！'
PINYIN Wā, 'zhíjiē jiùshì māo'. Wǒ dì yī cì tǐhuì dào zhège gǎnjué de shíhòu, shì zài chāoshì, kàndào pángbiān yǒu gè āyí zài zhǎo dōngxi, wǒ xiǎng shàngqù bāng tā, nǎozi lǐ zhíjiē mào chū 'nǐ xūyào bāngmáng ma' — shì Zhōngwén, méiyǒu fānyì, jiùshì zhíjiē zhège jùzi chūlái le. Wǒ dāngshí zhàn zài nàlǐ lèng le yīxià, juédé 'ó, wǒ gāngcái zài yòng Zhōngwén xiǎng le!'
EN Wow, 'directly 猫'. The first time I experienced this feeling was in a supermarket. I saw a woman nearby looking for something, and I wanted to go help her — and my brain directly produced '你需要帮忙吗?' — in Chinese, no translation, the sentence just appeared. I stood there for a moment, stunned: 'oh, I just thought in Chinese!'
小明 · XiaoMing
哈哈，这个是一个很重要的里程碑。而且这个不是突然发生的，是慢慢积累出来的。今天我们就来说说，怎么让这个积累更快、更有效。
PINYIN Hāhā, zhège shì yī gè hěn zhòngyào de lǐchéngbēi. Érqiě zhège bùshì tūrán fāshēng de, shì mànmàn jīlěi chūlái de. Jīntiān wǒmen jiù lái shuōshuo, zěnme ràng zhège jīlěi gèng kuài, gèng yǒuxiào.
EN Haha, that's a really important milestone. And it doesn't happen suddenly — it builds up gradually. Today let's talk about how to make that build-up faster and more effective.
D. 3 challenges unique to Chinese learners
小月 · XiaoYue
好，在说方法之前，我想先聊一个很重要的事——学中文和学其他语言有几个不一样的地方，有几个中文特有的挑战，对想用中文思考的人来说，这几个挑战特别需要注意。
PINYIN Hǎo, zài shuō fāngfǎ zhīqián, wǒ xiǎng xiān liáo yī gè hěn zhòngyào de shì — xué Zhōngwén hé xué qítā yǔyán yǒu jǐ gè bù yīyàng de dìfāng, yǒu jǐ gè Zhōngwén tèyǒu de tiǎozhàn, duì xiǎng yòng Zhōngwén sīkǎo de rén lái shuō, zhè jǐ gè tiǎozhàn tèbié xūyào zhùyì.
EN Alright, before we get into the methods, I want to talk about something important first — learning Chinese is different from learning other languages in a few ways. There are a few challenges unique to Chinese that people who want to think in Chinese really need to pay attention to.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，这个很有必要说清楚。你先来说，哪几个挑战？
PINYIN Ǹg, zhège hěn yǒu bìyào shuō qīngchǔ. Nǐ xiān lái shuō, nǎ jǐ gè tiǎozhàn?
EN Right, this really needs to be made clear. You go first — what are the challenges?
小月 · XiaoYue
第一个——声调。普通话有四个声调，这是很多其他语言没有的。对初学者来说，声调很容易被忽视——就是你学了一个词，脑子里记住的是'没有声调的版本'。
PINYIN Dì yī gè — shēngdiào. Pǔtōnghuà yǒu sì gè shēngdiào, zhè shì hěnduō qítā yǔyán méiyǒu de. Duì chūxuézhě lái shuō, shēngdiào hěn róngyì bèi hūshì — jiùshì nǐ xué le yī gè cí, nǎozi lǐ jìzhù de shì 'méiyǒu shēngdiào de bǎnběn'.
EN First — tones. Mandarin has four tones, which most other languages don't have. For beginners, tones are very easy to overlook — you learn a word, and what your brain stores is a 'version without tones'.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，对。比如你学了'māo'（猫），但是脑子里存的是'mao'，没有第一声。那你说出来的时候，声调就不对了。
PINYIN Ǹg, duì. Bǐrú nǐ xué le 'māo' (māo), dànshì nǎozi lǐ cún de shì 'mao', méiyǒu dì yī shēng. Nà nǐ shuō chūlái de shíhòu, shēngdiào jiù bùduì le.
EN Right. For example, you learned 'māo' (cat), but your brain stored it as 'mao' without the first tone. So when you speak, the tone comes out wrong.
小月 · XiaoYue
对，而且最麻烦的是——声调不对，意思就完全变了。'māo'（猫）是猫，'máo'（毛）是头发或者毛，'mǎo'（卯）是地支，'mào'（帽）是帽子，完全不同的词。
PINYIN Duì, érqiě zuì máfan de shì — shēngdiào bùduì, yìsi jiù wánquán biàn le. 'māo' (māo) shì māo, 'máo' (máo) shì tóufa huòzhě máo, 'mǎo' (mǎo) shì dìzhī, 'mào' (mào) shì màozi, wánquán bùtóng de cí.
EN Right, and the most troublesome thing is — wrong tone means completely different meaning. 'māo' (猫) is cat, 'máo' (毛) is hair or fur, 'mǎo' (卯) is an Earthly Branch sign, 'mào' (帽) is hat — completely different words.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，而且从母语者的角度——声调根本不是一个独立的东西，它就是这个词的一部分。'māo'和'máo'对我来说，就像英文里的'cat'和'car'，是两个完全不同的词，不是同一个词加不同的'帽子'。
PINYIN Ǹg, érqiě cóng mǔyǔzhě de jiǎodù — shēngdiào gēnběn bùshì yī gè dúlì de dōngxi, tā jiùshì zhège cí de yī bùfèn. 'māo' hé 'máo' duì wǒ lái shuō, jiùxiàng Yīngwén lǐ de 'cat' hé 'car', shì liǎng gè wánquán bùtóng de cí, bùshì tóngyī gè cí jiā bùtóng de 'màozi'.
EN Right, and from a native speaker's perspective — a tone isn't a separate thing at all. It's just part of the word. 'māo' and 'máo' are like 'cat' and 'car' in English for me — two completely different words, not the same word with different 'hats'.
小月 · XiaoYue
哦，'不是加帽子'——这个比喻太好了！所以解决方法就是——从一开始就把声调和词放在一起学，声调是词的一部分，不是额外的信息。
PINYIN Ó, 'bùshì jiā màozi' — zhège bǐyù tài hǎo le! Suǒyǐ jiějué fāngfǎ jiùshì — cóng yī kāishǐ jiù bǎ shēngdiào hé cí fàng zài yīqǐ xué, shēngdiào shì cí de yī bùfèn, bùshì éwài de xìnxī.
EN Oh, 'not adding a hat' — that analogy is perfect! So the solution is — from the very start, learn the tone together with the word. Tones are part of the word, not extra information.
小明 · XiaoMing
对，比如不要只记'mao等于猫'，要记'māo等于猫'，有声调的版本。在脑子里想这个词的时候，想的就是完整的发音，包括声调。
PINYIN Duì, bǐrú bùyào zhǐ jì 'mao děngyú māo', yào jì 'māo děngyú māo', yǒu shēngdiào de bǎnběn. Zài nǎozi lǐ xiǎng zhège cí de shíhòu, xiǎng de jiùshì wánzhěng de fāyīn, bāokuò shēngdiào.
