Free Chinese Course

Six short Mandarin lessons for complete beginners, from your first tone to reading your first stories in Chinese. You listen, tap and answer as you go, and it's all on this page.

From the Chinese Language Institute (CLI), a school in Guilin since 2009. Free, with nothing to sign up for.

Start lesson 1Skip to the stories

chá tea

Each syllable in Chinese is written as one character, and most characters mean something on their own. Say chá and you've said tea. Write 茶 and you've written it. Anything in teal on this page plays when you tap it.

Lesson 1

声调shēngdiào

The four tones

Every syllable has a pitch pattern, its tone, and the tone is part of the word. Change the tone and you have a different word.

About 15 minutes.

One syllable, four tones

The line is the pitch of each recording, drawn as you hear it. Say it back, and draw the line in the air with your hand.

  1. High and level. Hold one note.

  2. Rising, like a surprised “huh?”

  3. Low, dipping. In real speech it mostly stays low.

  4. Falling fast, like a firm “no!”

Light and short, with no tone of its own. Hear it at the end of this question:

Tā xǐhuan māo ma? Does he like cats?

Train your ear

You hear a syllable. Pick what you heard.

Four parts, one after another: two tones at a time (24 cards), all four, words that differ only by tone, then two-syllable words. A pair of tones you miss twice comes back once, as an extra round. After each answer you hear the right one and the other choice again.

Lesson 2

拼音pīnyīn

Pinyin

Pinyin spells Chinese sounds in the Roman alphabet. Most letters sound roughly as you'd guess. A handful don't, and that's where to spend your time.

About 15 minutes.

How a syllable is spelled

ch
the initial: the first sound
a
the final: the rest
ˊ
the tone mark, over the vowel

茶 chá, tea. Mandarin has about 400 syllables, or about 1,300 counting the tones. That's the whole sound system.

The easy ones

Close to English. p, t and k come with a puff of air; b, d and g have none.

The three rows everyone mixes up

A student writes pinyin on a whiteboard in a CLI classroom while her teacher watches; j q x and zh ch sh r are written at the top.
The same rows on a whiteboard at CLI in Guilin.

Go across each row, then down the columns: jī, zhī and zī are three different sounds.

j q x Tongue down behind your bottom teeth. Lips spread for ji qi xi, rounded for ju qu xu (really jü qü xü).

zh ch sh r Tongue tip raised to the ridge just behind your top teeth.

z c s Tongue flat behind your top teeth: z like the ds in kids, c like the ts in cats.

After z c s zh ch sh r, the letter i is not “ee”. It is the buzz of the consonant carried on.

Spellings that surprise

  • ü Say “ee” with your lips rounded. After j q x y the dots are dropped: ju is jü.

  • e On its own, like the u in “duh”, not the e in “bed”. In ie and üe it is the e in “yes”: xiè. And ei rhymes with “day”: méi.

  • -ian tiān sounds like “tyen”, not “tee-an”.

  • -ui, -iu, -un Short spellings for uei, iou and uen: guì ≈ “gway”, liù ≈ “lyo”, dūn ≈ “dwun”.

  • -ong The o is more like the oo in “book”.

Check your ear

One syllable, two spellings. Pick the one you hear. One pair of sounds at a time, then a mixed round. After each answer you hear both.

Every syllable in Mandarin

The whole sound system on one chart. Use it whenever a spelling puzzles you.

A tap plays

The pinyin chart, with every syllable in all four tones.

405 syllables, each recorded in all four tones. Rows are the first sound (the initial), columns the rest of the syllable (the final). Some tone and syllable pairs aren’t real words: you’ll still hear the sound.

Lesson 3

你好nǐ hǎo

First words

Hello, yes and no, and numbers: the words you'd use on your first day in China. Two people recorded most of them. Hear the first, then switch to the second.

About 20 minutes.

Hello

Notice the pattern: a person or a time of day, then 好 hǎo, good.

Voice

  • nǐ hǎohello
  • nín hǎohello (polite: 您 is a respectful “you”)
  • lǎoshī hǎohello, teacher
  • dàjiā hǎohello, everyone
  • wǎnshang hǎogood evening
  • zǎomorning! (short for 早上好)
  • wéihello? (on the phone)

Hear the tone change

Two third tones in a row are hard to say, so the first one rises. The spelling stays the same. (More in Tone changes in Mandarin.)

