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Mandarin From the Ground Up

By: Isaac Myers
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  • Learn to speak Mandarin the same way you learned your native language: by imitating what you hear. No memorizing, no tedious grammar lessons, no superhuman willpower, just the sounds of Chinese, your ears, and you. Let's start speaking Chinese for real this time. Subscribe to start building your Mandarin from the ground up! Logo artwork by Alex Wang • 老汪
    © 2023 Isaac Myers
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Episodes
  • Daily Practice (Normal Speed) - S3 - Lesson 07

    Daily Practice (Normal Speed) - S3 - Lesson 07
    Nov 1 2023
    After listening to Season 3, Lesson 07, start reinforcing what you've learned by taking six minutes a day to practice listening and imitating the material. Repetition makes progress.How to practiceThis episode's daily practice session doesn't include spoken instructions, but the process is the same as previous episodes of this season:In the first part, you'll hear a short snippet of the dialogue, followed by a pause of 2-4 seconds. During the pause, try to echo aloud exactly what you heard. In the second part, the dialogue plays again without pauses. Try to shadow the dialogue by repeating it aloud simultaneously with the recording.Note that in both parts, speaking aloud is important, as this practice helps you gain confidence making the sounds of Mandarin, increasing your speaking fluency over time. It also gives you invaluable feedback, as you hear the sounds coming out of your mouth, and can compare them to the sounds you just heard. If only done once or twice, this might not seem to have much effect; repeated on a daily basis, however, this is a powerful mechanism for bootstrapping your pronunciation and speaking ability.Magic Phrase (4-1)This phrase is composed entirely of words that use the 4-1 tone pair. We use it to practice identifying and then pronouncing the tones, hearing how they interact with each other in context. 帥哥上班，外公退休Shuàigē shàngbān, wàigōng tuìxiū帥哥 / shuàigē / handsome man上班 / shàngbān / to go to work外公 / wàigōng / maternal grandfather退休 / tuìxiū / retired, to retireTranscript of the dialogue (Chinese characters only)M：阿芬！你來了！F：嘿！不好意思遲到了。我剛剛才下班。M：沒事！趕快進來坐！F：謝謝。M：你看起來好喘！F：唉，爬樓梯真的好喘！M：對，我們沒有電梯。只好讓你運動一下。F：我好久沒運動。M：沒關係，現在可以放鬆。小李，這是我的朋友，慧芬，她是律師。L：你好。F：嗨。M：來，慧芬，要不要吃麵包？小李做的！F：好厲害！M：你可以放心，他的麵包很健康！F：好好吃！你開麵包店嗎？L：沒有，其實，就是，呃… 我是一個… 呃… 作家。M：小李很害羞，可是他是一個很認真的作家。F：你寫小說嗎？L：沒有。但那是我的目標。