Chinese Is Now Available on the Duolingo Language Learning App
Finally, Duolingo, a free language learning app for iOS, Android and the web, has launched a Chinese course for English speakers. Now you can try your hand at one of the hardest languages for native English speakers for free.
Apart from Japanese, which launched earlier this year , Chinese was the most requested language course on Duolingo, making this launch quite a big deal. Chinese is the most spoken language on earth (about 1.2 billion native speakers) and one of the most rewarding to learn when it comes to business , so people are taking their time with this update.
The Duolingo Chinese course , which I played around with a bit before launching, teaches Modern Standard Mandarin (known as 普通话 – Mandarin Chinese), which is the official language of China and Taiwan, and the official language of Singapore. , Hong Kong and Macau. As you progress, the course covers the four basic tones of Chinese, which is a tonal language, and covers the 1000 most commonly used characters in logograms of written Chinese. You will also learn over 1000 vocabulary words on topics such as greetings, food, culture, occupation, travel, business, and even internet slang.
Duolingo research scholars suggest that if you complete the extensive course, you will be able to complete levels one through four of the HSK , which is the official test of knowledge of the Chinese language. In other words, you can be at level A2 (entry level above) of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) , which is the international standard for describing language ability.
So you won’t be fluent if you can finish the course – not even close – but it’s still not bad for a free app (with ads) on your smartphone! To get started, you can go online or update the app on your iOS or Android device .