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Posts: 194

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Q: Do you speak Chinese?

I frequently read these forums, but I prefer to not post anything unless I have a reasonable question to ask. Today while reading various threads I observed that someone had mentioned that they spoke fluent Chinese. For that reason, I want to ask how many people here

 

A) Can speak fluently or near-fluently?

B) If you can speak Chinese at-or-near a state of fluency, are you completely literate in the language? Can you speak, read, and write in Chinese? Or can you only speak/read/write: Which applies to you?

C) If you are at-or-near fluency, how did you reach such a knowledgeable state? School, self-learning, friends, work, etc..

 

For those whom cannot speak Chinese beyond the most common and simple expressions. I wish to ask:

 

D) What is the reason that you are not fluent in Chinese?

E) Do you intend to learn the language?

F) How do you cope with living in a country in which you are technically illiterate? (By this I mean living in a foreign nation whose de-facto language is not your native tongue.)

 

 

My goal in asking this question is to examine a cross-section of foreign people that frequent these forums. For myself personally, I cannot imagine living a foreign country for an extended period of time and not being literate in that nations mother tongue. I will reply to this thread later with my own answers. Thank you everyone!

9 years 50 weeks ago in  General  - China

 
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Posts: 916

Shifu

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A. I speak Chinese fluently.

B. I am completely literate in Chinese. Read, write and speak.

C. Chinese is my second language.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 7178

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A No

 

B No

 

C No

 

But I get by.

 

I suspect you have been reading European Nationalist party's pamphlets.

 

Why don't you set up an anti immigration party? The UK political party UKIP could give you a few good pointers.

 

Good luck with that surprise

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 660

Shifu

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I  speak a fair amount, understand listening better, and know a large amount of characters that i am in no way able to use in a coherent sentence. Fluency would be nice, but in my experience, I dont see the use at this point.

I dont have a problem communicating with my gf family even if its only superficial. But i dont worry too much since her parents dont even speak standard mandarin. And to be a dick about it, everyone  has to study English in school for 12 years, so those that dont have a working use of english i generalize as lazy ( excluding all who are talented and successful in their career, because they were obviously focusing on their own path and not what there school pushed).

Also, the characters used by chinese in a literary sense have too much culture behind it that I dont want to devote my life to understanding. And for daily language, their online world moves too fast with too many memes and new usages that keeping up is more of a fun hobby than somethiing useful. 

 

Now if you are talking about being able to talk to taxi drivers, waitresses, and store clerks... definitely should get to 

 

and though you think that you cannot imagine living in a country for an extended period of time and not being literate in the nations mother tongue, you will get over it. Its is much more useful to learn the level you need and have fun with personal studies of the language.  

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
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A: I wouldnt say fluent but i can speak, hold conversations,conduct business. Its pretty much at a level where there is nothing i cant say but nothing i can say correctly.

B: i cant write a single word. But i can read and type at a conversation level almost at par with my speaking.

C: learned to speak from just living here. Hanging out. Talking to people. Ive always been pretty independant so ive always hated people doing shit for me and i hate when my shit is in other peoples names. So anything like getting internet or a car ordering food. Would all be done by me. Reading just came from a visual memory. Taking subway and seeing the stops, drivibg around without a gps, asking questions. Just picked it up.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 1198

Shifu

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Now I can speak quite a bit chinese, not fluently though... just too many words. Actually I can speak more than I understand. These dialects give me the creeps.

Since I took my new job I have to use Chinese every day. So I improve every day. Anyways I do want to learn chinese but have no time to read books or so. Just learning by doing.

 

I can't read and I can only write pinyin. I would like to learn it but not without a teacher... Hard to take lessons with a 12h day.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 1718

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I would say I was close to fluent at one point. Ever since I finished my studies, my Chinese has got worse. I'm just not using it the way I was back then. The lack of a need to actually hand write anything in today's modern world has meant that I can't remember how to write most Chinese characters anymore. But my speaking, reading, and listening are still pretty good.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
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I don't speak Chinese. I never tried to learn with real studying. I can use some 15 Chinese words only for naming the things, not as an 'answer or ask' way of talking.

 

I find it extremely difficult, because I can't learn it classical way of repeating, making notes, and reading my notes again. 

My hearing is very good, and I can repeat word in almost any language, after I hear it once or twice. However, that doesn't last too long in my head.

 

In my home country, I already have 'movie star' status, because everybody assume, I speak Chinese, just because I live in China 5 years.

I hate 'movie star' status!

