The Hanzijo Blog

Practical, science-backed guides to learning Chinese — characters, tones, pinyin, HSK and vocabulary.

Speaking

How to Say Hello in Chinese: 15+ Greetings

你好 and far beyond — greetings by time of day, formality and situation, with pinyin.

9 min read
Speaking

How to Say Thank You in Chinese (谢谢)

10+ ways to say thanks — and how to reply “you’re welcome” — with pinyin and English.

8 min read
Vocabulary

Chinese Numbers 1–100 (and Beyond)

The logical counting system, big numbers, 二 vs 两, money and finger counting — with pinyin.

11 min read
Speaking

How to Say I Love You in Chinese (我爱你)

Romantic phrases, terms of endearment and the famous 520 & 1314 codes — with pinyin.

9 min read
Method

Mandarin vs Cantonese: Which Should You Learn?

Speakers, regions, tones, writing and difficulty — a clear side-by-side comparison.

10 min read
Vocabulary

Days, Months & Dates in Chinese

The easy number-based system for the week, the calendar and full dates — with pinyin.

9 min read
Method

Is Chinese Hard to Learn? The Honest Answer

What’s truly hard, what’s surprisingly easy, and why the difficulty is front-loaded in your favour.

13 min read
Speaking

60 Essential Chinese Phrases for Real Conversations

Greetings, food, shopping, directions and emergencies — the phrases you’ll actually use, with pinyin.

13 min read
Grammar

Chinese Grammar Made Simple: 12 Essential Patterns

The sentence templates — 是…的, 了, 把, 比 and more — that take you from words to fluent Chinese.

14 min read
Grammar

Chinese Measure Words (量词): The Complete Guide

The 20 measure words you need, the safe default 个, and a system to stop guessing them.

12 min read
Listening

Why You Can’t Understand Spoken Chinese (And How to Fix It)

The real reasons listening lags — tones, word boundaries, speed — and a method that works.

12 min read
Hanzi

How to Learn Chinese Characters Without Forgetting Them

The 4-layer system — radicals, mnemonics, SRS and real context — that makes hanzi permanent.

13 min read
Pronunciation

The 4 Chinese Tones: A Complete Guide

Hear them, pronounce them and stop mixing them up — tone by tone, with sandhi rules and drills.

12 min read
HSK

HSK 1 to HSK 9 Explained: The Complete Levels Guide

Words, characters, exam structure, realistic timelines and what each HSK level actually tests.

14 min read
Vocabulary

The 100 Most Common Chinese Words

Learn the highest-frequency Mandarin words first — with characters, pinyin, tones and example sentences.

13 min read
Pinyin

Pinyin Pronunciation Guide: Read Any Chinese Word

Initials, finals, aspiration, the tricky sounds (q, x, zh) and the spelling rules — pinyin demystified.

12 min read
Method

The Best Way to Learn Chinese in 2026: A Realistic Plan

The five pillars of an effective Mandarin study routine, with a month-by-month roadmap.

14 min read