  • written nǐ hǎosaid ní hǎohello
  • written kěyǐsaid kéyǐcan; OK

You walk into class. What do you say to your teacher?

Answer

老师好: the person, then 好. 喂 is for the phone, and 早 is for friends in the morning.

Yes and no

Chinese has no all-purpose word for yes or no. You answer with the verb from the question: yes is the verb, no is 不 plus the verb.

Voice

  • 你是学生吗？ Nǐ shì xuésheng ma? Are you a student?

  • 对吗？ Duì ma? Is that right?

  • 你有猫吗？ Nǐ yǒu māo ma? Do you have a cat?

    Never 不有.

  • 你会说中文吗？ Nǐ huì shuō Zhōngwén ma? Can you speak Chinese?

  • 你要茶吗？ Nǐ yào chá ma? Do you want some tea?

  • 我可以坐这里吗？ Wǒ kěyǐ zuò zhèlǐ ma? Can I sit here?

Hear 不 change

不 bù becomes bú before a fourth tone. This page writes it as it's said.

  • on its own bùhere bú shìno, it isn't
  • on its own bùhere bú duìnot right
  • on its own bùhere bú yàodon't want
  • on its own bùhere bù kéyǐno, you can't: 不 stays bù before a third tone, and 可以 is said kéyǐ, two third tones

OK, three ways

好 hǎo means OK. The small word after it sets the mood.

  • Hǎo.OK.
  • Hǎo de.OK, will do.
  • Hǎo ba.OK… (if I must)

Polite and useful

  • Bú yòng.No need (polite no, thanks).
  • Bù hǎoyìsi.Sorry; excuse me.
  • Méi wèntí.No problem.

Check yourself

你有猫吗？ Nǐ yǒu māo ma? Do you have a cat? You don't have one.

Answer

有 never takes 不. It's always 没有.

你是老师吗？ Nǐ shì lǎoshī ma? Are you a teacher? You're not.

Answer

The question used 是, so the answer does too.

你要茶吗？ Nǐ yào chá ma? Do you want some tea? You'd like some.

Answer

Answer with the verb from the question: 要.

Numbers

Zero to ten are single syllables.

Every number up to 99 is built from 一 to 十: tens first, then ones.

  • 11十一shíyīten, one
  • 20二十èrshítwo tens
  • 30三十sānshíthree tens sānshí gè xuésheng thirty students
  • 45四十五sìshíwǔfour tens, five
  • 99九十九jiǔshíjiǔnine tens, nine Wǒ yǒu jiǔshíjiǔ gè wèntí. I have 99 questions.

Check yourself

How do you write 45?

Answer

Four tens, then five: 四十五 sìshíwǔ.

What is 六十?

Answer

Six tens: 六十 liùshí. Sixteen is 十六, ten and six.

Lesson 4

汉字hànzì

Chinese characters

Almost every character is one syllable, and most carry a meaning. You don't need thousands to start reading. You need the common ones, and a feel for how they're built.

About 15 minutes.

Some began as pictures

Each one is written stroke by stroke, in the order every Chinese child learns.

  • rénpersona person walking
  • kǒumouthan open mouth
  • rìsun; daythe sun
  • shānmountainthree peaks (Guilin has plenty)
  • nǚwomana woman kneeling
  • mǎhorsea horse: head, mane and legs

Only a few characters are pictures. Most are built from parts, like 女 and 马 in the next one.

A meaning part and a sound part

妈 mother, 骂 to scold and the question word 吗 all contain 马 mǎ, horse, for its sound, drawn here in teal. The other part hints at the meaning. More than half of everyday characters are built this way.

  • māmother女 woman
  • maquestion word口 mouth: a sound you say
  • màto scold口口 two mouths: shouting

The sound part is a hint, not a rule: 妈 is mā, 骂 is mà.

虫 means bug. Which character is part of a bug's name?

Answer

蚂 has 虫, bug, for its meaning and 马 for its sound. It's the first half of 蚂蚁 mǎyǐ, ant.

Words are built from characters

电 diàn means electricity. Put it in front of other characters and you get a family of modern words.

