HSK东西 - News

PythonAnywhere Interview

Fri, 10 Jan 2014 19:48:14 GMT

I was interviewed this week by the very nice people at PythonAnywhere: blog.pythonanywhere.com/79/ . They do a great job of hosting my hanzi analysis scripts, and allow you to create and maintain a site run by the Python language without any configuration, or uploading or downloading anything- you edit the code through a very advanced web editor. You can create a free account to try it out. The code runs on Amazon's EC2 servers, so the performance is quite amazing.

Thes hanzi tools I created do all sorts of things that are too numerous to list, give them a try here: hskhsk.pythonanywhere.com . I made a small improvement to the dictionary today, so that it copes with large amounts of input better. It shows a short phrase word by word, and annotates a longer phrase inline (recognise the poem?)

Where People are Learning Chinese as a Second Language

Fri, 03 Jan 2014 19:28:19 GMT

OK so maybe the title goes a bit far; it might be more accurate to say "Where people are studying for the HSK" or "Where visitors to my website are from". But there's probably a pretty strong correlation between places where my site is popular, and where people are learning Chinese.

This map combines together country-level and city-level data, and it's pretty clear that most of the learners are from China (18%), Thailand (8%), and Indonesia (7%)! In Western Europe there is a fairly even spread of learners everywhere (except for a gap in central France!), without too much clustering. I wonder if this matches with more formal studies of the popularity of Chinese as a second language?

Splitting the data by 'region', shows that about 60% of the visits to my site are from Asia, 20% are from Europe, and less than 10% are from North America. There are more visits from S.E. Asia than from E. Asia (which includes China)!

A quick summary of how Google split the regions:'

Western Asia' is what I would call the 'Middle East',
Central Asia is all the 'Stans,
Southern Asia is Iran to India,
South-East Asia is Burma and Thailand to the Philippines and Indonesia.
East Asia is China, Mongolia, Japan, Korea.
Northern Europe is the UK and Scandanavia.
Western Europe is Germany and France to Switzerland.

All Chinese Homophones

Sun, 29 Dec 2013 22:02:10 GMT

I'm not sure if there's much point to this one, but just in case someone ever needs it- here's a page that lists all Chinese homophones, with a page for each word length: http://hskhsk.pythonanywhere.com/homophones

I am defining homophones as words with identical pinyin. You can choose whether or not tones should be ignored by selecting the appropriate option.

HSK Characters Arranged by Radical

Wed, 04 Dec 2013 23:21:31 GMT

Just added a quick feature to my growing little dictionary/HSK list browsing script that allows you to see the characters for each (or multiple) HSK level(s) grouped by character and all ordered by frequency. Check it out here: http://hskhsk.pythonanywhere.com/radicals?hsk=14

How to study Chinese grammar for the HSK exams

Tue, 03 Dec 2013 22:22:47 GMT

I have seen this question asked a few times, so here's the best answer I am able to give.

I have collected together and added English for some example sentences that demonstrate grammatical points for the HSK 1, HSK 2, and HSK 3. These example sentences can also be downloaded as flashcard files for use in software such as Pleco and StickyStudy.
The excellent AllSet Learning Grammar Wiki has a page that classifies the grammatical points on the site into 6 levels. These seem to correspond roughly to the six HSK levels, so it would be a good idea to ensure you are familiar with the grammatical points in the appropriate levels.
Another post on this site shows the contents page of the great grammar book Common Chinese Patterns 330 by Qin Xue Herzberg. I have classified the patterns by HSK level, and there are popup tooltips with information about the characters. The best way to use this list is to study the appropriate patterns from the book.
The sample exams at the official HSK site chinesetest.cn has quite a few sample exams for each level; doing all of the exams is great practice at seeing the different ways grammatical points can occur.
Some other grammar books that I own that are useful but don't have any information on the HSK level of each point specifically are: Basic Patterns of Chinese Grammar by Chen Ru, Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar by Claudia Ross, Schaum's Outline of Chinese Grammar by Claudia Ross.
These sites don't have much information on their suitability for HSK levels, but are a great resources: Chinese Grammar by Hugh Grigg (who also has an awesome blog), Oxford University's grammar notes, and these basic review slides at Rutgers are a great way to start.
The HSK grammar books I have found tend to be focused on the 'Old' HSK, and so they might not match the New HSK too well. I have listed a few in case you are willing to try them (I haven't) Practising HSK Grammar by Zhang Jing, Essentials of HSK Grammar by Zhao Jing, HSK Grammar by Fu Yuping, Brushing Up Your Grammar for HSK by Dong Cui, HSK Grammar Guidebook by Han Zhigang
I would love to find some more good books and resources for studying Chinese grammar- let me know if you have any suggestions