EN Right, for example don't just remember 'mao = cat', remember 'māo = cat' — the version with the tone. When you think of this word in your head, think the complete pronunciation, including the tone.
小月 · XiaoYue
好，第二个挑战——拼音和汉字的问题。很多人学了很久中文，脑子里存的还是拼音，不是汉字。
PINYIN Hǎo, dì èr gè tiǎozhàn — pīnyīn hé hànzì de wèntí. Hěnduō rén xué le hěnjiǔ Zhōngwén, nǎozi lǐ cún de háishì pīnyīn, bùshì hànzì.
EN Alright, second challenge — the pinyin and characters issue. Many people study Chinese for a long time and their brain still stores pinyin rather than characters.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，而且从母语者的角度，拼音其实是一个辅助工具，不是核心。我们小时候先认汉字，汉字是核心——看到一个字，听到声音，知道意思，这三个是直接绑在一起的。拼音是后来学的，是帮我们标注发音的，不是思考的媒介。
PINYIN Ǹg, érqiě cóng mǔyǔzhě de jiǎodù, pīnyīn qíshí shì yī gè fǔzhù gōngjù, bùshì héxīn. Wǒmen xiǎoshíhòu xiān rèn hànzì, hànzì shì héxīn — kàndào yī gè zì, tīngdào shēngyīn, zhīdào yìsi, zhè sān gè shì zhíjiē bǎng zài yīqǐ de. Pīnyīn shì hòulái xué de, shì bāng wǒmen biāozhù fāyīn de, bùshì sīkǎo de méijiè.
EN Right, and from a native speaker's perspective, pinyin is actually a support tool, not the core. We learned to recognise characters first as children — characters are the core. See a character, hear the sound, know the meaning — these three are directly bound together. Pinyin came later to annotate pronunciation, not as the medium of thinking.
小月 · XiaoYue
嗯，所以建议就是——学新词的时候，要把汉字、发音、意思三个一起学，不要只学拼音。看到'猫'，要同时记住这个字的形状、它的发音'māo'，还有意思。这三个捆在一起，脑子里存的就是完整的'猫'，不只是'mao'这几个字母。
PINYIN Ǹg, suǒyǐ jiànyì jiùshì — xué xīn cí de shíhòu, yào bǎ hànzì, fāyīn, yìsi sān gè yīqǐ xué, bùyào zhǐ xué pīnyīn. Kàndào 'māo', yào tóngshí jìzhù zhège zì de xíngzhuàng, tā de fāyīn 'māo', háiyǒu yìsi. Zhè sān gè kǔn zài yīqǐ, nǎozi lǐ cún de jiùshì wánzhěng de 'māo', bùzhǐ shì 'mao' zhè jǐ gè zìmǔ.
EN Right, so the recommendation is — when learning new words, learn the character, pronunciation, and meaning together. Don't just learn the pinyin. When you see '猫', simultaneously memorise the shape of the character, its pronunciation 'māo', and its meaning. With these three bundled together, what your brain stores is a complete '猫', not just the letters 'm-a-o'.
小明 · XiaoMing
对，三合一。第三个挑战是什么？
PINYIN Duì, sān hé yī. Dì sān gè tiǎozhàn shì shénme?
EN Right, all three in one. What's the third challenge?
小月 · XiaoYue
第三个——量词！我觉得这个是初学者最容易忽略的，但是影响很大。中文里，数数字的时候，不同的东西用不同的量词。'一只猫'、'一条鱼'、'一本书'、'一张纸'……每一种东西的量词都不一样。
PINYIN Dì sān gè — liàngcí! Wǒ juédé zhège shì chūxuézhě zuì róngyì hūlüè de, dànshì yǐngxiǎng hěn dà. Zhōngwén lǐ, shǔ shùzì de shíhòu, bùtóng de dōngxi yòng bùtóng de liàngcí. 'Yī zhī māo', 'yī tiáo yú', 'yī běn shū', 'yī zhāng zhǐ'…… měi yī zhǒng dōngxi de liàngcí dōu bù yīyàng.
EN Third — measure words! I think this is what beginners most easily overlook, but the impact is significant. In Chinese, when counting, different things use different measure words. 'Yī zhī māo' (a cat), 'yī tiáo yú' (a fish), 'yī běn shū' (a book), 'yī zhāng zhǐ' (a piece of paper)… every type of thing has a different measure word.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，量词这个……对我来说是完全自动的，从来不会去想。'一本书'就是'一本书'，我没有在脑子里想'哦，书应该用什么量词'。但是我理解，对学中文的人来说，这个是真的要花时间记的。
PINYIN Ǹg, liàngcí zhège…… duì wǒ lái shuō shì wánquán zìdòng de, cónglái bù huì qù xiǎng. 'Yī běn shū' jiùshì 'yī běn shū', wǒ méiyǒu zài nǎozi lǐ xiǎng 'ó, shū yīnggāi yòng shénme liàngcí'. Dànshì wǒ lǐjiě, duì xué Zhōngwén de rén lái shuō, zhège shì zhēn de yào huā shíjiān jì de.
EN Right, measure words… for me they're completely automatic, I never think about them. 'Yī běn shū' is just 'yī běn shū', I'm not thinking in my head 'oh, what measure word should I use for a book?' But I understand that for Chinese learners, this really does take time to memorise.
小月 · XiaoYue
对，所以我的建议是——学单词的时候，把量词也一起学进去。不要只学'书'，要学'一本书'。不要只学'猫'，要学'一只猫'。这样你思考的时候，脑子里出来的就是完整的搭配，不是临时找量词。
PINYIN Duì, suǒyǐ wǒ de jiànyì shì — xué dāncí de shíhòu, bǎ liàngcí yě yīqǐ xué jìnqù. Bùyào zhǐ xué 'shū', yào xué 'yī běn shū'. Bùyào zhǐ xué 'māo', yào xué 'yī zhī māo'. Zhèyàng nǐ sīkǎo de shíhòu, nǎozi lǐ chūlái de jiùshì wánzhěng de dāpèi, bùshì línshí zhǎo liàngcí.
EN Right, so my recommendation is — when you learn a word, learn the measure word along with it. Don't just learn 'book' (书), learn 'yī běn shū'. Don't just learn 'cat' (猫), learn 'yī zhī māo'. That way when you're thinking, what comes out is the complete combination, not a last-minute search for a measure word.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，这三个挑战——声调、汉字和拼音、量词——都有一个共同的解决思路：从一开始就学'完整的版本'，不要拆开来学，因为你脑子里存什么，你思考的时候就会用什么。
PINYIN Ǹg, zhè sān gè tiǎozhàn — shēngdiào, hànzì hé pīnyīn, liàngcí — dōu yǒu yī gè gòngtóng de jiějué sīlù: cóng yī kāishǐ jiù xué 'wánzhěng de bǎnběn', bùyào chāi kāi lái xué, yīnwèi nǐ nǎozi lǐ cún shénme, nǐ sīkǎo de shíhòu jiù huì yòng shénme.