电diànelectricity
  • diànnǎocomputer electric brain
  • 电话diànhuàphone electric speech
  • 电视diànshìTV electric seeing
  • diànyǐngfilm electric shadow

手 shǒu is hand. 机 jī is machine. What do you think 手机 shǒujī is?

Answer

A hand machine: the phone in your hand.

Some country names are built the same way: a character, then 国 guó, country. Most borrow characters for their sound, and a few also picked a good meaning: 美 beautiful, 英 outstanding.

  • ZhōngguóChina 中 middle: the one named for its meaning
  • MěiguóUnited States 美 beautiful, for the “me” in America
  • YīngguóUnited Kingdom 英 outstanding, for the “Eng” in England
  • FǎguóFrance 法 law, for the “Fra” in France
  • DéguóGermany 德 virtue, for the “Deu” in Deutschland
  • TàiguóThailand 泰 peaceful, for “Thai”

    Then say where you're from: 我是美国人。 Wǒ shì Měiguórén. I'm American. Put your country in place of 美国.

    A few characters do most of the work

    We counted over 256 million characters of film and TV dialogue and online chat. The ten most common make up about a fifth of everything people say, and the top 100 more than half.

    • 10 characters22%
    • 100 characters56%
    • 1,000 characters93%

    Share of all characters in spoken Chinese, from CLI's spoken frequency list (SUBTLEX-CH film and TV subtitles and the BCC dialogue corpus).

    The ten most common:

    The next 90
    • 啊a
    • 吗ma
    • 吧ba
    • 呢ne

    This list counts speech. Written Chinese has a different top ten (的 一 是 不 了): see The 100 Most Common Chinese Characters, with audio for each.

    In the three stories at the end of this page, 54 out of every 100 characters come from this list of 100.

    Lesson 5

    句子jùzi

    Your first sentences

    Chinese words never change their form: no eat, eats, ate. Word order and a few small words do that work. Every sentence here is a recording.

    About 15 minutes.

    The verb never changes

    Pick who's eating. English switches between eat and eats. 吃 chī stays 吃, whoever is eating, and yesterday or tomorrow too.

    Who eats bread?

    我吃面包。

    Wǒ chī miànbāo.

    I eat bread.

    Saying not

    不 goes straight before the verb. 有 never takes 不: it's always 没有.

    • Tā bù chī miànbāo.He doesn't eat bread.
    • Tāmen méiyǒu miànbāo.They don't have any bread.

    Asking questions

    Add 吗 to the end of a sentence and it becomes a yes-or-no question. Nothing else moves.

      • Tā xǐhuan māo.He likes cats.
      • Tā xǐhuan māo ma?Does he like cats?
      • Nǐ yào qù chāoshì.You're going to the supermarket.
      • Nǐ yào qù chāoshì ma?Are you going to the supermarket?
    A CLI teacher smiles beside a whiteboard of question words, 什么, 哪里 and 谁, while a student listens.
    Question words on the board in a CLI class in Guilin.

    Question words sit exactly where the answer will go.

    你吃什么？ Nǐ chī shénme? What will you have?
    我吃面包。 Wǒ chī miànbāo. I'll have bread.

    • shéiwho
    • shénmewhat
    • nǎlǐ / nǎrwhere (two ways to say it)
    • shénme shíhouwhen
    • wèishénmewhy
    • zěnmehow

    Who, when, where, then the action

    Chinese puts things in the order they're set up: who, when, where, and only then what happens. This one sentence has all five.

    I read at home yesterday.
    1. who我wǒI
    2. when昨天zuótiānyesterday
    3. where在家zài jiāat home
    4. do看kànread
    5. what书shūbooks

    The time can also go first. Where something happens (在 + place) usually comes before the action; where you go comes after 去: 去超市, go to the supermarket.

    • Tā zuótiān qù le chāoshì.He went to the supermarket yesterday.
    • Zuótiān tā qù le chāoshì.Yesterday, he went to the supermarket.

    Put these in order to say: I work in Guilin (桂林 Guìlín, the city where CLI is).

    Answer

    我在桂林工作。 Wǒ zài Guìlín gōngzuò. I work in Guilin.

