In this lesson, you'll learn how to talk about things that haven't happened yet.
Learning how to say familiar words in another language, it's easy to get the impression that every language is simply another way of saying the same things, but using different sounds. The truth, however, is that each language is a unique system for dividing up all the meaning and concepts that the human mind is capable of representing. There's no one-to-one mapping between languages, which is what makes translation so difficult in the first place. It's also one of the things that makes learning another language so fascinating.
While we use translation to help you understand what you're hearing, the English translation is merely a stepping stone. Your goal should be to connect the Mandarin sounds you hear to the meaningful context, not to the English sounds themselves. When you're listening to this dialogue and you hear an English translation, let it conjure a picture in your mind, and then try your best to banish the English you just heard, and hold on to that picture as you hear the Mandarin version.
Super easy? Not quite. Natural, intuitive, and effective? Why, yes!
A note about pronunciation: The vocabulary list below includes the Chinese characters and the pinyin romanization system. The advantage of pinyin for English speakers is that it uses the familiar symbols of the Latin alphabet. The disadvantage is that English speakers are easily deceived into thinking these familiar symbols represent the same sounds they do in English. They don't. That said, pinyin can be a useful system to learn, but you must rely on your ears first, eyes second.
Don't expect to be able to pronounce anything just by reading the pinyin; the romanization is just a reference to jog your memory. A language exists primarily in its sounds, which is why daily listening and imitation practice is so important.
Episode vocabulary:
About learning Chinese characters
Teaching Chinese characters is outside the scope of this podcast, but if you are learning Chinese characters with another course or method, you can use the transcript below to follow along.
Learning characters can be a fulfilling project, and can help you to remember and differentiate similar-sounding words. And, of course, it opens up more avenues for practicing your Mandarin, such as reading (books, children's books, comic books) and corresponding with Chinese speakers via email and other messaging apps. I highly encourage you to give it a try!
However, if the thought of memorizing all those characters now gives you a headache, rest assured: you can start speaking Mandarin without being able to read or write. Millions of preliterate children learn to speak Mandarin fluently, and so can you! If and when you are ready to start learning the characters, already speaking some Mandarin will also make it that much easier.
The bottom line is this: Don't let anything stop you or discourage you. The best method is the method you actually use, and any method you choose is better than no method at all! Find a way to move forward. You can always make adjustments later. And most of all, enjoy!
Dialogue transcript:
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