EN Right, all three of these challenges — tones, characters and pinyin, measure words — share the same solution: from the very start, learn the 'complete version'. Don't learn them broken apart, because whatever your brain stores is what you'll use when thinking.
E. Tip 1 — Think in small sentences
小月 · XiaoYue
好，说完挑战，我们说方法！方法一——用小句子思考。
PINYIN Hǎo, shuō wán tiǎozhàn, wǒmen shuō fāngfǎ! Fāngfǎ yī — yòng xiǎo jùzi sīkǎo.
EN Alright, now that we've covered the challenges, let's talk methods! Method one — think in small sentences.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，是句子，不只是词。为什么这个很重要？
PINYIN Ǹg, shì jùzi, bùzhǐ shì cí. Wèishéme zhège hěn zhòngyào?
EN Right, sentences — not just words. Why does this matter?
小月 · XiaoYue
因为单独的词就像一个标签，它不会动。但是句子是在'运作'的——是有想法的，是活的。比如你只知道'猫'这个词，你能用它做什么？但是如果你会说'这只猫很可爱'、'猫在睡觉'、'我想养一只猫'，这个词才是真的活在你的语言系统里了。
PINYIN Yīnwèi dúlì de cí jiùxiàng yī gè biāoqiān, tā bù huì dòng. Dànshì jùzi shì zài 'yùnzuò' de — shì yǒu xiǎngfǎ de, shì huó de. Bǐrú nǐ zhǐ zhīdào 'māo' zhège cí, nǐ néng yòng tā zuò shénme? Dànshì rúguǒ nǐ huì shuō 'zhè zhī māo hěn kě'ài', 'māo zài shuìjiào', 'wǒ xiǎng yǎng yī zhī māo', zhège cí cái shì zhēn de huó zài nǐ de yǔyán xìtǒng lǐ le.
EN Because an individual word is like a label — it doesn't move. But a sentence is 'working' — it carries a thought, it's alive. For example, if you only know the word '猫', what can you do with it? But if you can say 'this cat is so cute' (这只猫很可爱), 'the cat is sleeping' (猫在睡觉), 'I want to keep a cat' (我想养一只猫) — then the word is truly alive in your language system.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，'词是砖，句子是房子'——你不是在收集砖，你是在建房子。
PINYIN Ǹg, 'cí shì zhuān, jùzi shì fángzi' — nǐ bùshì zài shōují zhuān, nǐ shì zài jiàn fángzi.
EN Right — 'words are bricks, sentences are houses'. You're not collecting bricks, you're building houses.
小月 · XiaoYue
哈，对！那怎么开始呢？我分享一个我自己用过的方法，效果很好——就是用你每天早上起床之后的事来练习。
PINYIN Hā, duì! Nà zěnme kāishǐ ne? Wǒ fēnxiǎng yī gè wǒ zìjǐ yòngguò de fāngfǎ, xiàoguǒ hěn hǎo — jiùshì yòng nǐ měitiān zǎoshang qǐchuáng zhīhòu de shì lái liànxí.
EN Ha, right! So how do you start? Let me share a method I used myself that worked really well — use everything you do after waking up every morning to practice.
小明 · XiaoMing
哦，说说？
PINYIN Ó, shuōshuo?
EN Oh, tell me about it.
小月 · XiaoYue
就是早上起来，用中文想你在做的每一件事。'我醒了'，'现在几点了'，'今天天气怎么样'——走去窗边看看：'今天很晴'或者'今天有点阴'。然后去洗手间：'我在刷牙'，'水有点凉'。去喝水：'我想喝咖啡'。吃早饭：'今天我吃了面包和一个鸡蛋'……就是用中文实况转播你自己的早晨。
PINYIN Jiùshì zǎoshang qǐlái, yòng Zhōngwén xiǎng nǐ zài zuò de měi yī jiàn shì. 'Wǒ xǐng le', 'xiànzài jǐ diǎn le', 'jīntiān tiānqì zěnme yàng' — zǒu qù chuāngbiān kànkàn: 'jīntiān hěn qíng' huòzhě 'jīntiān yǒudiǎn yīn'. Ránhòu qù xǐshǒujiān: 'wǒ zài shuāyá', 'shuǐ yǒudiǎn liáng'. Qù hē shuǐ: 'wǒ xiǎng hē kāfēi'. Chī zǎofàn: 'jīntiān wǒ chī le miànbāo hé yī gè jīdàn'…… jiùshì yòng Zhōngwén shíkuàng zhuǎnbō nǐ zìjǐ de zǎochén.
EN Just when you wake up in the morning, think in Chinese about everything you're doing. 'I'm awake' (我醒了), 'what time is it' (几点了), 'what's the weather like' (今天天气怎么样) — walk to the window: 'it's sunny today' (今天很晴) or 'it's a bit cloudy today' (今天有点阴). Then go to the bathroom: 'I'm brushing my teeth' (我在刷牙), 'the water is a bit cold' (水有点凉). Go get some water: 'I want coffee' (我想喝咖啡). Eat breakfast: 'today I ate bread and an egg' (今天我吃了面包和一个鸡蛋)… Give a live commentary of your morning in Chinese.
小明 · XiaoMing
哈哈，'实况转播'，我喜欢这个说法。而且你说的这些句子，都是最基础的中文，HSK一到二级就够了。词汇量不是问题，关键是把它们'用起来'。
PINYIN Hāhā, 'shíkuàng zhuǎnbō', wǒ xǐhuān zhège shuōfǎ. Érqiě nǐ shuō de zhèxiē jùzi, dōu shì zuì jīchǔ de Zhōngwén, HSK yī dào èr jí jiù gòu le. Cíhuìliàng bùshì wèntí, guānjiàn shì bǎ tāmen 'yòng qǐlái'.
EN Haha, 'live commentary' — I like that. And all the sentences you mentioned are the most basic Chinese, HSK Level 1 to 2 is enough. Vocabulary size isn't the issue — the key is to 'put it to use'.
小月 · XiaoYue
对，还有一个很实用的做法——给你身边的东西贴'中文标签'。你在家里，看到桌子，在脑子里说'桌子'；看到椅子说'椅子'；看到窗户说'窗户'。然后慢慢升级，从单词变成句子——'这是我的桌子'，'椅子是黑色的'，'窗户外面有一棵树'……
PINYIN Duì, háiyǒu yī gè hěn shíyòng de zuòfǎ — gěi nǐ shēnbiān de dōngxi tiē 'Zhōngwén biāoqiān'. Nǐ zài jiālǐ, kàndào zhuōzi, zài nǎozi lǐ shuō 'zhuōzi'; kàndào yǐzi shuō 'yǐzi'; kàndào chuānghu shuō 'chuānghu'. Ránhòu mànmàn shēngjí, cóng dāncí biàn chéng jùzi — 'zhè shì wǒ de zhuōzi', 'yǐzi shì hēisè de', 'chuānghu wàimiàn yǒu yī kē shù'……
EN Right, and there's another very practical approach — put 'Chinese labels' on everything around you. At home, when you see a table, say 'zhuōzi' in your head; see a chair, say 'yǐzi'; see a window, say 'chuānghu'. Then gradually level up from single words to sentences — 'this is my table' (这是我的桌子), 'the chair is black' (椅子是黑色的), 'there's a tree outside the window' (窗户外面有一棵树)…
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，就是让你的眼睛和中文建立直接连接。不是'桌子'通过英文'table'来理解，而是'桌子'直接连到那个实物。
PINYIN Ǹg, jiùshì ràng nǐ de yǎnjīng hé Zhōngwén jiànlì zhíjiē liánjié. Bùshì 'zhuōzi' tōngguò Yīngwén 'table' lái lǐjiě, érshì 'zhuōzi' zhíjiē liánjié dào nà gè shíwù.
