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Q: Is it possible to speak fluent Chinese after one year in China?
12 years 3 weeks ago in Teaching & Learning - China
no. simply put
its possible to speak ok chinese, maybe even basic conversational chinese. but fluent takes years, just like any language.
not to discourage you but fluent in chinese is different to fluent in say english. chinese often use old chinese; idioms, lines from poems or quotes from history etc. in my opinion fluent means you understand it all, which when it comes to chinese is not just modern chinese.
giadrosich:
Fluent in Chinese is no different than fluent in English. As if English doesn't use old English, idioms, lines from poems or quotes from history? Not to mention the invention of new words, silent letters, incorporation of terms and words from other languages (while keeping the foreign pronunciation), movies, songs, television, "newspeak," as well as learning the difference between book English and real, everyday spoken English with it's combination of sounds and dropping (and addition of) vowels and consonants.
However, I do agree with your premise that one can't be fluent in any language within a years time. Conversational, yes; fluent, no.
xunliang:
sorry but noone uses old english, quotes shakespear or says an idiom like: a rolling stone gathers no moss. man if someone qutoed shakespear to me i'd be like" what?" we just dont use them any more and u cant tell me ur blasting them out on a daily basis. but chinese is full of old chinese and idioms are used ALL the time.
giadrosich:
Obviously, you are not fluent in English. Become educated in the language you profess to speak. People don't go around saying, "Oh, I think I will quote Shakespeare," just as Chinese people don't go around saying, "Oh, I think I will quote a Song Dynasty Emperor today!"
As words and old expressions are passed down from generation to generation, they morph slightly to fit the vernacular of the time.
Ever hear of the "black market?" Old English term. How about "Son of a gun." Old English. Here are some more:
Saved by the bell. Get tanked. On the threshold. Chew the fat. Getting the short end of the stick. Turn the tables. Got a frog in your throat? Eating humble pie. Rule of thumb. Getting a square meal.
Ever heard the term "saving face?" Guess what. Old English term.
And the list goes on and on and on and on. Do some research. Then it will be "clear as a bell."
Nobody has ever quoted Shakespeare to you? Here are some: "In my mind's eye." "I think you protest too much." "Be true to yourself." "Neither a borrower nor a lender be." "What's in a name." "A rose by any other name is still a rose." "In the twinkling of an eye." "Love is blind." "Et tu, Brute." "Lend me your ears." And yes, the list of quotes that have been incorporated into today's generation from Shakespeare goes on and on.
Btw, "A rolling stone gathers no moss" is attributed to a Latin writer of the 1st Century named Publilius Syrus.
xunliang:
Well you obviously have too much time on your hands. Do you want a gold star or something? Plently of your quotes are not even anymore but I cant be arsed to argue with you about English. The question was about Chinese. Your not fluent in Chinese and I'm guessing not even very good at it, so I dont think you're qualified to answer this question. Before you ask, I am fluent in Chinese. I had a phone interview with Microsoft the other day and the woman didnt believe I was English, she asked how long I'd spent in England and wanted me to give a short speach to prove my English. But whatever man. In some ways Chinese is easier than English (no tenses for instance) but you cant get fluent in a year. You can get good, but not fluent. Just like no one is going to be fluent in English after a year of studying it
xunliang:
I think you protest too much (yeah I think i'll use that more often, just rolls off the tongue)
giadrosich:
You're the one who brought up English, not me. And congratulations, at least you are fluent in one language.
xunliang:
thanks :) I guess your lack of childish backchat means you agree your not qualified to answer this question. instead of spending all that time googling a response and the source of "a rolling stone gathers no moss", you could spend your time constructively and learn Chinese. (then come back and admit your wrong.)
giadrosich:
Actually, some of us on this site have studied the language that we teach here in China. I happen to enjoy Etymology. If you want to refute my original rebuttal, fine, but so far, all you have done is resort to ad hominem, which is about par for the course.
You get the last word. I'm through.
I agree with Xunliang... no matter the language, it takes quite a bit of time to get 'fluent' in a language... And, if you're coming in somewhat older, with a fully ingrained first language, it's going to be a lot harder.
Sure, there will be a whole range of topics that you'll be fantastic at chatting about, but there's far more that you won't be able to talk about.
And, to really put your question into focus - how long did it take you to get fluent in your native language?? Sure, you got most of your grammar sorted out in the first few years, but then you spent the next decade (or more) increasing vocab, learning idioms, metaphors, analogy, etc, as well as appropriating styles and registers - what's the right thing to say at what time?
I disagree, I think you can speak fluent chinese after 1 year in china if you really take the actions to achieve it. That means, get a tutor, watch a lot of chinese tv, practise any chance you get, etc.
Fluent to me is different to native, and you;re probably not looking to understand the history and written chinese (more formal and idioms) so much than to have an awesome conversation with anyone you see, about modern things and using conversational expressions.
GO for it! Its so rewarding, opens your life to a whole new world of rich culture
There seems to be a small controversy brewing here, and I will add my two cents to the fire.
The question was, and I quote :
" Is it possible to speak fluent Chinese after one year in China? "
The key word here is how you understand or define "fluent". To me, a person is "FLUENT" in another language as soon as he or she can convey the thoughts and needs in that language, and fully understand the replies. In other words, as soon as it can hold a meaningful conversation in that language.
So, based on that definition of "fluent", and depending on the amount of hours and effort put into learning Chinese, I will say YES, it can be done. In fact, I have a friend who has a knack for learning new languages, and within 6 months in China (and spending a lot of time at it), was able to carry on a conversation with any Chinese in Mandarin, and fully understand replies, and able to be understood too. And I also know others who have lived in China for over 5 years and do not even know how to say NiHao , or Xie xie ni.
And I fully agree that it will take years to "dominate" Mandarin to the extent indicated above, but in my mind, that is way beyond being "fluent".
Maybe a better way to explain my point would be to compare one engineer with a BS degree with one with a PhD. They are both engineers (or fluent), but one knows a lot more than the other one.
do you mean after training or without training or knowledge of the language
It also depends a lot on background. Are you from Europe where it's common to know a lot of different languages? (sorry if that's a stereotype) Do you have a good memory? I'm an engineer so picking up languages was never a forte of mine.
Speaking as an ABC who knew Chinese before and studied Chinese in college.... I don't even think I can be "fluent" within a year.
Hats off to you for coming to a foreign country without knowing the language prior, I don't think I'd have the guts for that.
When I talk to my girlfriend whose Chinese, she does speak noticeably slower when talking to me.
Good luck picking up the language, if you need any help, there are plenty of resources to use
Do you speak some Chinese already? I'd say that you could probably be able to hold a conversation in Chinese, if you put in the hard yards, but to go from nothing to fluent in one year... good luck with that!
If you already speak the language at a reasonable level, then sure, a year of full immersion and you ought to come out the other end reasonably fluent (NB: my definition of fluent is being able to carry a conversation without any significant pauses, when the other speaker is not slowing down or grading down their language to make things easier for you.)