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 9631

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D) The real reason is that no one is helping me learn. If someone says "一个多么可爱的阳光灿烂的日子今天" to me, and I ask, what does that mean, I will never get a usable answer, but merely "it's something about how nice the weather is"

 

I am not illiterate in China, I am blissfully unaware of things. My wife is a perfect in helping me with things, at the same time she is also a crap teacher. 

sevenyan:

The sentence you heard is pretty cool though ...in spoken chinese, people barely speak like that:)

9 years 50 weeks ago
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Scandinavian:

It's Google Translate. Wouldn't be able to convert the sounds I hear to those funny little drawings. 

9 years 50 weeks ago
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RiriRiri:

Honestly, I feel for the people you ask about this sentence.

 

You know, the problem with Mandarin, is that it has an insane stock of adjectives whose only purpose is to overly exagerate anything and everything.

Look up stuff like "shiny", "splendid", "dazzling" or whatever you can think of in your dictionary. This is in-sane.

Of course people can't tell you exactly what your sentence mean, because yeah, it's basically describing a super nice weather, using one of those superlatives that really don't add up much more sense into the sentence, but made whoever used them look literate.

 

This what writing skills mean in China: having enough vocabulary to go as emphatic as you can with as many words as you can on irrelevant stuff. They say being literate and educated is a mean of liberating your thoughts, but don't be mistaken, in China it's just a mean of licking better boots.

9 years 50 weeks ago
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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 2531

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I took a few tests and I am at an intermediate level. My speaking and listening is better than my reading and writing. 

 

I may continue to learn it, I may not... I can speak enough to do pretty much whatever I want. And a handy little electronic dictionary on my phone for the small words I don't know or forget. 

 

I don't really use it too much due to not working much with Chinese people and speaking English at home. If I had more of a reason to use it, then it would improve faster. I just don't.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
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4 years, no Chinese..  No requirement, no need.  Why bother?  What's the point?

The language will only ever be relevant to Chinese...and 45% of them don't use it anyway.

 

Gypsy:

Your fooling yourself or perhaps a bit lazy, or independently wealthy? China is the worlds next economic 800 pound gorilla whether we like it or not. Being fluently bilingual in English and Chinese can pay of in spades for you.

9 years 50 weeks ago
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ironman510:

Boy oh boy RoyceH I really hope you're a toilet cleaner and not a teacher because if this is how you go about learning something useful or something new then your teaching skills wouldn't be much different with this kind of attitude... I do get paid more because I can translate to students and other jobs.

9 years 50 weeks ago
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royceH:

Sorry to disappoint, Ironman...I'm not a toilet cleaner.  But if Chinese ppl actually cared about having a clean toilet space then there'd be plenty of business opportunity out there.  But they don't, so there isn't.

And you get payed more money because you can translate?....well, jolly good for you, Sir!

 

To Gypsy; you are right...I am rather lazy.  But even if I did get a burst of energy and a desire to learn something new, it wouldn't be to learn Chinese.  800lb gorilla or not..China is for the Chinese and the rest of the world doesn't have to give a stuff, just as China doesn't give a stuff about the rest of the world.

Sure, there would be advantages, I'm not saying otherwise.  But so would there be in learning how to make a model ship.

But for me, no point.  Hmm...perhaps making a model ship might at least be interesting.

 

 

 

9 years 50 weeks ago
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Posts: 4935

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A) Near fluently, meaning I can express almost everything I want to say in Chinese, near fluently. I lack a vocabulary at this point. 

 

B) Not completely literate. Yes, I can speak, read and write in Chinese, but writing is much, much better. Reading is slow. I can barely understand spoken Chinese because I don't practice enough. 

 

B) ...Google translating everything. No, seriously. I would then translate the message back to make sure it worked. Then I corrected all the grammatical mistakes, mistranslated words, etc. And then my wife helped me to speak/write much better, and with better grammar.  Now I use it every day with my wife, while she responds in English. I only lack vocabulary now.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 9192

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No one will teach me in China, I ask and never get answers if I ask about a phrase that I recognize. It's the same with almost any question, I never get an answer. I think Chinese could hold up to torture and never answer. I have to figure it out 你在哪里.  I took 6 months of lessons from a Chinese student at home, he was from Beijing, said that was standard Chinese, but in Guilin, they pronounce things differently. I can talk money and thats enough to get by with. I'm probably better off with just the first thing I heard in China , tim bo dong.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 122

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I can speak chinese but not native level.

reading and writing is impossible for me.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 68