EN Right — it's about building a direct connection between your eyes and Chinese. Not understanding '桌子' through the English word 'table', but '桌子' connecting directly to the physical object.
小月 · XiaoYue
对！而且还有一个很重要的点——不要等到你'准备好了'才开始。就是现在，就是生活里，随时随地，脑子里有空了就用中文想一句话，哪怕很短，很不完整，也没关系。
PINYIN Duì! Érqiě háiyǒu yī gè hěn zhòngyào de diǎn — bùyào děng dào nǐ 'zhǔnbèi hǎo le' cái kāishǐ. Jiùshì xiànzài, jiùshì shēnghuó lǐ, suíshí suídì, nǎozi lǐ yǒu kòng le jiù yòng Zhōngwén xiǎng yī jù huà, nǎpà hěn duǎn, hěn bù wánzhěng, yě méi guānxi.
EN Right! And there's one more really important point — don't wait until you're 'ready' to start. It's right now, in daily life, anytime, anywhere. Whenever your brain has a free moment, think a sentence in Chinese — even if it's very short, very incomplete. That's fine.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，'规律'比'强度'更重要。每天都有一点点，比偶尔来一次大量有效得多。
PINYIN Ǹg, 'guīlǜ' bǐ 'qiángdù' gèng zhòngyào. Měitiān dōu yǒu yīdiǎndiǎn, bǐ ǒuěr lái yīcì dàliàng yǒuxiào dé duō.
EN Right — 'regularity' matters more than 'intensity'. A little every day is far more effective than occasional large doses.
F. Tip 2 — Input: what to watch & listen to
小月 · XiaoYue
好，方法二——输入！就是多听、多看中文的内容，让语言模式进入你的大脑。
PINYIN Hǎo, fāngfǎ èr — shūrù! Jiùshì duō tīng, duō kàn Zhōngwén de nèiróng, ràng yǔyán múshì jìnrù nǐ de dànǎo.
EN Alright, method two — input! That means more listening and watching Chinese content, letting language patterns enter your brain.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，输入为什么重要？就是……你听到的和看到的，会慢慢变成你脑子里的'语言模板'。比如如果你听了很多次'今天我很累'、'今天天气不太好'、'我今天有点不舒服'，慢慢地，当你想表达类似的意思时，这些句型就会自动出来，不需要你翻译，不需要你想语法。
PINYIN Ǹg, shūrù wèishéme zhòngyào? Jiùshì…… nǐ tīngdào de hé kàndào de, huì mànmàn biàn chéng nǐ nǎozi lǐ de 'yǔyán múbǎn'. Bǐrú rúguǒ nǐ tīng le hěnduō cì 'jīntiān wǒ hěn lèi', 'jīntiān tiānqì bù tài hǎo', 'wǒ jīntiān yǒudiǎn bù shūfu', mànmàn de, dāng nǐ xiǎng biǎodá lèisì de yìsi shí, zhèxiē jùxíng jiù huì zìdòng chūlái, bù xūyào nǐ fānyì, bù xūyào nǐ xiǎng yǔfǎ.
EN Right, why does input matter? Well… what you hear and see gradually becomes 'language templates' in your brain. For example, if you've heard 'I'm very tired today' (今天我很累), 'the weather isn't great today' (今天天气不太好), 'I feel a bit unwell today' (我今天有点不舒服) many times, gradually when you want to express a similar idea, these patterns will come out automatically — no translating, no thinking about grammar.
小月 · XiaoYue
对，但是有一个关键点——输入的内容要合适，不能太难。这个我犯过错误。我刚开始学中文，就去看中国综艺节目，觉得'沉浸式学习'嘛。结果……一个字都没听懂，哈哈，纯粹在看字幕。
PINYIN Duì, dànshì yǒu yī gè guānjiàn diǎn — shūrù de nèiróng yào héshì, bùnéng tài nán. Zhège wǒ fànguo cuòwù. Wǒ gāng kāishǐ xué Zhōngwén, jiù qù kàn Zhōngguó zōngyì jiémù, juédé 'chénjìn shì xuéxí' ma. Jiéguǒ…… yī gè zì dōu méi tīngdǒng, hāhā, chúncuì zài kàn zìmù.
EN Right, but there's one key point — the input content needs to be appropriate. It can't be too difficult. I made this mistake. When I just started learning Chinese, I went and watched Chinese variety shows, thinking 'immersive learning', right? The result… I didn't understand a single word, haha. I was purely reading subtitles.
小明 · XiaoMing
哈哈，这个很常见。'沉浸式'的前提是你已经有一定基础——如果什么都听不懂，那不叫沉浸，那叫溺水。
PINYIN Hāhā, zhège hěn chángjiàn. 'Chénjìn shì' de qiántí shì nǐ yǐjīng yǒu yīdìng jīchǔ — rúguǒ shénme dōu tīng bù dǒng, nà bùjiào chénjìn, nà jiào nìshuǐ.
EN Haha, this is very common. The premise of 'immersive learning' is that you already have some foundation — if you can't understand anything at all, that's not called immersion, that's called drowning.
小月 · XiaoYue
哈哈！'溺水'！对。那合适的输入是什么？大概是——你能听懂七八成，有一些不认识的词，但是大概意思能跟上。这样你的大脑在'处理'语言，而不是完全迷失。
PINYIN Hāhā! 'Nìshuǐ'! Duì. Nà héshì de shūrù shì shénme? Dàgài shì — nǐ néng tīngdǒng qī bā chéng, yǒu yīxiē bù rènshí de cí, dànshì dàgài yìsi néng gēn shàng. Zhèyàng nǐ de dànǎo zài 'chǔlǐ' yǔyán, érbuShì wánquán mí shī.
EN Haha! 'Drowning'! Right. So what is appropriate input? Roughly — you can understand about 70–80%, there are some words you don't know, but you can follow the general meaning. This way your brain is 'processing' language, rather than completely lost.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，对初学者来说，有几类内容我觉得特别合适。第一类，就是专门为学中文的人做的内容——比如宝宝中文这样的，哈哈——语速慢，词汇基础，话题日常。
PINYIN Ǹg, duì chūxuézhě lái shuō, yǒu jǐ lèi nèiróng wǒ juédé tèbié héshì. Dì yī lèi, jiùshì zhuānmén wèi xué Zhōngwén de rén zuò de nèiróng — bǐrú Bǎobao Zhōngwén zhèyàng de, hāhā — yǔsù màn, cíhuì jīchǔ, huàtí rìcháng.