    Counting things

    A number doesn't go straight onto a noun. A measure word goes between them, and different things take different ones: 只 for animals; 本 for books; 个 the everyday one; 位 polite, for people.

    • Wǒ yǒu yì zhī māo.I have a cat.
    • Tā xǐhuan zhè běn shū.He likes this book.
    • Wǒ yǒu wǔ gè wèntí.I have five questions.
    • sān wèi lǎoshīthree teachers
    • With a measure word, 2 is 两 liǎng, not 二: 两个人 liǎng gè rén, two people.
    • 天 day and 年 year take no measure word: 一天 yì tiān, 三年 sān nián. Month does: 三个月 sān gè yuè is three months (三月 is March).

    Check yourself

    I have a cat: 我有一___猫。

    Answer

    只 is the measure word for animals: 我有一只猫。

    Two people:

    Answer

    With a measure word, 2 is 两: 两个人. The measure word goes between the number and the noun.

    你吃什么？ What will you have? Answer: I'll have bread.

    Answer

    The answer goes exactly where the question word was: 你吃什么？ 我吃面包。

    Hear 一 yī change

    一, one, changes its tone with the word after it. This page writes it as it's said.

    • on its own yīhere yīon its own and when counting
    • on its own yīhere yí gèI have a question: yí before a fourth tone
    • on its own yīhere yì zhīI have a cat: yì before the other tones

    My, your, his

    的 works like 's. 我的 is my, 你的 your, 他的 his.

    • Zhè shì wǒ de māo.This is my cat.
    • Nǐ de wéijīn hěn piàoliang.Your scarf is beautiful.

    Every grammar point on the HSK 1 list, with examples: HSK 1 grammar.

    Lesson 6

    故事gùshi

    Three graded readers

    Three short stories from CLI's graded readers, two for HSK 1 and one for HSK 2, each with its recording. Tap any word to see what it means.

    About 30 minutes.

    Tea poured from a blue-and-white gaiwan into small cups on a bamboo tray.
    喝茶 hē chá, drinking tea. The first story is about a man who can't do without it.

    How to read them

    1. Listen once without reading. Catch what you can.
    2. Read along with the recording and the pinyin. Tap any word you don't know.
    3. Turn the pinyin off and read it again. Use Slower, or Repeat: the story pauses after each sentence so you can say it back.
    4. Answer the five questions, then come back tomorrow and just listen.

    我爸爸爱喝茶Wǒ bàba ài hē cháMy Dad Loves Drinking Tea

    HSK 1. By 覃美淇 Qín Měiqí and Anne Meredith. Grammar notes and a printable copy.

    Words to know first

    • de shíhouwhen: it ends the when-part, as in 天气热的时候喝茶, he drinks tea when the weather is hot (in a sentence)
    • yīshēngdoctor (in a sentence)
    • tiānqìweather (in a sentence)
    • hēto drink
    • rèhot
    • lěngcold
    • diànyǐngfilm, movie
    • chūzūchētaxi
    • shuìjiàoto sleep

    ，。My dad is a doctor. He's 60 this year.

    ，。He doesn't love drinking water. He loves drinking tea.

    ，。He drinks tea when it's hot, and he drinks tea when it's cold.

    ，，，，。He drinks tea when he works, when he watches a film, when he takes a taxi, when he's on the phone, and when he eats.

    ，。He likes drinking tea with his friends, and he likes drinking tea on his own too.

    ，，。He loves tea so much that he drinks it every day, and he can drink a lot of it in one day.

    ，。When I drink tea, I can't sleep. When he doesn't drink tea, he can't sleep.

    ，，。One day we ran out of tea at home, and he didn't sleep all day.

    。He says he can't live without tea.

    Five questions

    我爸爸今年多大？ Wǒ bàba jīnnián duō dà? How old is my dad this year?

    Answer

    六十岁 60.

    三十岁 30; 五十岁 50; 六十岁 60; 八十岁 80.

    我爸爸是…… Wǒ bàba shì … My dad is a …

    Answer

    医生 doctor.

    学生 student; 医生 doctor; 同学 classmate; 老师 teacher.

    我爸爸天天都…… Wǒ bàba tiāntiān dōu … Every day, my dad …

    Answer

    喝不少茶 drinks a lot of tea.

