Chinese class · start from zero
Learn to hear it, then say it
This is where the teaching lives. No account, no app — tap any character to hear a native voice, watch how each tone moves, and see how a character is built stroke by stroke. Culture pages later give these sounds somewhere to live.
Hear the four tones + neutral
Same syllable “ma”, five pitches. Tap any tile — your browser reads it in Chinese.
The four tones + neutral
Mandarin is tonal: the pitch shape changes the word. Learn the shape, the feel, and a hand gesture for each — then tap examples to hear them.
high and flat, like holding a note
✋Hold your hand straight out at shoulder height.
rising, like asking “huh?”
✋Sweep your hand upward, like a question.
dips down, then rises
✋Dip your hand down, then lift it.
falls sharply, like “no!”
✋Chop your hand down, short and firm.
light and short, no stress
✋A tiny tap — quick and soft.
Initials — the consonant onsets
21 onsets. The small character is how teachers say the letter aloud; tap it to hear the sound, then read the letter.
Finals — the vowel cores
24 finals carry the open sound of a syllable. Tap the example character to hear each one clearly.
Blend them together
An initial plus a final makes a syllable. Read the two parts, then tap the result to hear the real character.
Strokes — how a character is built
Every character is a few strokes in order. Hover a card to watch the stroke write itself; tap the example to hear it.
horizontal
héng
Left to right, level.
一 yī
vertical
shù
Top to bottom, straight.
十 shí
left-falling
piě
From upper-right, sweep down-left.
人 rén
right-falling
nà
Down-right, then press and lift.
大 dà
dot
diǎn
A short, firm tap.
六 liù
rising
tí
From lower-left, flick up-right.
打 dǎ
turn
zhé
Go across, pause, turn down.
口 kǒu
hook
gōu
Go down, then hook back.
小 xiǎo
Radicals — the meaning clues
A radical hints at what a character is about. See the clue, then tap the family of characters that share it.
person side
about people
water side
about water / liquid
tree side
about trees / wood
mouth side
about mouth / speech
hand side
about hand actions
woman side
about women / family
speech side
about words / speech
grass top
about plants
Your first characters
Sixteen high-frequency characters, ordered from one stroke up. Tap to hear, note the stroke count, recognise the shape.
Your first words — say them out loud
Twenty words you can use today. Hear each one, then say it back. This is the point of the whole page.
hello
thank you
goodbye
mum
dad
teacher
friend
water
eat
good
big
small
home
year
dragon
red
I / me
you
to be
not / no
Now give these sounds a home
The sounds above become real inside stories, festivals and everyday life. Pick an age and practise the same characters in context.