Is Mandarin Hard to Learn? Tips + Resources

"Learning Chinese is too difficult." How many times have you heard this phrase? Let's face it: it's not just a cliché; learning Chinese is a challenge.

Chinese is considered one of the most difficult languages for English speakers to learn. That is because Mandarin Chinese has very peculiar characteristics. For instance, written Chinese has no alphabet, so writing requires mastering Chinese characters, and that can be a very long journey. There are other obstacles an English native can stumble over: Mandarin is a tonal language, so getting Chinese pronunciation right can be quite challenging at first. Although Chinese grammar is not super difficult, it may still cause problems, especially if someone's native language is very distant from Chinese.

To summarize, the main difficulties usually encountered by students are:

• Difficulty memorizing characters

• Difficulty pronouncing Chinese tones

• Difficulty using grammatical structures

With the right tools and consistent effort, however, anything is possible, and you'll be able to speed up your learning process.

This article will discuss how long it takes to learn Chinese, the differences between Chinese and other foreign languages, and some tips to simplify your learning journey.

How long does it take to learn Chinese?

The amount of time it takes to learn Chinese depends on various factors, such as your learning style, motivation, previous language learning experience, proficiency level, and exposure to the language.

With the right tools, you can make great progress and be able to communicate in Chinese in about 1-2 years.

Mandarin Chinese vs other languages

Let's now look at some differences between Chinese and other foreign languages...

Chinese vs Japanese language

Chinese and Japanese have similar elements, especially in terms of characters: kanjis and hanzi share some characteristics.

Traditional and simplified Chinese vs Japanese for an English translation; wordspath

However, there are major differences in terms of pronunciation and grammar systems. The grammar rules of Japanese are much more complex, while Chinese involves learning a much larger number of characters. They are both very fascinating and very difficult languages.

If you are wondering which of the two languages you should study, that depends on your work and personal goals; however, Chinese is a more widely spoken language, and will probably be able to use it more in the business world.

Chinese vs Korean language

Chinese and Korean are very different languages that work in different ways in terms of pronunciation and writing systems. Chinese is generally considered a more difficult language to learn, especially due to the large quantity of hanzi.

Hello in Korean vs Chinese; Lingholic

Learning Mandarin Chinese, however, is certainly possible and will open more doors, professionally speaking.

Chinese vs European languages

Chinese and European languages are very different, not only geographically speaking but also because of their characteristics.

The most obvious peculiar feature of Mandarin Chinese is it has characters, while European languages use the Latin alphabet. Learning how to write takes longer if you choose to learn Mandarin Chinese. Chinese, however, has far simpler grammar; nouns do not have gender, and verb conjugation is practically non-existent.

Italian and Spanish language conjugation vs Chinese; China Unbound

Knowing Chinese instead of a European language will make you stand out from others professionally if you live in Europe.

Why is learning Chinese important?

This question does not have a one-size-fits-all answer: everyone has a different reason for wanting to approach the Chinese language, and how relevant learning Chinese can be for you depends on your interests, your dreams, your interpersonal relationships, and so on. Below are some of the reasons why learning Chinese can be important:

1. Economic significance

China is the world's second-largest economy and a major international trade and investment player. Knowing Chinese can open up new business and job opportunities.

If you do plan on having a career in any Chinese speaking country, you should know the common Chinese business etiquettes and Chinese business phrases. 

2. Cultural understanding

Learning Chinese can help you better understand and appreciate:

• Chinese humanities (literature and novels, art, philosophy, films, Chinese aesthetic)

• Cultural phenomena (festivals, trends, fashion, makeup, traditional games)

• Chinese cuisine (street food, dim sum, dessert soup)

• Digital media (online forums, internet slang, games)

in both traditional and modern ways. 

3. Communication

Chinese is the most spoken language in the world, with over 1.3 billion speakers. So, knowing Chinese can help you communicate with Chinese people in your country or Chinese speaking countries.

4. Intellectual enrichment

Learning Chinese doesn't just mean learning another language; it means learning a new world vision.

For example, Chinese literature and other philosophers have influenced the development of Chinese culture and society. While Chinese art such as calligraphy, painting, and music reflect the culture's values and aesthetics. At the same time, modern Chinese media provide a glimpse to contemporary Chinese society and culture.

What are some resources and tips for learning Chinese faster?

After scaring you a bit in the previous section, it's time for the good news: some advice on Chinese resources, methods, and tips to make learning Mandarin a little less difficult.

1. Use the right techniques to memorize characters

Just writing Hanzi isn't enough to remember them. Characters, and concepts in general, can be remembered better when associated with stories: this is a mnemonic technique used by Pandanese.

Pandanese already has flashcards with the Hanzi, pinyin, definitions, and mnemonics and combines those with the SRS system to help you memorize and learn Chinese characters faster.

Pandanese’s Chinese character flashcard review mode

Pandanese online and the Pandanese App is an amazing resource can help you memorize Hanzi fast.

2. Join a community of Chinese learners

If you're learning Chinese at school, try to practice with your classmates; if you live in a big city, you can look for language practice groups or join online forums or group chats online.

There are plenty of Chinese learners out there and Native Chinese speakers waiting to make international friends.

3. Combine different learning resources

A language is a mixture of various sensories. Your learning journey should be the same: watch videos, Chinese shows on platforms like Netflix, game shows, and movies (from romance, comedy, drama, fantasy films, and vampire-horror genres), listen to music and podcasts, read everything in Chinese, and find Chinese friends to talk to!

My story

Having learned Chinese myself, I will tell you something about my experience:

• What made me choose this language?

• How difficult I found it.

• How I managed to learn Chinese.

Why Chinese?

Why did I choose to learn the Chinese language? Initially, I had no particular motivations other than being fascinated by a language very different from my own and by Chinese characters. However, as I continued with my studies, I fell more and more in love with Chinese culture and especially with the words of this language, which are very poetic and full of meaning.

How hard was Mandarin Chinese for me?

I found the study of Chinese difficult, especially in the beginning when I did not know Chinese characters and had to understand the workings of the language. Later, as I continued with my studies, the characters I had already learned and the tricks to remember them served as "bricks" to build all the subsequent knowledge. After that, it was just a matter of practice.

How did I learn Chinese?

The first article I wrote for Pandanese was about tips for memorizing characters and learning Chinese in general. There, I put together many different methods. 

To summarize, I wrote down the characters many times, tried to remember them by connecting their shape or sound to some story, read various texts aloud, watched videos, and listened to native speakers talk.

In closing

I hope this article has given you a clearer picture of the difficulties of the Chinese language, but also the positive aspects of it, as well as some useful tips on how you can overcome the obstacles you will face on this wonderful learning journey.

There are plenty of exams to test your Mandarin skills, but the big two is the AP Chinese exam (for American high school students) and the HSK test (for anyone learning Chinese). With the right resources, you'll master Chinese and ace these tests like a native.

Elisa Felici has been studying Chinese since 2014. She started her language-learning journey at Italian universities and lived in Beijing while attending Beijing’s Confucius Institute. Elisa passed HSK 4 and 5 and finally, in 2020, HSK 6. She now has a Master’s degree in translation and interpreting and has experience not only as a language learner but also as a Chinese teacher and translator.