Governor

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Basic or maybe not even at basic level.  My employer provides a translator for me so I don't get much chance to use it.  I'm using Rosetta Stone to try and learn but it doesn't seem to be working that well, yet........  Ask me again in six months.  I've only had the program for a few weeks now.  What bothers me is whenever I do try to use a word or two, people act like they have no clue what I am saying.  Then when they finally figure it out, they say the same word that sounds just like I said it.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 2578

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been here 2 and a half years...........had every intention of learning, at least to speak and listen/understand.

did good for 6 months

now I rely on wo bu zhi dao, wo bu ming bai and of course ting bu dong.

this language is nuts, besides I live in Guangdong, where it is all Cantonese and some Leizhouhua......  excuses, excuses galore!!

 

MasqueX:

Where do you live to hear some Leizhouhua? In or around Zhanjiang?

9 years 50 weeks ago
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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
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My fluency is roughly on par with HSK level 2. So I can listen and speak basic stuffs, can't write or read (pinyin does not count, right ?) Took a one month class once, then I was on my own.

I'm not above my current level because I've very few people to talk with. My wife, but we converse in English. I've *ONE* Chinese friend in China. Same with the very few workmates that bother talking with me. Most workmate *avoid* interaction with me, on the sole fact that I'm not Chinese. I don't have a very good opinion about Chinese society as well. Because of this, my motivation to learn Chinese is low. My work pumps a lot of my energy, on my free time I just want to relax and forget about the things I don't really enjoy.

I used to live in Vietnam and speaks fluent Vietnamese. I used to think like you about learning the national language of the place you live in. Then I went in China and it made me think "Things are not simple like that."

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 544

Shifu

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A)  Nope

B) See above

C) Also, above

 

D) I have a basic command, but getting proficient beyond that requires a large time, energy, and/or monetary investment. I don't have the free time (or money) to take classes. I get some help from friends, but it's not an intensive, every day, study. If I had the motivation to study, I could find a way, but honestly, motivation is lacking. Green cards aren't exactly handed out like Halloween candy here, and the government is keen to put limits and pressure on Westerners. Learning Mandarin would be useful to better integrate into Chinese society, except that Chinese society does its damndest to prevent integration by third-class non-citizens. 

 

E) I'd take classes if I ever have the time/money, or continue to get help from friends.

 

F) The basics are enough to get by. I can't engage in meaningful conversations with people who don't speak English, but when so many locals have the "We don't take kindly to your type 'round here. You best mind yer own business, ya foreigner" attitude, I don't really miss much.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 1263

Shifu

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I speak a fair bit and my understanding while listening is of a good standard too.

Although I can't write more than a few characters, I can read a few hundred.

I took classes for about a year but they were fairly useless and ultimately I stopped going. The teachers made no effort to actually teach, they just expected us to know.

 

My wife has taught me quite a lot and I can converse with her parents enough to not be ignorant.

 

However, I see no point in learning any more. I don't want to learn any more. We will not be staying here for much longer (I am back to the UK in July). It's useless for anything other than living in China.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
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I can speak enough to get by and my listening is good

I hired a private teacher who wanted to race ahead at a specific speed rather than review and practice what i wanted. 

my free time is not so regular now that i can schedule classes, so i rely on friends to help/teach.

 

similar to Mike168229 above, i will probably not be here long term to require better fluency.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 16

Governor

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SInce I was 5 actually. But nobody else but me seems to understand a word I speak.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
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A. Halfway there.(currently a HSK3)
B. Trying to learn more every afternoon.
C. Learning to read Chinese was key for me to remembering and speaking. Learning to speak Chinese is a waste of time if you're trying to master it. You must learn how to read it so you can remember it and then you can speak it because you understand how it works grammar wise and it'll open all doors.

Learning to read Chinese is fun, it's like a math puzzle game.. And Chinese grammar is super easy. My advice to everyone is to learn the daily basic characters first then use grade 1 Primary school Chinese reading books to start out and keep reading and reading until you can start to remember patterns.

You'll get it. It just takes time.

MondoRosa:

That's nice encouragement

9 years 50 weeks ago
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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
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A. not fluent, but getting there.
B. I have some issues with writing.
C. I'm a polyglot, so adding one more language is not much of an issue for me.

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 29

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I speak 4 languages but Chinese is not one for them and I don't intend to learn it as I can get by with the few words I know.

ironman510:

Which 4 languages can you speak man? Impressive.

9 years 50 weeks ago
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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
Posts: 29

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of them sorry.heart

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9 years 50 weeks ago
 
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