When people tell us that they are learning Chinese, they are usually referring to Mandarin. It is the most widely spoken dialect in the world (about one billion people in China and 1.2 billion people worldwide). If you want to learn a little Chinese, start by counting to 10. Since in Chinese larger numbers are formed by combining words for two-digit numbers, you can actually count to 99 if you can count to 10.
Step
Part 1 of 2: Counting to 10 in Chinese
Step 1. Start by recognizing the character for the number zero (“0”)
The character or Chinese for the number zero (“0”) is and is pronounced as “líng”. Observe the second note marker above the letter " i ". Pronounce these characters in low to high notes.
Step 2. Count from one to five
To start learning to count, you must first identify the characters and word pronunciations for the numbers one through five. The first three characters are probably the easiest to remember because the number of lines equals the number of numbers they represent.
- One (“1”) is (“yī”, pronounced “yi” or “i”).
- Two (“2”) is (“èr”, with an “e” vowel like in “why” and a less obvious “r” [like a lisp]).
- Three (“3”) is “sān” (pronounced “sang”).
- Four (“4”) is “sì” (pronounced “se”, with an “e” vowel sound as in “why”).
- Five (“5”) is “wŭ” (pronounced “wu” or “u”).
Step 3. Continue counting from six to ten
Once you can say and write the first five-digit characters, move on to the numbers six through ten. Practice as if you were practicing writing and reciting the numbers one through five (until you memorized it).
- Six (“6”) is “liù” (pronounced “liu” or “lio”).
- Seven (“7”) is “qī” (pronounced “ci”).
- Eight (“8”) is “bā” (pronounced “pa”).
- Nine (“9”) is “jiŭ” (pronounced “jiu” or “ciu”).
- Ten (“10”) is “shí” (pronounced “she”, with an “e” vowel sound as in “why”).
Tip:
Count from one to ten aloud so you can practice tone combinations so that other Chinese characters are pronounced better too.
Part 2 of 2: Continuing Counting to 99
Step 1. Add the numbers to to count to nineteen
Chinese is a very logical language, and this rule applies to the formation of larger numbers. After passing "10", all numbers up to "19" have a "10" in the tens position. Therefore, write. After that, continue with the character for the desired number in the units position.
For example, “shí sì” (pronounced “she se”) is fourteen (“14”). Try practicing making other combinations
Step 2. Use to count from “20” to “29”
When you reach “20”, you need to place the numbers “2” and “0” in the tens position. Write the numeric character “2”, followed by the numeric character “10”. Both represent the number "20". If there are other numbers in the units position, add the numeric character after.
For example, “r shí wŭ” (pronounced “er she wu”) is twenty-five (“25”). As you did for the numbers 11-19, try to practice making other combinations
Step 3. Follow the same formula to count to “99”
At this stage, you already know the formula for writing numbers in Chinese. Just write the tens character in the tens position, then add the ones character in the ones position. All numbers up to "99" are formed this way.
One way to practice counting in Chinese and test your memory of numbers from one to ten is to make cards containing random Arabic numbers (from “11” to “99”). When you pick up a card, write down the numbers that appear on the card in Chinese characters
Tip:
You don't need to add “líng” (zero) for whole tens numbers like “20”, “30”, “40”, and so on. Just say or write the number in the tens position, as in English and Indonesian (" twenty " or "twenty", and not " two-zero” or "two-zero".
