Traditional Chinese Basics

Hanzi (Chinese Characters)

Chinese uses logograms called Hanzi (漢字), where each character represents a meaning or a concept. There are two main script types: Traditional and Simplified.

Zhuyin (Bopomofo)

Zhuyin is the primary phonetic system used in Taiwan for teaching Mandarin Chinese pronunciation. It uses unique symbols to represent sounds regardless of how they are written in Hanzi.

Mastering Pitch

Mandarin Chinese is a tonal language. The same sound with different tones can have completely different meanings. There are four main tones plus a neutral tone.

The Tones

1. High Flat (ā)
2. Rising (á)
3. Falling-Rising (ǎ)
4. Falling (à)