M：來，我們先坐。正好要開始唱歌！F：我最愛唱歌！M：小李，你還沒點歌，對吧。L：我不用了。F：你真的很害羞。M：小李，拜託，唱一首給大家聽。然後我就放過你。L：可是，在很多陌生人的面前…M：什麼陌生人？我們都是朋友，你放心！L：還是我先去吃蛋糕…M：你不要逃避了啦！不唱歌，你要吃辣椒！L：什麼？M：我家的規定。L：OK，OK，好啦。我唱。F：你要唱什麼？我幫你點。L：呃… 夢中人？好嗎？F：王菲的還是蔡琴的？L：哦… 蔡琴的。M：老靈魂。L：哈哈，對啊。F：好，點好了。L：這麼快！好，請大家要有耐心…M：不要害羞！L：不能錄音哦。M：沒有人會錄音！Transcript of the dialogue (w/ pinyin and translation)Use this as a visual listening guide, or if you want to check your tone comprehension. Tones are indicated by marks above the letters in the pinyin transliteration, as follows: (1) ā (2) á (3) ǎ (4) àM：阿芬！你來了！Ā fēn! Nǐ láile!A-Fen, you’re here!F：嘿！不好意思遲到了。我剛剛才下班。Hēi! Bù hǎoyìsi chídàole. Wǒ gānggāng cái xiàbān. Hey! Sorry, I’m late. I just got off work.M：沒事！趕快進來坐！Méishì! Gǎnkuài jìnlái zuò!No worries! Hurry up and come in!F：謝謝。Xièxie.Thank you.M：你看起來很喘。Nǐ kàn qǐlái hǎo chuǎn!You look really out of breath.F：唉，爬樓梯好喘！Yeah, climbing the stairs is really tiring (makes one out of breath)!Āi, pá lóutī zhēn de hěn chuǎn!M：對，我們沒有電梯。只好讓你運動一下。 Duì, wǒmen méiyǒu diàntī. Zhǐhǎo ràng nǐ yùndòng yīxià.Yeah, we don’t have an elevator. No other choice but to make you exercise a bit.F：我好久沒運動。Wǒ hǎojiǔ méi yùndòng.I haven’t exercised in a long time.M：沒關係，這裡可以放鬆。小李，這是我的朋友，慧芬，她是律師。Méiguānxì, xiànzài kěyǐ fàngsōng. Xiǎo lǐ, zhè shì wǒ de péngyǒu, huì fēn, tā shì lǜshī.It’s ok, you can relax here. Xiao Li, this is my friend, Hui Fen. She’s a lawyer.L：你好。Nǐ hǎo.Hi.F：嗨。Hāi.Hi.M：來，慧芬，要不要吃**麵包？**小李做的！Lái, huì fēn, yào bùyào chī miànbāo? Xiǎo lǐ zuò de!Here, Hui-Fen, do you want to eat some bread? Xiao Li made it!F：好厲害！Hǎo lìhài!That’s amazing!M：你可以放心，他的麵包很健康！Nǐ kěyǐ fàngxīn, tā de miànbāo hěn jiànkāng!You don’t have to worry, his bread is really healthy.F：好好吃...
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    6 mins
  • S3 ~ 07 ~ Handsome brother goes to work 帥哥上班

    S3 ~ 07 ~ Handsome brother goes to work 帥哥上班
    Oct 31 2023
    Lesson Outline:[00:21] Review of tone pairs from lessons one through six. [02:30] Magic Phrase: 帥哥上班，外公退休[08:20] Dialogue[11:40] Translation[23:07] Dialogue, one more time at normal speedMagic Phrase (4-1)This phrase is composed entirely of words that use the 4-1 tone pair. We use it to practice identifying and then pronouncing the tones, hearing how they interact with each other in context. 帥哥上班，外公退休Shuàigē shàngbān, wàigōng tuìxiū帥哥 / shuàigē / handsome man上班 / shàngbān / to go to work外公 / wàigōng / maternal grandfather退休 / tuìxiū / retired, to retireTranscript of the dialogue (Chinese characters only)M：阿芬！你來了！F：嘿！不好意思遲到了。我剛剛才下班。M：沒事！趕快進來坐！F：謝謝。M：你看起來好喘！