LC Mandarin Chinese cheat sheet

Third-tone sandhi: two adjacent third tones are pronounced 2+3, not 3+3 - 你好 nǐ hǎo is heard as ní hǎo. In a run of three, group by meaning: 我很好 → wó hén hǎo.

不 is bù by default but becomes bú before a fourth tone (不是 bú shì, 不对 bú duì); it stays bù before tones 1, 2 and 3 (不喝 bù hē).

一 is yí before a fourth tone (一个 yí ge), yì before tones 1–3 (一天 yì tiān), and yī when standing alone, at the end of a phrase, or in ordinals (第一).

Neutral tone: 吗 呢 吧 了 的 着 and the second syllable of reduplicated kinship terms (妈妈 māma, 谢谢 xièxie) are short and unstressed - length, not pitch, carries the cue.

Initial contrasts to discriminate: zh/z (是 shì vs 四 sì), ch/c (吵 chǎo vs 草 cǎo), sh/s (山 shān vs 三 sān); j, q, x only occur before i and ü.

Final contrasts: -n vs -ng - 心 xīn vs 星 xīng, 分 fēn vs 风 fēng; -ng is held longer with the tongue further back.

Numbers: 两 before measure words (两个, 两张), 二 in counting, ordinals and years (二〇二五), 零 for zero and skipped digits; in phone numbers 1 is read yāo and digits are read one by one.

Discourse markers locate the answer: 但是/可是/不过 introduce the contrast that overrides the first clause, 其实 corrects an assumption, 所以/因此 marks the consequence.

虽然 A，但是 B - B is the writer's real claim; main-idea questions are answered from the 但是 clause, not from A.

因为 A，所以 B - scan for 因为 to identify the cause; if only 所以 is present, the cause is stated earlier in the passage.

不但 A，而且 B - B is the added, emphasized point; 'what does the author stress' questions target B.

一…就… marks immediate sequence (我一回家就做饭); 越…越… marks a proportional change (越学越有意思).

除了 A 以外，还 B = B is added, A included; 除了 A 以外，都 B = every member including A does B. The 还/都 choice decides the meaning.

Radicals signal meaning: 氵(水) in 河, 洗, 酒, 汤; 讠(言) in 说, 请, 读, 谢; 忄(心) in 怕, 忙, 懂. Use them to guess unknown characters, not to guess sound.

Approximation markers 大约, 大概, 左右, 差不多 cannot answer a question asking for an exact figure or time.

Public-sign vocabulary: 禁止 = prohibited, 请勿 = please do not, 免费 = free of charge, 打折 = discounted, 出口/入口 = exit/entrance.

把 sentence: Subject + 把 + Object + Verb + result/particle. The verb cannot stand alone - 我把书放在桌子上, 他把作业做完了.

被 passive: Subject + 被 (+ agent) + Verb + result - 杯子被弟弟打破了. It usually reports something undesirable and still needs a result element.

比 comparison: A 比 B + adjective - 他比我高. Degree words go after the adjective (一点儿, 得多, 多了); 很/非常/太 never follow 比 directly.

Verb + 了 = completed action (我买了三本书); sentence-final 了 = new state or change (下雨了, 他来了); both may co-occur (我买了书了).

Verb + 过 = experience at least once (我去过中国, 他没吃过饺子); negation and questions use 没…过.

Verb + 着 = an ongoing state, not an action in progress (门开着, 他坐着).

的/得/地: 的 before nouns (红色的车), 地 before verbs as adverbial (慢慢地走), 得 after verbs before degree complements (跑得很快).

才 vs 就: 才 = later or slower than expected, or 'only then' (他十点才来); 就 = earlier or faster than expected (他六点就来了).

Measure words: 张 for flat items (纸, 票, 桌子), 条 for long or flexible things (路, 鱼, 裤子), 只 for animals and one of a pair (手, 鞋), 本 for books, 杯/瓶 for drinks.

春节 falls on the first day of the first lunar month; customs include 年夜饭, 红包, 春联, 饺子 in the north, and the festival closes on the fifteenth with 元宵节.

中秋节 is the fifteenth of the eighth lunar month: 月饼, moon viewing, and family reunion as the theme; 嫦娥 is the associated legend.

端午节 is the fifth of the fifth lunar month: 粽子, dragon-boat races, and commemoration of the poet 屈原.

Number symbolism: 四 sì echoes 死 'die', so 4 and 14 are avoided in floors, plates and gifts; 八 bā echoes 发 'prosper'; 九 jiǔ echoes 久 'long-lasting'.

Colours: red marks luck and celebration (weddings, 红包, 春联); white and black belong to mourning, so white flowers or gifts are inappropriate at happy events.

Name order is surname first: 王小明 is addressed as 王先生/王老师, never as 小明 by a stranger. 姓 + title is the safe default (李经理, 张医生).

十二生肖 is a twelve-year animal cycle from 鼠 to 猪; 2024 is the year of 龙 and 2025 the year of 蛇.

Chopstick etiquette: never stand chopsticks upright in rice, do not tap the bowl with them, and do not point at people with them.

Stroke order rules: 先横后竖 (十), 先撇后捺 (人), 从上到下 (三), 从左到右 (做), 先外后内 (月), 先中间后两边 (小), 先里头后封口 (国).

形声字 combine a meaning radical with a sound component: 清 = 氵 + 青, 妈 = 女 + 马; the radical predicts the semantic field, the component often hints at pronunciation.

Punctuation is full-width with no space after it: 、 lists words (苹果、香蕉、葡萄), ，separates clauses, 。ends a statement, ？and ！are also full-width.

《》 enclose titles of books, films and articles (《红楼梦》); nested titles take 〈〉; 引号 “” mark quoted speech or emphasis.

Paragraph structure: an opening sentence states the topic, the middle develops two or three points with 首先/其次/最后 or 一方面/另一方面, and the closing sentence restates the position.

请假条 format: addressee on the first line, indented body giving reason and dates, then 此致/敬礼 or a closing formula, with 请假人 + name and the date at the bottom right.

Register: formal writing prefers 十分, 尤其, 稍微, 然而 over 挺, 特别, 有点儿, 可是; repeated 然后 as a filler is a spoken habit to remove from compositions.