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Q: How long did it take you to learn Chinese tones?
and the sound rules, like ni and shi aren't pronounced the same. Use of alphabet kills me. Why is there no real English pingying?
11 years 6 weeks ago in Teaching & Learning - China
For me, not long. I can't fathom as to why though I'm wondering if being a musician makes me more sensitive to the tones. It varies among everyone though and I've met many foreigners here whose Chinese is overall better than mine but still fluff up the tones.
For me, very long. I can imagine as to why though. I'm wondering if being completely tone deaf make me incapable of hearing the tones. It varies among everyone though, and I've met many foreigners here whose Chinese is overall better than mine. Strangely, my pronunciation is pretty good, but I need to know the tone, can't hear it very well.
Scandinavian:
Oh, what a peculiar coincidence. Actually I think you are correct that having a sense of music is an advantage. I read a while ago that generally Chinese people (and others who comes from places with tonal languages) has it a lot easier when learning to play an instrument.
tomcatflyer:
You are so right, I have one ear that only works at about 5% efficiency and am tone deaf to boot. I just don't hear the tones at all. I can just about make them out in a lesson where the speech is deliberately slower, but in normal situations they are just not there. This seems to be a common problem with some of my expat friends, they can't hear tones either.
Nessquick:
Maybe is my laziness, but I still can not hear any difference in spoken up or down, xia or shan. I never know my wife ask me put the things where :D
Scandinavian:
....and then you get called an idiot because everyone in this country could do it since very young
There are only four tones....if you can't learn 4 tones there is something wrong with you. It only took me one lesson to learn that part of the chinese language! (
!!
While books say that there are only 4 tones, that that's not entirely true. For example, there is a half-third tone which is used depending on the tones surrounding it, then there is also the elusive 5th "silent" tone.
And to sort of answer your question, I still suck at all of them.
I'll tell you when I know. After 2 and a half years I still mix em up...randomly 
How long DID it take? Thank you for your confidence in me, but I'm afraid it might take awhile. In my case, it's a present perfect continuous state of affairs possibly continuing to infinity and beyond!
But I think the name is "pinyin". Anyway, thanks for asking.
Honestly? About 3 months. When I study I use pinyin, and when I speak I kind of see the wave of the language tones in my head. It may be a mental thing caused by being mental, because i'm mental.
i learned on an American pinyin system(knee how, peeowleeang) i made up when i came here but that just made reading actual Pinyin much more difficult. Learn the pinyin sounds. There aren't that many.
Tones make Chinese too technical. It's a beautiful art to learn not a science. I just copy the way people say words not giving a rat's a*s about the tones.
I'm personally having a b*tch of a time with this. But I know tons of foreigners who can converse happily in Chinese, and their tones are almost nonexistant, so I'm trying not to worry about it too much.
On the other hand, it was embarassing when I asked a male shop clerk for a mirror and then found out I'd really asked if he had any sperm...no wonder he ran away...