EN Right, for beginners, I think a few types of content are particularly suitable. First type — content made specifically for Chinese learners — like BaoBao Mandarin, haha — slower pace, basic vocabulary, everyday topics.
小月 · XiaoYue
哈，当然要说我们自己！第二类呢？
PINYIN Hā, dāngrán yào shuō wǒmen zìjǐ! Dì èr lèi ne?
EN Ha, of course we'd mention ourselves! What's the second type?
小明 · XiaoMing
第二类——生活类视频。就是做饭、做手工、旅游这种。这种视频语速通常比较慢，而且画面帮你理解意思，就算有些词没听懂，你也能靠画面猜出来。
PINYIN Dì èr lèi — shēnghuó lèi shìpín. Jiùshì zuòfàn, zuò shǒugōng, lǚyóu zhè zhǒng. Zhè zhǒng shìpín yǔsù tōngcháng bǐjiào màn, érqiě huàmiàn bāng nǐ lǐjiě yìsi, jiùsuàn yǒuxiē cí méi tīngdǒng, nǐ yě néng kào huàmiàn cāi chūlái.
EN Second type — lifestyle videos. Cooking, crafts, travel. These videos tend to have a slower pace, and the visuals help you understand meaning, so even if you don't catch some words, you can guess from the visuals.
小月 · XiaoYue
嗯，还有一个我想补充——儿歌和简单的中文歌曲。我知道这个听起来很幼稚，但是……儿歌有节奏，有重复，词汇简单，而且唱着唱着就记住了。我学了几首中文儿歌，里面的词和句型就自然地'印进'了我的大脑，而且声调也是对的，因为唱歌的时候声调就在里面了。
PINYIN Ǹg, háiyǒu yī gè wǒ xiǎng bǔchōng — érgē hé jiǎndān de Zhōngwén gēqǔ. Wǒ zhīdào zhège tīng qǐlái hěn yòuzhì, dànshì…… érgē yǒu jiézòu, yǒu chóngfù, cíhuì jiǎndān, érqiě chàng zhe chàng zhe jiù jìzhù le. Wǒ xué le jǐ shǒu Zhōngwén érgē, lǐmiàn de cí hé jùxíng jiù zìrán de 'yìn jìn' le wǒ de dànǎo, érqiě shēngdiào yě shì duì de, yīnwèi chànggē de shíhòu shēngdiào jiù zài lǐmiàn le.
EN Right, and I want to add one more — children's songs and simple Chinese songs. I know this sounds childish, but… children's songs have rhythm, repetition, simple vocabulary, and you just memorise them as you sing. I learned a few Chinese children's songs, and the words and sentence patterns naturally 'got printed' into my brain — and the tones are correct too, because the tones are built in when you sing.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，这个其实有研究支持——音乐和语言在大脑里走的是不同的路，所以通过唱歌记语言，有时候比单纯背单词更有效。很多孩子在学母语的时候，也是先通过歌谣来记住一些基本的词和句型的。
PINYIN Ǹg, zhège qíshí yǒu yánjiū zhīchí — yīnyuè hé yǔyán zài dànǎo lǐ zǒu de shì bùtóng de lù, suǒyǐ tōngguò chànggē jì yǔyán, yǒu shíhòu bǐ dānchún bèi dāncí gèng yǒuxiào. Hěnduō háizi zài xué mǔyǔ de shíhòu, yě shì xiān tōngguò gēyáo lái jìzhù yīxiē jīběn de cí hé jùxíng de.
EN Right, there's actually research supporting this — music and language take different pathways in the brain, so learning language through singing is sometimes more effective than plain vocabulary memorisation. Many children also learn their first language by first memorising basic words and sentence patterns through nursery rhymes.
小月 · XiaoYue
嗯！好，最后一个关于输入的重点——要规律，不要今天听三小时，然后一周不听。每天都有一点，哪怕只有十五分钟，比偶尔来一次大剂量要有效得多。大脑学语言需要重复和时间，不是短时间的高强度。
PINYIN Ǹg! Hǎo, zuìhòu yī gè guānyú shūrù de zhòngdiǎn — yào guīlǜ, bùyào jīntiān tīng sān xiǎoshí, ránhòu yī zhōu bù tīng. Měitiān dōu yǒu yīdiǎn, nǎpà zhǐyǒu shíwǔ fēnzhōng, bǐ ǒuěr lái yīcì dà jìliàng yào yǒuxiào dé duō. Dànǎo xué yǔyán xūyào chóngfù hé shíjiān, bùshì duǎn shíjiān de gāo qiángdù.
EN Right! OK, one last key point about input — be consistent. Don't listen for three hours today and then go a week without listening. A little every day, even if it's just fifteen minutes, is far more effective than occasional large doses. The brain needs repetition and time to learn language — not short-term high intensity.
G. Tip 3 — Talk to yourself in Chinese
小明 · XiaoMing
好，方法三——也是我个人觉得效果最直接的一个——自言自语，就是用中文跟自己说话。
PINYIN Hǎo, fāngfǎ sān — yě shì wǒ gèrén juédé xiàoguǒ zuì zhíjiē de yī gè — zìyányúyǔ, jiùshì yòng Zhōngwén gēn zìjǐ shuōhuà.
EN Alright, method three — and the one I personally think is the most directly effective — talking to yourself. Speaking Chinese to yourself.
小月 · XiaoYue
哈！自言自语。这个……很多人不敢做，包括我一开始。
PINYIN Hā! Zìyányúyǔ. Zhège…… hěnduō rén bù gǎn zuò, bāokuò wǒ yī kāishǐ.
EN Ha! Talking to yourself. This is… something many people are afraid to do, including me at the start.
小明 · XiaoMing
为什么不敢？
PINYIN Wèishéme bù gǎn?
EN Why not?
小月 · XiaoYue
就是……一个人在那里大声说中文，会不会很奇怪？但是后来我想通了——没有人看到我，我在练习，不是表演。而且，在淋浴的时候说，开车的时候说，一个人散步的时候说——这些场合本来就是一个人，完全可以大声说中文，没有任何压力。
PINYIN Jiùshì…… yī gè rén zài nàlǐ dàshēng shuō Zhōngwén, huì bù huì hěn qíguài? Dànshì hòulái wǒ xiǎng tōng le — méiyǒu rén kàndào wǒ, wǒ zài liànxí, bùshì biǎoyǎn. Érqiě, zài línrán de shíhòu shuō, kāichē de shíhòu shuō, yī gè rén sànbù de shíhòu shuō — zhèxiē chǎnghé běnlái jiùshì yī gè rén, wánquán kěyǐ dàshēng shuō Zhōngwén, méiyǒu rènhé yālì.