    喝不少水 drinks a lot of water; 坐出租车 takes a taxi; 喝不少茶 drinks a lot of tea; 看电影 watches a film.

    我爸爸喜欢和谁喝茶？ Wǒ bàba xǐhuan hé shéi hē chá? Who does my dad like drinking tea with?

    Answer

    和朋友 with friends.

    和朋友 with friends; 和我 with me; 和妈妈 with mom; 和猫 with the cat.

    我喝了茶，不能…… Wǒ hē le chá, bù néng … After I drink tea, I can't …

    Answer

    睡觉 sleep.

    打电话 make a call; 睡觉 sleep; 看电影 watch a film; 坐出租车 take a taxi.

    米饭MǐfànMy Family's Dog: Rice

    HSK 1. By 吕勇 Lǚ Yǒng and Anne Meredith. Grammar notes and a printable copy.

    Words to know first

    • xiǎogǒulittle dog, puppy (in a sentence)
    • míngziname
    • shāngdiànshop, store
    • qiánmiànin front
    • kàn qǐlaito look (like), seem
    • píngguǒapple
    • huíjiāto go home
    • zhuōzitable
    • rènshito get to know, meet
    • xiǎomāolittle cat, kitten (in a sentence)

    ，，。Our family has a little dog. His name is Rice, and he's 3 this year.

    ，。Mom and I found Rice in front of a shop, on the afternoon of Monday, 6 August 2018.

    ，，，。It was very hot that day, and he looked like he really wanted a drink. I didn't have any water, so I gave him an apple.

    ，，。He ate one apple and wanted another, so he came home with us.

    、，。Rice likes watching TV and eating fruit, and he really loves eating rice.

    ，。When I'm not at home, he likes to sleep.

    ，。When I work at home, he likes to sit on the table and look at my computer.

    ，。Last Sunday Rice and I went to the shops, and he met a pretty little cat.

    。Now they often play together.

    ，。Rice is our friend. We all like him.

    Five questions

    小狗的名字是什么？ Xiǎogǒu de míngzi shì shénme? What is the dog's name?

    Answer

    米饭 Rice.

    苹果 Apple; 水果 Fruit; 米饭 Rice; 小猫 Kitty.

    我和妈妈是在哪儿看见米饭的？ Wǒ hé māma shì zài nǎr kànjiàn Mǐfàn de? Where did Mom and I first see Rice?

    Answer

    在商店前面 in front of a shop.

    在商店后面 behind a shop; 在商店前面 in front of a shop; 在商店里面 inside a shop; 在饭店前面 in front of a restaurant.

    那天，我给米饭吃了什么？ Nà tiān, wǒ gěi Mǐfàn chī le shénme? That day, what did I give Rice to eat?

    Answer

    一个苹果 an apple.

    水 water; 米饭 rice; 一个苹果 an apple; 面条 noodles.

    我在家工作的时候，米饭喜欢做什么？ Wǒ zài jiā gōngzuò de shíhou, Mǐfàn xǐhuan zuò shénme? When I work at home, what does Rice like to do?

    Answer

    看我的电脑 look at my computer.

    看我的电脑 look at my computer; 看电视 watch TV; 睡觉 sleep; 吃苹果 eat apples.

    上个星期天，米饭认识了谁？ Shàng gè xīngqītiān, Mǐfàn rènshi le shéi? Last Sunday, who did Rice meet?

    Answer

    一只漂亮的小猫 a pretty little cat.

    一只小狗 a little dog; 一只漂亮的小猫 a pretty little cat; 我的妈妈 my mom; 一个医生 a doctor.

    刘师傅Liú shīfuMy Bus Driver, Mr. Liu

    HSK 2. By 吕勇 Lǚ Yǒng and Anne Meredith. Grammar notes and a printable copy.

    Words to know first

    • gōnggòng qìchēbus
    • xuéxiàoschool
    • Liú shīfuMr. Liu (师傅: a polite way to address a driver or a skilled worker)
    • bāngzhùto help
    • hēisèblack
    • shēngbìngto be ill
    • yīyuànhospital
    • xiàchēto get off (a bus)
    • wǎndiǎnlate, behind time

    。Every day I take the bus to school, and every day I see Mr. Liu.

