Mandarin Chinese Is Easy - Learn Words For Free
I want to demonstrate how easy Mandarin Chinese is when it comes to learning new vocabulary.
How many stores have you been to where they have the sign "Buy 2 get 1 free"? We all love to get a bargain and discounts. Well, when it comes to learning Mandarin Chinese I kind of think us language learners are getting a HUGE bargain when it comes to "brainspace" and challenges to our memory.
Let me illustrate. Imagine someone learning English. Here are 3 words that a foreigner would have to learn:
Fire
Mountain
Volcano
Those 3 words are entirely different and have no relation to one another. Someone learning English would have to learn all 3 words by memorization. But in Mandarin Chinese you only need to learn 2 and you get the 3rd one free! This is because Mandarin Chinese is kind of like a building block language. You just need to learn the basic words of the language and then you combine those words you already know in order to make new words. So in the above example you only need to learn :
Fire
Mountain
And your "free" word "volcano" is simply expressed by saying "fire mountain"
This phenomenon is something you see very regularly in Mandarin Chinese. Here are some more examples :
Good
Eat
Good eat = delicious
Years
Light (as in weight, ie not heavy)
Years light = young
Hand
Machine
Hand machine = mobile phone
Electric
Word (Spoken)
Look at
Image
Stairs
Brain
Electric word (spoken) = telephone
Electric look at = television
Electric image = movie/film
Electric stairs = elevator
Electric Brain = Computer
With the example above involving "electric" it's actually a learn 6 and get 5 free! So as you can see you don't need to learn every single individual word in the language. You can just learn the basic words and get more complex words for free by just remembering how to combine the basic words to form new complex logical meanings. The combinations of these words are not strange at all as you can see above, they are very logical and therefore very easy to remember.
The fact is this phenomenon continues throughout the entire language. Imagine how much easier it is to remember vocabulary as a result? I can tell you from experience it is very easy.
What is more, many times I hear someone say a combination of words that I have never heard before and 9 times out of 10 I can guess the meaning of the word just from logical deduction.
Furthermore, I have even been able to "guess" how to say something in Chinese by using the vocabulary I already know, and many times my guess has been exactly correct.
How many languages do you know of where it is possible to "guess" how to say something without ever learning it ?
This is just one of many reasons why I think Mandarin Chinese is an easy language to learn. I hope I have been able to demonstrate that to you too and perhaps pique your interest in this language which is quickly becoming and important skill as China becomes more and more important on the world scene.
by: Stanley Nickelson