EN It's just… talking out loud to yourself in Chinese, would that be weird? But then I figured it out — no one can see me, I'm practicing, not performing. And in the shower, while driving, while walking alone — in these settings you're already alone anyway, so you can speak Chinese out loud with no pressure at all.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，而且自言自语的好处是——你不只是在'想'，你也在说，你的嘴和耳朵都参与进来了。说话是一个肌肉运动，嘴、舌头、喉咙都需要练习，只在脑子里想是练不到口语的。
PINYIN Ǹg, érqiě zìyányúyǔ de hǎochu shì — nǐ bùzhǐ shì zài 'xiǎng', nǐ yě zài shuō, nǐ de zuǐ hé ěrduǒ dōu cānjiā jìnlái le. Shuōhuà shì yī gè jīròu yùndòng, zuǐ, shétou, hóulóng dōu xūyào liànxí, zhǐ zài nǎozi lǐ xiǎng shì liàn bù dào kǒuyǔ de.
EN Right, and the benefit of talking to yourself is — you're not just 'thinking', you're also speaking. Your mouth and ears are both involved. Speaking is a physical act — your mouth, tongue, and throat all need practice. Just thinking in your head doesn't train spoken language.
小月 · XiaoYue
那具体怎么做呢？我有三个小建议。第一——描述你看到的东西。你在房间里，就描述你看到的：'这是我的桌子，桌子上有一个电脑，电脑旁边有一杯水，水有点凉了'……这样练，你的眼睛和中文在建立直接连接，不需要经过英文。
PINYIN Nà jùtǐ zěnme zuò ne? Wǒ yǒu sān gè xiǎo jiànyì. Dì yī — miáoshù nǐ kàndào de dōngxi. Nǐ zài fángjiān lǐ, jiù miáoshù nǐ kàndào de: 'zhè shì wǒ de zhuōzi, zhuōzi shàng yǒu yī gè diànnǎo, diànnǎo pángbiān yǒu yī bēi shuǐ, shuǐ yǒudiǎn liáng le'…… zhèyàng liàn, nǐ de yǎnjīng hé Zhōngwén zài jiànlì zhíjiē liánjié, bù xūyào jīngguò Yīngwén.
EN So how do you do it specifically? I have three small suggestions. First — describe what you see. When you're in your room, describe what you see: 'this is my desk, on the desk there's a computer, next to the computer there's a glass of water, the water has cooled a bit'… This practice builds a direct connection between your eyes and Chinese, without going through English.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，'看到就说，不需要翻译'。
PINYIN Ǹg, 'kàndào jiù shuō, bù xūyào fānyì'.
EN Right — 'see it and say it, no translation needed'.
小月 · XiaoYue
对！第二——描述你正在做的事。就是实况转播自己：'我在喝水'，'我在开门'，'我在找我的钥匙'，'我找到了'……这个练的是'正在进行'的句型，也就是'在'加动词，这是中文里很基础很常用的结构。
PINYIN Duì! Dì èr — miáoshù nǐ zhèngzài zuò de shì. Jiùshì shíkuàng zhuǎnbō zìjǐ: 'wǒ zài hē shuǐ', 'wǒ zài kāimén', 'wǒ zài zhǎo wǒ de yàoshi', 'wǒ zhǎodào le'…… zhège liàn de shì 'zhèngzài jìnxíng' de jùxíng, yě jiùshì 'zài' jiā dòngcí, zhè shì Zhōngwén lǐ hěn jīchǔ hěn chángyòng de jiégòu.
EN Right! Second — describe what you're currently doing. Give yourself a live commentary: 'I'm drinking water' (我在喝水), 'I'm opening the door' (我在开门), 'I'm looking for my keys' (我在找我的钥匙), 'I found it' (我找到了)… What you're practicing is the 'present progressive' sentence pattern — '在' plus a verb — a very basic and widely used structure in Chinese.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，第三呢？
PINYIN Ǹg, dì sān ne?
EN Right, and the third?
小月 · XiaoYue
第三——晚上睡觉前，用中文回顾今天。就是用中文说今天发生的事：'今天我去了超市'，'我买了苹果和牛奶'，'回来的路上堵车了，堵了很久'，'今天有点累，但是心情还不错'……不需要说得很完整，说你会说的就好。
PINYIN Dì sān — wǎnshàng shuìjiào qián, yòng Zhōngwén huígù jīntiān. Jiùshì yòng Zhōngwén shuō jīntiān fāshēng de shì: 'jīntiān wǒ qù le chāoshì', 'wǒ mǎi le píngguǒ hé niúnǎi', 'huílái de lùshàng dǔchē le, dǔ le hěn jiǔ', 'jīntiān yǒudiǎn lèi, dànshì xīnqíng hái bùcuò'…… bù xūyào shuō dé hěn wánzhěng, shuō nǐ huì shuō de jiù hǎo.
EN Third — before sleeping at night, review your day in Chinese. Describe what happened today: 'today I went to the supermarket' (今天我去了超市), 'I bought apples and milk' (我买了苹果和牛奶), 'on the way back there was a traffic jam, stuck for a long time' (回来的路上堵车了，堵了很久), 'I'm a bit tired today but the mood is pretty good' (今天有点累，但是心情还不错)… You don't need to say it perfectly — just say what you can.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，'回顾今天'这个练法很好，因为你在把'真实的经历'和中文连接起来，不只是练句型，是在用中文表达你真实的生活。
PINYIN Ǹg, 'huígù jīntiān' zhège liàn fǎ hěn hǎo, yīnwèi nǐ zài bǎ 'zhēnshí de jīnglì' hé Zhōngwén liánjié qǐlái, bùzhǐ shì liàn jùxíng, shì zài yòng Zhōngwén biǎodá nǐ zhēnshí de shēnghuó.
EN Right — the 'review your day' method is great because you're connecting 'real experiences' with Chinese, not just practicing sentence patterns. You're using Chinese to express your actual life.
小月 · XiaoYue
还有一个重要的点——在自言自语的时候，如果有一个词想不到，不要停下来，绕过去，用你知道的词说类似的意思。比如你不知道'堵车'怎么说，可以说'路上车很多，走得很慢'——意思到了就好。这种'绕过去'的能力，本身也是很重要的语言能力。
PINYIN Háiyǒu yī gè zhòngyào de diǎn — zài zìyányúyǔ de shíhòu, rúguǒ yǒu yī gè cí xiǎng bù dào, bùyào tíng xiàlái, rào guòqù, yòng nǐ zhīdào de cí shuō lèisì de yìsi. Bǐrú nǐ bù zhīdào 'dǔchē' zěnme shuō, kěyǐ shuō 'lùshàng chē hěnduō, zǒu de hěn màn' — yìsi dào le jiù hǎo. Zhè zhǒng 'rào guòqù' de nénglì, běnshēn yě shì hěn zhòngyào de yǔyán nénglì.
EN And one more important point — when talking to yourself, if you can't think of a word, don't stop. Work around it, use words you know to express a similar meaning. For example, if you don't know how to say 'traffic jam' (堵车), you can say 'there were a lot of cars on the road, moving very slowly' (路上车很多，走得很慢) — as long as the meaning gets through, that's fine. This 'working around it' ability is itself an important language skill.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，母语者说话的时候，如果有个词一时想不到，也会这样——换个说法，绕过去，继续说。不会因为找不到一个词就整个卡住。
PINYIN Ǹg, mǔyǔzhě shuōhuà de shíhòu, rúguǒ yǒu gè cí yīshí xiǎng bù dào, yě huì zhèyàng — huàn gè shuōfǎ, rào guòqù, jìxù shuō. Bù huì yīnwèi zhǎo bù dào yī gè cí jiù zhěnggè kǎzhù.