F：唉，爬樓梯真的好喘！M：對，我們沒有電梯。只好讓你運動一下。F：我好久沒運動。M：沒關係，現在可以放鬆。小李，這是我的朋友，慧芬，她是律師。L：你好。F：嗨。M：來，慧芬，要不要吃麵包？小李做的！F：好厲害！M：你可以放心，他的麵包很健康！F：好好吃！你開麵包店嗎？L：沒有，其實，就是，呃… 我是一個… 呃… 作家。M：小李很害羞，可是他是一個很認真的作家。F：你寫小說嗎？L：沒有。但那是我的目標。M：來，我們先坐。正好要開始唱歌！F：我最愛唱歌！M：小李，你還沒點歌，對吧。L：我不用了。F：你真的很害羞。M：小李，拜託，唱一首給大家聽。然後我就放過你。L：可是，在很多陌生人的面前…M：什麼陌生人？我們都是朋友，你放心！L：還是我先去吃蛋糕…M：你不要逃避了啦！不唱歌，你要吃辣椒！L：什麼？M：我家的規定。L：OK，OK，好啦。我唱。F：你要唱什麼？我幫你點。L：呃… 夢中人？好嗎？F：王菲的還是蔡琴的？L：哦… 蔡琴的。M：老靈魂。L：哈哈，對啊。F：好，點好了。L：這麼快！好，請大家要有耐心…M：不要害羞！L：不能錄音哦。M：沒有人會錄音！Transcript of the dialogue (w/ pinyin and translation)Use this as a visual listening guide, or if you want to check your tone comprehension. Tones are indicated by marks above the letters in the pinyin transliteration, as follows: (1) ā (2) á (3) ǎ (4) àM：阿芬！你來了！Ā fēn! Nǐ láile!A-Fen, you’re here!F：嘿！不好意思遲到了。我剛剛才下班。Hēi! Bù hǎoyìsi chídàole. Wǒ gānggāng cái xiàbān. Hey! Sorry, I’m late. I just got off work.M：沒事！趕快進來坐！Méishì! Gǎnkuài jìnlái zuò!No worries! Hurry up and come in!F：謝謝。Xièxie.Thank you.M：你看起來很喘。Nǐ kàn qǐlái hǎo chuǎn!You look really out of breath.F：唉，爬樓梯好喘！Yeah, climbing the stairs is really tiring (makes one out of breath)!Āi, pá lóutī zhēn de hěn chuǎn!M：對，我們沒有電梯。只好讓你運動一下。 Duì, wǒmen méiyǒu diàntī. Zhǐhǎo ràng nǐ yùndòng yīxià.Yeah, we don’t have an elevator. No other choice but to make you exercise a bit.F：我好久沒運動。Wǒ hǎojiǔ méi yùndòng.I haven’t exercised in a long time.M：沒關係，這裡可以放鬆。小李，這是我的朋友，慧芬，她是律師。Méiguānxì, xiànzài kěyǐ fàngsōng. Xiǎo lǐ, zhè shì wǒ de péngyǒu, huì fēn, tā shì lǜshī.It’s ok, you can relax here. Xiao Li, this is my friend, Hui Fen. She’s a lawyer.L：你好。Nǐ hǎo.Hi.F：嗨。Hāi.Hi.M：來，慧芬，要不要吃**麵包？**小李做的！Lái, huì fēn, yào bùyào chī miànbāo? Xiǎo lǐ zuò de!Here, Hui-Fen, do you want to eat some bread? Xiao Li made it!F：好厲害！Hǎo lìhài!That’s amazing!M：你可以放心，他的麵包很健康！Nǐ kěyǐ fàngxīn, tā de miànbāo hěn jiànkāng!You don’t have to worry, his bread is really healthy.F：好好吃！你開麵包店嗎？Hǎohǎo chī! Nǐ kāi miànbāo diàn ma?It's so good! Do you have a bakery?L：沒有，其實，就是，呃… 我是一個… 呃… 作家。Méiyǒu, qíshí, jiùshì, è… wǒ shì yīgè… è… zuòjiā.No, actually, I mean, uh, I’m a, uh… writer.M：小李很害羞，可是他是一個很認真的作家。Xiǎo lǐ hěn hàixiū, kěshì tā shì yīgè hěn rènzhēn de zuòjiā.Xiao Li is really shy, but he’s a very serious writer.F：你寫小說嗎？Nǐ xiě xiǎoshuō ma?Do you write novels?L：沒有，但那是我的目標。Méiyǒu. Dàn nà shì wǒ de mùbiāo.No, but that’s my goal.M：來，我們先坐。正好要開始唱歌！Lái, wǒmen xiān zuò. Zhènghǎo yào kāishǐ chànggē!Come one, let's sit down first. We’re just about to start singing!F：我最愛唱歌！Wǒ zuì'ài chànggē!I love singing!M：小李，你還沒點歌，對吧。Xiǎo lǐ, ...
