- Building your listening comprehension is one of the most important steps toward thriving in real Chinese conversations.
- Melnyk's Chinese is an excellent free resource for listening practice, with audio lessons created by Serge Melnyk.
- Every lesson begins with a vocabulary list explaining the meaning and usage of each new word, then puts that vocabulary to work in situational dialogues.
- The lessons below are the ones our students at CLI like the most, covering tones, introductions, food, family, travel, shopping, and more.
Who doesn't like talking to a great listener? It's a pleasure to speak with someone who pays attention to every word and responds with a keen astuteness to the subject being discussed.
As a Chinese language learner, building your listening comprehension is key to thriving in Chinese conversations.
While there are countless ways of practicing your listening skills, this blog post focuses on an excellent (and free) resource β Melnyk's Chinese. Simply put, polishing your Chinese listening ability with Melnyk's Chinese Audio Lessons is an excellent means of improving.
01 How the Lessons Work
Serge Melnyk introduces us to a vocabulary list explaining the meaning and usage of each new word, enriching the lesson with cultural insights about Chinese culture.
The second part of the lesson includes several situational dialogues that put in practice what you just learned.
Listen to each lesson more than once. The first pass gets you familiar with the new vocabulary, and the second lets you focus on how the words are actually used in the situational dialogues.
02 The Lessons Our Students Like the Most
Here's a list of the lessons our students at CLI like the most.
Chinese Tones and Pronunciation
The most essential of the basic lessons! 4 different tones, all different meanings, mispronounce a word at your own peril.
Once you're comfortable with the four basic tones, it's also worth reading up on the tone changes that happen in connected speech, since these are exactly the shifts your ear needs to catch.
What's Your Name?
The best way to start a conversation and make new friends. Learn basic vocabulary for asking and answering phrases like 'Can I ask you a question?', 'What's your name?' 'Nice to meet you', 'I'm Sorry', 'Please come in' and much more!
If you haven't chosen one yet, this is also a good moment to think about how to say your name in Chinese.
Chinese Food Is 'Good to Eat'!
Chinese Food is delicious! We'll learn how to say 'restaurant', 'menu', and the name of many of the most popular Chinese dishes.
We love Mr. Melnyk's recommendations! Learn how to order in a Chinese restaurant. Yum!
Meeting New People: Business Cards in China
This episode not only offers new vocabulary but includes an entire lesson that touches on cultural aspects that are essential when meeting new people and making a good first impression.
Pay attention to the sentence patterns in the featured situational dialogues.
My Family
This lesson features a special guest from Taiwan! Mr. Melnyk's comments on the cultural background will help you understand how to use new words.
Learn words like 'she looks very lovely' or 'are these your children' and all the different names for each family member. If the terms start to blur together, our guide to the Chinese family tree lays out how each relationship is named.
Time Concepts and Calendar
You'll find a super complete overview with clear explanations about the main time and calendar concepts and how to use them.
Years, months and days of the week are all applied in real life, in the situational dialogues.
Sing and Learn: 'Sweet Sweet'
Singing is a great way to practice your Chinese! Pause and play to learn at your own pace, look for the lyrics online, and try with other songs.
You might be able to apply this lesson's learnings in a Chinese KTV sometime! For more ideas, take a look at our roundup of Chinese songs worth learning.
Travel in China, Part 1
Traveling to China for the first time will always be a life-changing experience. Do not let the language barrier be an obstacle to your adventures!
This lesson will help you travel smoothly with essential phrases and words like: hotel, train ticket, toilet, passport, and how to change USD into RMB.
It pairs nicely with our list of essential Chinese travel phrases, which covers many of the same situations in written form.
Buying Food from a Supermarket
Visit a supermarket in China β it's a unique experience that you can't miss!
Mr. Melnyk also talks about products Westerners can't live without, ones that are not very easy to find in China. You'll probably need to ask someone to help you find them.
Also, this lesson includes useful everyday phrases and expressions.
Playing Sports and Exercising
Mr. Melnyk teaches us different sports names. We learn words like 'gym' and 'to exercise', 'sports' and 'team'.
Plus, some practical phrases like 'I often go to the gym to work out' and 'a strong team will win'.
03 Keep Building Your Listening Skills
Don't hesitate to visit the Melnyk's Chinese website and explore further. You'll find other free lessons, plus a full course of more than 276 lessons once you've subscribed.
Subscribers can also learn pinyin and how to write Chinese characters. Download the mobile app to continue learning wherever you want and at your own pace.
Audio lessons are at their most powerful when you pair them with real conversation, which is one of the reasons so many of our students choose to Learn Chinese in China rather than study on their own.
Study Chinese in Guilin or Start Online
CLI offers personalized Chinese instruction built around your goals. Join our Immersion Program in Guilin or begin from anywhere with a free Chinese lesson .
Looking for more ways to practice your listening? Check out our list of Chinese podcasts for some more ideas!