EN Right, when native speakers are talking and can't think of a word at the moment, we do the same — switch to a different way of saying it, work around it, and keep going. We don't get completely stuck just because we can't find one word.
H. Mindset: patience, mistakes & fun
小月 · XiaoYue
好，说了三个方法，我还想聊聊心态——因为我觉得心态是这件事最重要的部分之一。
PINYIN Hǎo, shuō le sān gè fāngfǎ, wǒ hái xiǎng liáoliao xīntài — yīnwèi wǒ juédé xīntài shì zhè jiàn shì zuì zhòngyào de bùfèn zhī yī.
EN Alright, after talking about the three methods, I also want to talk about mindset — because I think mindset is one of the most important parts of this.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，心态这块很重要，说说？
PINYIN Ǹg, xīntài zhè kuài hěn zhòngyào, shuōshuo?
EN Right, mindset is really important. Tell me about it?
小月 · XiaoYue
第一个——要有耐心。用中文思考这件事，不是练一个星期就会的。我自己练了大概半年到八个月，才真的开始感觉'哦，有些时候我不需要翻译了'。中间有很多次想放弃的时刻，觉得自己怎么还是这么慢。但是进步是在的，只是你自己感受不到——直到有一天突然发现'哦，我刚才没有翻译'。
PINYIN Dì yī gè — yào yǒu nàixīn. Yòng Zhōngwén sīkǎo zhè jiàn shì, bùshì liàn yī gè xīngqī jiù huì de. Wǒ zìjǐ liàn le dàgài bàn nián dào bā gè yuè, cái zhēn de kāishǐ gǎnjué 'ó, yǒuxiē shíhòu wǒ bù xūyào fānyì le'. Zhōngjiān yǒu hěnduō cì xiǎng fàngqì de shíkè, juédé zìjǐ zěnme hái shì zhème màn. Dànshì jìnbù shì zài de, zhǐshì nǐ zìjǐ gǎnshòu bù dào — zhídào yǒu yītiān tūrán fāxiàn 'ó, wǒ gāngcái méiyǒu fānyì'.
EN First — you need patience. Thinking in Chinese is not something you'll be able to do after a week of practice. I practiced for roughly six to eight months myself before genuinely starting to feel 'oh, sometimes I don't need to translate anymore'. In between, there were many moments when I wanted to give up, feeling like why am I still this slow. But the progress is there — you just can't feel it yourself — until one day you suddenly realise 'oh, I just didn't translate that'.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，大脑建立新的语言系统，需要时间——没有办法急。而且从外部是看不出来的，进步都在大脑里，在那些神经连接里，悄悄发生的。
PINYIN Ǹg, dànǎo jiànlì xīn de yǔyán xìtǒng, xūyào shíjiān — méiyǒu bànfǎ jí. Érqiě cóng wàibù shì kàn bù chūlái de, jìnbù dōu zài dànǎo lǐ, zài nàxiē shénjīng liánjié lǐ, qiāoqiāo fāshēng de.
EN Right, the brain building a new language system takes time — there's no way to rush it. And it's not visible from the outside. Progress happens inside the brain, in those neural connections, quietly.
小月 · XiaoYue
第二——不要怕犯错。说错了，意识到了，改一下，继续说。不需要停下来觉得自己很差，不需要道歉，不需要过度分析。犯错说明你在尝试，不尝试才是真的没有进步。
PINYIN Dì èr — bùyào pà fàncuò. Shuō cuò le, yìshí dào le, gǎi yīxià, jìxù shuō. Bù xūyào tíng xiàlái juédé zìjǐ hěn chà, bù xūyào dàoqiàn, bù xūyào guòdù fēnxī. Fàncuò shuōmíng nǐ zài chángshì, bù chángshì cái shì zhēn de méiyǒu jìnbù.
EN Second — don't be afraid of making mistakes. You said something wrong, you noticed, correct it, and keep going. No need to stop and feel bad about yourself, no need to apologise, no need to over-analyse. Making mistakes shows you're trying. Not trying at all is what actually means no progress.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，而且作为母语者，当有人用不完美的中文跟我说话，我的感受不是'哦，他中文很差'，我的感受是'哦，他在努力，他在尝试'，这个感受是正面的。
PINYIN Ǹg, érqiě zuòwéi mǔyǔzhě, dāng yǒurén yòng bù wánměi de Zhōngwén gēn wǒ shuōhuà, wǒ de gǎnshòu bùshì 'ó, tā Zhōngwén hěn chà', wǒ de gǎnshòu shì 'ó, tā zài nǔlì, tā zài chángshì', zhège gǎnshòu shì zhèngmiàn de.
EN Right, and as a native speaker, when someone speaks Chinese to me imperfectly, my reaction isn't 'oh, their Chinese is poor'. My feeling is 'oh, they're working hard, they're trying' — and that feeling is positive.
小月 · XiaoYue
哦，这个我需要听到，谢谢！哈哈。第三——让中文变得有趣。如果你觉得练习中文是一件很无聊、很累的事，你就很难坚持下去。所以要找到让你真的觉得用中文有意思的事情——可以是看你喜欢的中文内容，可以是和真实的中国朋友聊天，可以是看中国历史、文化、美食……只要是你真的感兴趣的，都可以和中文结合起来。
PINYIN Ó, zhège wǒ xūyào tīngdào, xièxiè! Hāhā. Dì sān — ràng Zhōngwén biàn dé yǒuqù. Rúguǒ nǐ juédé liànxí Zhōngwén shì yī jiàn hěn wúliáo, hěn lèi de shì, nǐ jiù hěn nán jiānchí xiàqù. Suǒyǐ yào zhǎodào ràng nǐ zhēn de juédé yòng Zhōngwén yǒuyìsi de shìqíng — kěyǐ shì kàn nǐ xǐhuān de Zhōngwén nèiróng, kěyǐ shì hé zhēnshí de Zhōngguó péngyǒu liáotiān, kěyǐ shì kàn Zhōngguó lìshǐ, wénhuà, měishí…… zhǐyào shì nǐ zhēn de gǎn xìngqù de, dōu kěyǐ hé Zhōngwén jiéhé qǐlái.
EN Oh, I needed to hear that, thank you! Haha. Third — make Chinese fun. If you think practicing Chinese is boring and exhausting, it'll be very hard to keep going. So find things that genuinely make using Chinese feel interesting to you — it could be watching Chinese content you enjoy, chatting with actual Chinese friends, exploring Chinese history, culture, food… Whatever you're genuinely interested in can be combined with Chinese.
小明 · XiaoMing
嗯，'让中文活起来'——不是只在课本里的中文，是在你真实生活里的中文。
PINYIN Ǹg, 'ràng Zhōngwén huó qǐlái' — bùshì zhǐ zài kèběn lǐ de Zhōngwén, shì zài nǐ zhēnshí shēnghuó lǐ de Zhōngwén.
EN Right — 'make Chinese come alive'. Not just Chinese from textbooks, but Chinese in your real life.