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    27 mins
  • Daily Practice (Slow Speed) - S3 - Lesson 06

    Daily Practice (Slow Speed) - S3 - Lesson 06
    Sep 13 2023
    SLOW SPEED VERSIONAfter listening to Season 3, Lesson 06, start reinforcing what you've learned by taking ten minutes a day to practice listening and imitating the material. Repetition makes progress.How to practiceThis episode's daily practice session doesn't include spoken instructions, but the process is the same as previous episodes of this season:In the first part, you'll hear a short snippet of the dialogue, followed by a pause of 2-4 seconds. During the pause, try to echo aloud exactly what you heard. In the second part, the dialogue plays again without pauses. Try to shadow the dialogue by repeating it aloud simultaneously with the recording.Note that in both parts, speaking aloud is important, as this practice helps you gain confidence making the sounds of Mandarin, increasing your speaking fluency over time. It also gives you invaluable feedback, as you hear the sounds coming out of your mouth, and can compare them to the sounds you just heard. If only done once or twice, this might not seem to have much effect; repeated on a daily basis, however, this is a powerful mechanism for bootstrapping your pronunciation and speaking ability.Magic Phrase (4-3)This phrase is composed entirely of words that use the 4-3 tone pair. We use it to practice identifying and then pronouncing the tones, hearing how they interact with each other in context. 下午下雨，地鐵漏水Xiàwǔ xiàyǔ, dìtiě lòushuǐ下午 / xiàwǔ / afternoon下雨 / xiàyǔ / to rain地鐵 / dìtiě / subway, subway system漏水 / lòushuǐ / to leak waterTranscript of the dialogue (Chinese characters only)小李：好，我們開始。可以錄影嗎？麗麗：可以。小李：謝謝。阿明，你準備好了嗎？阿明：可以了！小李：好。可以先講一下你的背景嗎？你小時候喜歡做什麼？麗麗：我從小就很愛看電影。我的夢想是寫電影的劇本。小李：很酷的夢想！麗麗：對啊。但我媽媽禁止我念電影系，她說太冒險。小李：所以你念了什麼系？麗麗：我念電腦科學。畢業後我在大公司上班。我們買賣進口的電腦系統。小李：聽起來很有趣！麗麗：很無聊！我賺了很多錢，但每天都覺得很痛苦。不知道到底活著是為了什麼。而且身體還出了一些狀況。因為沒有胃口，所以變得很瘦。小李：好可憐！麗麗：當時我很後悔放棄自己的夢想，但我也沒有勇氣改變。小李：那然後呢？麗麗：後來我發現了，害怕失敗只是一個藉口。或許寫劇本只是一個幻想啊，但至少要試試看才知道。小李：沒錯！麗麗：我現在的看法是，不管怎麼樣，自己的人生要自己負責。小李：有道理。麗麗：所以我離職了。小李：哇！那你媽媽有支持你了嗎？麗麗：沒有。她很憤怒，她說我會後悔，還說最好不要再看到我了。小李：你一定很難過。麗麗：讓媽媽生氣是不可避免的啊！重點是，我現在的工作是寫劇本。我成功了！小李：恭喜！那你媽媽呢？麗麗：她早就忘記了。康太太：哈囉，你們在說我的壞話嗎？小李：呃，沒有，我們在，呃，採訪…阿明：麗麗在跟我們說她現在的工作。康太太：哦！對，我女兒很厲害！她寫電影的劇本！很厲害吧！小李：真的。真的很厲害。Transcript of the dialogue (w/ pinyin and translation)Use this as a visual listening guide, or if you want to check your tone comprehension. Tones are indicated by marks above the letters in the pinyin transliteration, as follows: (1) ā (2) á (3) ǎ (4) à小李：好，我們開始。可以錄影嗎？Ok, let’s start. Can we take a video?Hǎo, wǒmen kāishǐ. Kěyǐ lùyǐng ma?麗麗：可以。Sure.Kěyǐ.小李：謝謝。阿明，你準備好了嗎？Thanks. A-Ming, are you ready?Xièxie. Ā míng, nǐ zhǔnbèi hǎole ma?阿明：可以了！Ready!Kěyǐle!小李：好。可以先講一下你的背景嗎？你小時候喜歡做什麼？Ok. Can you first talk a little about your background? What did you like to do when you were a kid?Hǎo. Kěyǐ xiān jiǎng yīxià nǐ de bèijǐng ma? Nǐ xiǎoshíhòu xǐhuān zuò shénme?麗麗：我從小就很愛看電影。我的夢想是寫電影的劇本。I’ve loved watching movies since I was small. My dream was to write screenplays.Wǒ cóngxiǎo jiù hěn ài kàn diànyǐng. Wǒ de mèngxiǎng shì xiě diànyǐng de jùběn.小李：很酷的夢想！That’s a really cool dream!Hěn kù de mèngxiǎng!麗麗：對啊。但我媽媽禁止我念電影系，她說太冒險。Yeah. But my mom forbade me from studying film. She said it was too risky.Duì a. Dàn wǒ māmā jìnzhǐ wǒ niàn diànyǐng xì, tā shuō tài màoxiǎn.小李：所以你念了什麼系？So what did you major in?Suǒyǐ nǐ niànle shénme xì?麗麗：我念電腦科學。畢業後我在大公司上班。...
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    12 mins
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Loved and still love it.

This podcast is well done. The author engages with his listeners. His encouragement has helped me to continue to learn Mandarin, when I feel discouraged, I am reminded by what he says "It's a marathon and not a sprint."

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