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Mandarin journey (FSI, Pimsleur, NPCR)

  Tags: Pimsleur | FSI | Mandarin
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181 messages over 23 pages: 1 2 3 4 57 ... 6 ... 22 23 Next >>
irrationale
Tetraglot
Senior Member
China
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Speaks: English*, Spanish, Mandarin, Tagalog
Studies: Ancient Greek, Japanese

 
 Message 41 of 181
19 December 2008 at 2:36am | IP Logged 
吕明扬 wrote:
in mandarin about is ambigious, it depends on the context. 有关系 is what i would try to fit in to the sentence somewhere. 差不多, 左右 are also used as about. But in the numerical sense of the word, like "its about 5 dollars. 差不多五块美元。


Thanks for the reply.


有关系 = the "to pertain to" sense of about? This is what I need. For example, "what are you talking about?" "I am talking about xx"




Edited by irrationale on 19 December 2008 at 2:47am

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irrationale
Tetraglot
Senior Member
China
Joined 5840 days ago

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Speaks: English*, Spanish, Mandarin, Tagalog
Studies: Ancient Greek, Japanese

 
 Message 42 of 181
23 December 2008 at 7:00am | IP Logged 
Pimsleur 83, FSI Mod 6 Unit 1. 610 characters (sigh)


Doing alright on the FSI and Pimsleur track, but lacking on the characters. I really wanted to hit 800 around the 26th of this month, but that is not going to happen. I have been slacking off with the characters, partly because I have been working 8 straight days at my job and am tired, and partly for no real reason. I am going to really push myself these next couple of days with the characters and words.

Speaking of words, I learned my lesson from FSI platiquemos (FSI has dubious vocab), and I am going down a frequency vocab list, the same one I used for Spanish, to remind me of the first couple of thousand commonly used words (concepts) I need to know. I am then putting them in yellowbridge, translating to Chinese, and memorizing the lowest HSK level synonym.

Still need to find a goddamn RL coversation partner. I am literally accosting random asian people to see if they are Chinese...that is how desperate I am. I have resorted to talking to myself and translating my thoughts which, surpringly, has actually helped somewhat. If I wait much longer I will reluctantly turn to livemocha or skype.

FSI has surpassed Pimsleur in proficiency level since Mod 5 started, and Unit 8 of MOD 5 was surprsingly difficult than the others, and really increased in complexity. I might have to do that one two days. MOD 7's content is basically advanced proficiency, so there must be a large jump in difficulty between then and now. I want to see how fast I can get to that level, since it is only 8 Units away. Of course the real test will be a real life conversation.

My ideal goal is 1000 characters total, 15 to 20 words a day. with advanced level proficiency in 3 weeks. I didn't say "fluency"; my chinese will probably be slow. I cannot talk about fluency until I have a convo partner. Perhaps written fluency (via livemocha chat) in a month is my goal. I am writing all of messages to Chinese people in Chinese.
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BGreco
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 Message 43 of 181
23 December 2008 at 1:41pm | IP Logged 
Out of curiosity... How do you expect to have written fluency with only 1000 characters?
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irrationale
Tetraglot
Senior Member
China
Joined 5840 days ago

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Speaks: English*, Spanish, Mandarin, Tagalog
Studies: Ancient Greek, Japanese

 
 Message 44 of 181
24 December 2008 at 12:23am | IP Logged 
BGreco wrote:
Out of curiosity... How do you expect to have written fluency with only 1000 characters?


Its a goal, not an expectation. I meant "basic fluency" as per the definition of this site. "Fluency" is basically a loaded word so perhaps I shouldn't use it.

I'll just say this; I want to be able to have a basic chat conversation in Chinese , without trouble or much effort, in approx 1 month and 1000 or so characters. If I fail, I will say so here. If I succeed, I will challenge anyone here to chat with me in Chinese for proof, and explain how I did it.
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gorkem_turkish
Triglot
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TurkeyRegistered users can see my Skype Name
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25 posts - 26 votes
Speaks: Turkish*, English, Mandarin
Studies: Spanish

 
 Message 45 of 181
24 December 2008 at 3:56am | IP Logged 
We have a common point. besides our native languages, I can speak mandarin and learning Spanish. Your situation is the exact opposite. But it seems I habe the advantage because I have already learnt the more difficult one. lol. mandarin is not that difficult, people are just afraid of china's scary writing system and of their culture maybe. I wish you luck, you are always welcome to ask anything.
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zerothinking
Senior Member
Australia
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 Message 46 of 181
24 December 2008 at 6:52am | IP Logged 
How do we know the Saami languages aren't just as complex? :P
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hypersport
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United States
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 Message 47 of 181
24 December 2008 at 12:55pm | IP Logged 
Hola irrationale. How does this site define "basic fluency"? I had a look at the faq, but didn't see anything.
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Crush
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ChinaRegistered users can see my Skype Name
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Speaks: English*, Spanish, Mandarin, Esperanto
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 Message 48 of 181
26 December 2008 at 3:43pm | IP Logged 
It's located in the "add a new language" page under "my profile":
Intermediate is below 'Basic Fluency' and above 'Beginner'.
Basic Fluency - you understand at least 80% of a regular newspaper in your target language and can hold regular conversations about any topic, understanding what people say and getting your point across.
Advanced Fluency means that you can read a popular novel and not miss more than 2 words per page on average, and hold advanced conversations with minimal mistakes.


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