小月 · XiaoYue
对！'让中文活起来'。我喜欢这句话。
PINYIN Duì! 'Ràng Zhōngwén huó qǐlái'. Wǒ xǐhuān zhè jù huà.
EN Right! 'Make Chinese come alive'. I love that phrase.
I. Summary + your turn to practice!
小明 · XiaoMing
好，来总结一下今天聊的内容。今天我们聊了怎么开始用中文思考，而不是一直在脑子里翻译。
PINYIN Hǎo, lái zǒngjié yīxià jīntiān liáo de nèiróng. Jīntiān wǒmen liáo le zěnme kāishǐ yòng Zhōngwén sīkǎo, érbuShì yīzhí zài nǎozi lǐ fānyì.
EN Alright, let's summarise what we talked about today. Today we discussed how to start thinking in Chinese instead of constantly translating in your head.
小月 · XiaoYue
我们聊了中文特有的三个挑战——声调要学进词里，不要分开；汉字、发音、意思要三合一；量词要跟名词一起学。
PINYIN Wǒmen liáo le Zhōngwén tèyǒu de sān gè tiǎozhàn — shēngdiào yào xué jìn cí lǐ, bùyào fēnkāi; hànzì, fāyīn, yìsi yào sān hé yī; liàngcí yào gēn míngcí yīqǐ xué.
EN We talked about three challenges unique to Chinese — learn tones as part of the word, don't separate them; characters, pronunciation, and meaning need to be learnt as a three-in-one unit; measure words should be learnt together with nouns.
小明 · XiaoMing
然后三个方法——方法一，用小句子思考，把中文'粘'进你每天的生活，从早上起床到晚上睡觉，随时用中文想一句话。
PINYIN Ránhòu sān gè fāngfǎ — fāngfǎ yī, yòng xiǎo jùzi sīkǎo, bǎ Zhōngwén 'nián' jìn nǐ měitiān de shēnghuó, cóng zǎoshang qǐchuáng dào wǎnshàng shuìjiào, suíshí yòng Zhōngwén xiǎng yī jù huà.
EN Then the three methods — method one: think in small sentences. 'Glue' Chinese into your daily life, from waking up in the morning to going to sleep at night, think a sentence in Chinese anytime.
小月 · XiaoYue
方法二，输入。多听、多看适合你程度的中文内容，每天都有，规律比强度重要。方法三，自言自语——描述你看到的，描述你在做的，晚上回顾今天，用中文大声说出来，不只是在脑子里想。
PINYIN Fāngfǎ èr, shūrù. Duō tīng, duō kàn héshì nǐ chéngdù de Zhōngwén nèiróng, měitiān dōu yǒu, guīlǜ bǐ qiángdù zhòngyào. Fāngfǎ sān, zìyányúyǔ — miáoshù nǐ kàndào de, miáoshù nǐ zài zuò de, wǎnshàng huígù jīntiān, yòng Zhōngwén dàshēng shuō chūlái, bùzhǐ shì zài nǎozi lǐ xiǎng.
EN Method two: input. Listen to and watch Chinese content at your level regularly — every day. Consistency matters more than intensity. Method three: talk to yourself — describe what you see, describe what you're doing, review your day at night. Say it out loud in Chinese, not just think it in your head.
小明 · XiaoMing
还有心态——耐心，不怕犯错，让中文变得有趣。记住，你不是在考试，你在练习。
PINYIN Háiyǒu xīntài — nàixīn, bùpà fàncuò, ràng Zhōngwén biàn dé yǒuqù. Jìzhù, nǐ bùshì zài kǎoshì, nǐ zài liànxí.
EN And mindset — patience, don't be afraid of mistakes, make Chinese fun. Remember: you're not taking an exam, you're practicing.
小月 · XiaoYue
好，现在轮到你们了！我们有两个问题想问大家——第一，你现在在学中文的哪个阶段？你有没有体验过'开始用中文思考'的感觉，还是还在翻译脑的阶段？
PINYIN Hǎo, xiànzài lúndào nǐmen le! Wǒmen yǒu liǎng gè wèntí xiǎng wèn dàjiā — dì yī, nǐ xiànzài zài xué Zhōngwén de nǎ gè jiēduàn? Nǐ yǒuméiyǒu tǐyàn guò 'kāishǐ yòng Zhōngwén sīkǎo' de gǎnjué, háishì hái zài fānyì nǎo de jiēduàn?
EN Alright, now it's your turn! We have two questions for everyone — first: what stage of Chinese learning are you at right now? Have you experienced the feeling of 'starting to think in Chinese', or are you still in the translation brain stage?
小明 · XiaoMing
第二，你有没有用过什么特别的方法来练习'用中文思考'？或者，用今天学到的方法试一下，现在就用中文在评论区说一句话——说说你今天做了什么，或者你现在在哪里，用中文！练习就从现在开始。
PINYIN Dì èr, nǐ yǒuméiyǒu yòngguò shénme tèbié de fāngfǎ lái liànxí 'yòng Zhōngwén sīkǎo'? Huòzhě, yòng jīntiān xuédào de fāngfǎ shì yīxià, xiànzài jiù yòng Zhōngwén zài pínglùn qū shuō yī jù huà — shuōshuō nǐ jīntiān zuò le shénme, huòzhě nǐ xiànzài zài nǎlǐ, yòng Zhōngwén! Liànxí jiù cóng xiànzài kāishǐ.
EN Second: have you used any special methods to practice 'thinking in Chinese'? Or, try out today's methods right now — write one sentence in Chinese in the comments. Tell us what you did today, or where you are right now. In Chinese! Practice starts right now.
小月 · XiaoYue
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PINYIN Rúguǒ jīntiān de shìpín duì nǐ yǒu bāngzhù, qǐng diǎn gè zàn, ránhòu dìngyuè Bǎobao Zhōngwén — BaoBao Mandarin! Nǐ de měi yī gè diǎnzàn hé dìngyuè, dōu bāng wǒmen zuò dào gèngduō hǎo de nèiróng. Wǒmen xià qī jiàn!
EN If today's video helped you, please like it and subscribe to BaoBao Mandarin! Every like and subscription helps us create more great content. See you next episode!
小明 · XiaoMing
拜拜！
PINYIN Bàibài!
EN Bye bye!
✍️ 词汇 & 语法 / Vocabulary & Grammar
核心词汇 / Core Vocabulary
常用句型 / Useful Patterns
不只是 A，也 B
翻译脑不只影响你说话，也影响你听话。
EN Not only A, but also B.
不是 A，而是 B
你在用英文理解中文世界，而不是直接用中文。
EN Not A, but B.
从 A 到 B
从早上起床到晚上睡觉，随时用中文想一句话。
EN From A to B.
哪怕……也……
哪怕很短、很不完整，也没关系。
EN Even if…, it is still…
把 A 和 B 连接起来
把真实的经历和中文连接起来。
EN Connect A with B.
在 + 动词
我在刷牙。／我在找我的钥匙。
EN Marks an action in progress.
看到就说
看到就说，不需要翻译。
EN As soon as you see it, say it.
谢谢你和宝宝中文一起学习！
Thank you for learning with BaoBao Mandarin!
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