    ，，，，。Mr. Liu drives the bus. He's 50 this year, with a big face, small eyes and a loud voice.

    。He really likes helping people.

    ，，，，：“，。”Today he was wearing black clothes and white sneakers, with a watch on and a teacup in his hand. He smiled and said to me, “Please get on, little one.”

    。He knows I get on here every day.

    ，。At the next stop, he saw an old lady slowly getting on the bus.

    ，。Mr. Liu thought she was ill, so he asked her if she was sick and going to the hospital.

    ：“，，。”The old lady said, “Yes, I'm going to the hospital, but I don't know where to get off.”

    ：“，。”Mr. Liu said, “Don't worry, I'll tell you when we get there.”

    ，。When the bus got to the hospital stop, Mr. Liu helped the old lady off.

    ，。Because of things like this, Mr. Liu's bus gets to school late every day, but I still really like him.

    Five questions

    刘师傅今年多大？ Liú shīfu jīnnián duō dà? How old is Mr. Liu this year?

    Answer

    五十岁 50.

    四十岁 40; 五十岁 50; 六十岁 60; 十五岁 15.

    刘师傅是做什么的？ Liú shīfu shì zuò shénme de? What does Mr. Liu do?

    Answer

    开公共汽车的 He drives a bus.

    医生 He's a doctor; 老师 He's a teacher; 开公共汽车的 He drives a bus; 开出租车的 He drives a taxi.

    今天刘师傅穿着什么颜色的衣服？ Jīntiān Liú shīfu chuānzhe shénme yánsè de yīfu? What color clothes is Mr. Liu wearing today?

    Answer

    黑色 black.

    白色 white; 黑色 black; 红色 red; 蓝色 blue.

    老奶奶要去哪儿？ Lǎonǎinai yào qù nǎr? Where is the old lady going?

    Answer

    医院 to the hospital.

    学校 to school; 商店 to the shops; 医院 to the hospital; 饭店 to a restaurant.

    刘师傅的车为什么每天都会晚点？ Liú shīfu de chē wèishénme měitiān dōu huì wǎndiǎn? Why is Mr. Liu's bus late every day?

    Answer

    因为他帮助别人 because he helps people.

    因为车很慢 because the bus is slow; 因为他帮助别人 because he helps people; 因为他生病了 because he's ill; 因为他喝茶 because he drinks tea.

    After the course

    下一步xià yí bù

    What’s next

    You can hear the four tones, read pinyin, say your first sentences and read three short stories in Chinese. This is how to keep going.

    A student studies an HSK textbook at a wooden table beside a tea set.
    An HSK book, a notebook and a pot of tea.

    说shuō

    Say it to someone

    Book a free 30-minute online lesson with one of our teachers in Guilin. Say a few of these sentences out loud, and your teacher will tell you which tones to work on and what to learn next.

    Book it at studycli.org/free-chinese-lesson/

    Book a free lessonAbout online lessons

    1. Read the next story

      My Chinese Homestay Family is the next graded reader, also at HSK 2 and with its own recording. Every CLI graded reader is on one page, and the Resource Library has everything our teachers have written about learning Chinese.

    2. Learn the HSK 1 words

      HSK 1 vocabulary has the 300 words of the new HSK 1, with flashcards. The 100 Most Common Chinese Characters lets you hear each one.

    3. Come back tomorrow

      Run the ear training again, and listen to one of the stories without reading along. Short sessions on different days work better than one long one. The pinyin chart has every syllable on its own page.

    Questions about the course

    Recordings: CLI's audio library, 2021 to 2024. Stories by the CLI team. Pitch lines measured with Praat. Frequencies from SUBTLEX-CH and the BCC corpus, counted by CLI. Sound and meaning parts from Make Me a Hanzi's dictionary (LGPL). Hand-drawn characters: CLI redrew them on September 28, 2026 from the stroke medians in Make Me a Hanzi (via hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1), which come from Arphic's AR PL KaitiM GB and AR PL UKai fonts, © 1999 Arphic Technology Co., Ltd. Each median was resampled, smoothed, rescaled and varied a little, then given a pen width and outlined. The drawings are modified versions of those fonts: you may copy, change and share them under the Arphic Public License. They come with no warranty. Your progress stays in this browser; .

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