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Strawberries513 -

I was wondering if I was doing this all wrong.. you see.. I am at a basic/elementary level in
Chinese, so I would say I know about 1500 words. But lately it seems that when I want to study or
learn new words, I have to sit down and think about what word in English that I want to learn in
Chinese!! Most of the time I cant think of anything. I know I'm not supposed to be doing it this
way, but how should I find new words to learn?

Thanks for help



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roddy -

Do it by themes. 'Things I use in the kitchen'. 'Words to describe people'. 'Foods I like'.










FSO -

I would recommend keeping a small notepad with you at all times. Then, when you find yourself
wanting to say something you haven't yet learned (or that you have learned and forgotten), jot it
down in English. Next time you see your teacher/tutor/bilingual friend, ask her or him, then write
down the answer. Doing this, you will quickly build up vocabulary that is personally relevant,
meaning that you will be less likely to forget it in the future.










HashiriKata -



Quote:

[when you find yourself wanting to say something you haven't yet learned (or that you have learned
and forgotten), jot it down in English.] Next time you see your teacher/tutor/bilingual friend,
ask her or him, then write down the answer.

This'd make the learner primarily dependent on others and you wouldn't go very far with this
approach. What about thinking/ searching for yourself and only turn to others as the last resource
or just for confirmation/ verification? The practical aspect of thinking/ searching the answer for
yourself is that you'd remember it much, much better.










chinesetools -

If you're thinking of taking the HSK someday, perhaps you could start on the level A and B HSK
vocabulary. See this website at /vocabulary for a list.










atitarev -



Quote:

Do it by themes. 'Things I use in the kitchen'. 'Words to describe people'. 'Foods I like'.

I agree 100% with Roddy. I also learn new words this way and many language classes are structured
using this method.

I also learn sometimes topics by heart. Stuff like describing my day, climate, geography, etc.

When reading something, you just the new words you came across, of course.

Inventing or thinking hard, which new words to learn is very often fruitless most of the time,
IMHO but it makes sense when preparing a topic or before a meet-up.

Looking through some vocab lists are also a good idea, HSK or textbooks you use. But the words are
out of context. It helps though, when doing it thoroughly, e.g. found a new word - look for usage
example, use it in a couple of different sentences. That's why textbooks are best for this (new
words are introduced in a context and with grammar explained) but you need to get them for your
level, which is sometimes difficult.










gato -

You probably should get a good textbook, like "New Practical Chinese Reader" or "Integrated
Chinese." A good book should teach vocabulary that are useful and in a logical progression. It
seems that both of these do.

See this thread for some reviews: http://www. /showth...grated+chinese










kudra -

question: 1500 words = how many characters, ~ 600? Then you might be looking at 2nd year
university books. In any case

for textbook suggestions see
http://www. /showthread.php?t=9612










mr.stinky -

as a variation on themes, you need a set of words in context. think of it as situations,
and look up the possible vocabulary.

i.e. banking: last week i went to BofC to confirm that a wire transfer had arrived,
converted x amount from us$ to rmb, then withdrew a portion.

plumbing: the chain to the toilet flusher thingie (helps to know the english) snapped,
roommate removed the lid to manually activate the valve. oops! she dropped the ceramic
lid. now i gotta hit the plumbing supply shops for a replacement.

this beats studying the useless lists in the textbooks: like why do i need words for
lawyer, law firm, economics, representative, trade delegation, etc in first semester????










kudra -

@ mr. stinky

You're out drinking with potential employers/clients whatever working to put together a deal, as
luck would have it, to make bathroom fixtures in China to be shipped to the US. You think to
yourself, "Boy! Am I glad I have ceramic toilet lid, and flusher thingy burned into long term
memory instead of wasting time on words like trade rep, or law firm, economics, government policy,
..."

Just depends what your goals and interestes are....

I admit some embarassment that I had to learn(or relearn) lajitong (garbage can) in a class for
parents/tots. Obviously living day to day in China affords the opportunity to pick up everyday
vocab that is "useful". But I think there are also good reasons for learning and concentrating on
the "high brow" or typical textbook stuff too, especially when studying somewhere, like Ohio in
Strawberries513 case, where you are not immersed.












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