New Features Added to the Fast little Dictionary

Tue, 26 Nov 2013 08:12:19 GMT

My HSK list browsing script took a step closer to being a real dictionary. I added:

Pinyin (tones optional) search, no wildcards yet
English (definition) search
All of the searches are done from the same edit field, very few things will match both English and pinyin, if they do you'll get
Greying out of words/chars that only have frequency information and no dictionary entries
Added pinyin and definitions to the tooltip text for all characters/words.
Colouring of links to HSK list pages

And it's still lighting fast, and as before shows CC-CEDICT definitions, character composition, and word compounds. Give it a try 现在! http://hskhsk.pythonanywhere.com/cidian?q=%E7%8E%B0%E5%9C%A8

Notice: If you have issues downloading files, read this

Mon, 25 Nov 2013 06:25:12 GMT

I am changing my DNS servers; the main site should be unaffected, but there may be problems accessing files on either https://github.com/glxxyz/hskhsk.com/tree/main/data or https://github.com/glxxyz/hskhsk.com/tree/main/data, depending where you are in the world. If one of those fails for you then try the other, or if both fail use this link and browse to your file, which should be guaranteed to work : https://github.com/glxxyz/hskhsk.com/tree/main/data.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/

How to Find Your HSK Level

Mon, 25 Nov 2013 06:05:11 GMT

A few people have asked me this by email, so here's the answer I gave them:

A quick way to get an idea is to look at a description of ability of learners at different HSK levels, and see where you think your level is.
If you have a list of the vocabulary you know (e.g. flashcards) and would like to know your HSK level you can enter paste your vocabulary into this script: http://hskhsk.pythonanywhere.com/hanzi
If you don't have a vocab list, the the best to determine your level is to try some of the online or downloadable HSK sample exams from the official website: http://www.chinesetest.cn/
You can get a rough idea of your level by looking at the vocabulary lists here, click the 'expand definitions' link too see the meanings: http://hskhsk.pythonanywhere.com/hskwords
There is also an 'HSK Test' here but I have no idea if it works: http://popupchinese.com/hsk/test
Let me know if there are any other resources out there for finding your HSK level!

Remember, to really 'know' an HSK word you have to be able to use it in all of the different ways that Hanban expects you to. See my recent posts on HSK 1, HSK 2, and HSK 3 example sentences.

HSK 3 Example Sentences

Sun, 24 Nov 2013 19:25:18 GMT

These HSK 3 example sentences demonstrate the different ways that some HSK 1 words can be used. See my other posts for HSK 1 and HSK 2 example sentences.The first 70 hanzi sentences (to which I added pinyin and English) were taken from the HSK information published by Hanban on www.chinesetest.cn . The rest were created by me to demonstrate the way that specific words (highlighted with 『』square brackets) are used. They are also available as a flashcard text file for HSK levels 1-3. Please share any more examples that you have in the comments. 94 sentences are with hanzi, pinyin, and English are shown after the jump!

