Speaking practice
When you know Chinese from an app but freeze when you speak
Updated
You freeze because apps train you to pick the right answer, not to say it. Picking from options and saying words yourself are different skills. The only way to get better at speaking is to speak: say whole sentences out loud, in situations like the real ones.
Why do you freeze?
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Picking is easier than saying
Choosing 谢谢 (thank you) from four tiles is easy. Saying it when someone hands you a cup is harder. Most apps practise the first much more than the second.
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Real people do not wait
In a shop, people ask at full speed, sometimes several questions at once. A two-second pause feels long. Practice with no time pressure does not prepare you for this.
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You know the words, not the sentence
You may know 我 (I), 喜欢 (like) and 红茶 (black tea) one by one. Putting them in order while someone waits is a separate step.
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Worrying about tones
Tones are the rise and fall of the voice on each syllable. Many learners go quiet because they fear getting one wrong. At a counter, people usually understand short phrases even when the tones are not perfect.
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No way out
Freezing is worse when you do not know what to say next. Have a phrase ready for “I didn’t understand”. Then the conversation can go on.
Phrases for when you freeze
Learn these as whole sentences. Say them out loud until they come without thinking.
- 听不懂，请慢一点。 (tīng bu dǒng, qǐng màn yì diǎn.) Don't understand, please a bit slower.
Say it when you do not understand. People usually slow down, which gives you time to think.
They may say 好的好的，我慢慢说。 (hǎo de hǎo de, wǒ màn man shuō.) OK, OK, I will say it slowly. - 太快了！请慢一点。 (tài kuài le! qǐng màn yì diǎn.) Too fast! Please a bit slower.
Another way to ask someone to slow down, for example when a pharmacist explains too fast.
- 不好意思 (bù hǎo yì si) Excuse me
Say it before any question to a stranger. It also gives you a second to find the next words.
- 我喜欢喝 (wǒ xǐ huan hē) I like to drink…
This starts a sentence. In the game, you build it from 我 (I), 喜欢 (like) and 喝 (drink), then add a drink.
They may say 什么？再说一遍。 (shén me? zài shuō yí biàn.) What? Say that again. (In the game, the noodle-shop owner does not catch it, so you try the shorter phrase below.) - 一杯咖啡 (yì bēi kā fēi) A cup of coffee
A shorter way to order the same thing. When the full sentence will not come, a short phrase is usually enough.
- 只会一点点 (zhǐ huì yì dián diǎn) Only a tiny bit
Say it when someone asks if you speak Chinese. It tells them you are a beginner, so many people speak more simply.
- 好的，谢谢 (hǎo de, xiè xie) OK, thanks
It ends almost any conversation. Practise it until it comes without thinking.
The pinyin shows how the words are really said, as in the game.
How the game trains speaking
Very Chinese Time in My Life is a spoken simulation of everyday conversations. There are no exercises. You answer people out loud, and they react to what you said.
Say the words, join them, say the sentence
A new phrase appears as word cards with pinyin and English. You say each word, and the cards join into a sentence. Then you say the whole sentence. Next time, the phrase appears as one card.
People react to what you said
There are no red crosses. Your choice changes what happens. If you order a coffee in a noodle shop, the owner is surprised and goes out to buy you one. A result like this helps you remember the phrase.
The same phrases in new places
“Where is…?” comes back for the metro, the restroom and a pharmacy. “Please slow down” comes back at a shop checkout and at a pharmacy. You recall each phrase in more than one place.
Reviews and a microphone you control
A panda quizzes you after each scene. Each night, a friend sends you messages that quiz you on the day. Any headset or laptop microphone works, or you can scan a QR code to use your phone. You can switch to clicking your answers at any time.
Practical tips
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Say every practice answer out loud
Thinking the answer trains recognising it. Saying it out loud trains speaking.
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Make a few sentences automatic
In a real conversation, five sentences you can say without thinking help more than a big vocabulary you have to search through.
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Have a phrase for not understanding
Keep one sentence ready for when you do not understand. Knowing you have it makes freezing less likely.
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Keep using your app
Apps are good for words and characters. Add speaking practice next to your app. You do not need to stop.
Questions
Why can I read Chinese in Duolingo but not speak it?
Because apps like Duolingo mostly have you pick the right answer from options. Speaking means finding the words yourself, in order, at conversation speed. Apps practise that much less. Saying full sentences out loud in realistic situations fixes it.
How do I stop freezing when speaking Chinese?
Do two things. 1. Practise a few short sentences out loud until they come without thinking. 2. Have a phrase ready for when you do not understand, such as 听不懂，请慢一点 (I don’t understand, please speak more slowly). Practising in situations like the real ones helps most.
Is Very Chinese Time in My Life a replacement for Duolingo or HelloChinese?
No. It works best next to an app or a course. Apps build vocabulary. The game is where you say those words out loud in everyday situations, like ordering food, asking the way or talking to a family at dinner.
Do I have to speak into a microphone?
No. The game works best when you speak, but you can turn voice input off and click your answers. With no microphone, you can scan a QR code and use your phone as one.
Does the game grade my tones?
No. The game colours the pinyin of every word by tone and listens for the phrase you are saying. Your choices change the story. They do not give you a mark.
How is a conversation game different from speaking exercises?
In a speaking exercise, you repeat or translate a sentence. In a conversation game, each sentence has a purpose: someone asks you a question, you answer, and they react. Using a phrase for a real purpose makes it easier to recall in the same kind of situation later.