5点1刻 - 5 Diǎn 1 kè - Quarter past 5
10000米 - 10000 Mǐ - 10,000 meters
四五千个 - Sìwǔqiān gè - 4 or 5 thousand of
800多人 - 800 Duō rén - Over 800 people
一双鞋 - Yīshuāng xié - A pair of shoes
两条鱼 - Liǎng tiáo yú - Two fishies
第10层 - Dì 10 céng - 10th floor
3角5分 - Jiǎo 5 fēn - 35 cents
两种 - Liǎng zhǒng - Two types
他坐了一会儿。 - Tā zuòle yīhuǐ'er. - He stayed for a while.
快一点儿。 - Kuài yīdiǎn er. - Hurry up.
我明天一定来。 - Wǒ míngtiān yīdìng lái. - I'll come tomorrow for sure
我们必须想个好办法。 - Wǒmen bìxū xiǎng gè hǎo bànfǎ. - We have to think of a good plan.
明天会更好。 - Míngtiān huì gèng hǎo. - Tomorrow will be better.
雨越下越大。 - Yǔ yuè xiàyuè dà. - Rain is getting heavier.
这儿的西瓜特别甜。 - Zhè'er de xīguā tèbié tián. - The watermelon here is very sweet.
这些孩子多可爱呀！ - Zhèxiē háizi duō kě'ài ya! - These children are so cute!
她唱得好极了！ - Tā chàng de hǎo jíle! - She sang really well!
中国的大城市，我几乎都去过。 - Zhōngguó de dà chéngshì, wǒ jīhū dōu qùguò. - Chinese big cities; I have been to almost all of them.
这些药一共300元。 - Zhèxiē yào yīgòng 300 yuán. - These medicines together are RMB300.
我只去过一次北京。 - Wǒ zhǐ qùguò yīcì běijīng. - I've only been to Beijing once.
我先说几句。 - Wǒ xiān shuō jǐ jù. - I will first say a few sentences.
他晚上11点才下班。 - Tā wǎnshàng 11 diǎn cái xiàbān. - He didn't get off work until 11 in the evening.
他的成绩一直很好。 - Tā de chéngjī yīzhí hěn hǎo. - His grades are always very good.
她总是很忙。 - Tā zǒng shì hěn máng. - She is always very busy.
请安静，节目马上开始。 - Qǐng ānjìng, jiémù mǎshàng kāishǐ. - Please be quiet, the show is about to begin.
考试终于结束了。 - Kǎoshì zhōngyú jiéshùle. - The exam finally ended.
这道题其实很容易。 - Zhè dào tí qíshí hěn róngyì. - This problem is actually very easy.
那样做当然不可以。 - Nàyàng zuò dāngrán bù kěyǐ. - Doing that is of course not allowed.
今天他又迟到了。 - Jīntiān tā yòu chídàole. - He is late again today.
最近他经常去爬山。 - Zuìjìn tā jīngcháng qù páshān. - Recently he has often gone climbing.
房子虽然旧了，但是很干净。 - Fángzi suīrán jiùle, dànshì hěn gānjìng. - Although the house is old, it is very clean.
虽然X，但是Y。 - Suīrán X, dànshì Y. - Although X, Y.
她会说汉语，而且说得很好。 - Tā huì shuō hànyǔ, érqiě shuō de hěn hǎo. - She can speak Chinese, and can speak very well.
先吃饭，然后去看电影。 - Xiān chīfàn, ránhòu qù kàn diànyǐng. - First eat, then watch a movie.
先X，然后Y。 - Xiān X, ránhòu Y. - First X, then Y.
如果大家都同意，就这样决定了。 - Rúguǒ dàjiā dōu tóngyì, jiù zhèyàng juédìngle. - If everyone agrees, then we'll decide on this.
他一边上网，一边听音乐。 - Tā yībiān shàngwǎng, yībiān tīng yīnyuè. - He is web surfing, and also listening to music.
一边X，一边Y。 - Yībiān X, yībiān Y. - Doing X, and also Y at the same time.
给我打电话或者发电子邮件都可以。 - Gěi wǒ dǎ diànhuà huòzhě fā diànzǐ yóujiàn dōu kěyǐ. - Give me a call or send an email, both will do.
我们是打车还是坐地铁？ - Wǒmen shì dǎchē háishì zuò dìtiě? - Are we getting a taxi or taking the subway?
为了解决环境问题，人们想了很多办法。 - Wèile jiějué huánjìng wèntí, rénmen xiǎngle hěnduō bànfǎ. - To solve environmental problems, people think of a lot of solutions.
除了画画儿，她还喜欢跳舞。 - Chúle huà huà er, tā hái xǐhuan tiàowǔ. - Besides painting, she also likes to dance.
请把空调打开。 - Qǐng bǎ kòngtiáo dǎkāi. - Please switch on the air conditioning.
鱼被小猫吃了。 - Yú bèi xiǎo māo chīle. - The fish was eaten by the cat.
关于这段历史，我知道得很少。 - Guānyú zhè duàn lìshǐ, wǒ zhīdào de hěn shǎo. - About this piece of history, I know very little.
我们应该在周末开个会。 - Wǒmen yīnggāi zài zhōumò kāi gè huì. - We should have a meeting at the weekend.
你愿意和我结婚吗？ - Nǐ yuànyì hé wǒ jiéhūn ma? - Are you willing to marry me?
你敢骑马吗？ - Nǐ gǎn qímǎ ma? - Do you dare to ride a horse?
她高兴地笑了。 - Tā gāoxìng de xiàole. - She laughed happily.
他是经理吗？ - Tā shì jīnglǐ ma? - Is he the manager?
真漂亮啊！ - Zhēn piàoliang a! - Very pretty!
他没去看电影。 - Tā méi qù kàn diànyǐng. - He didn't go to the movie.
你别忘了带护照。 - Nǐ bié wàngle dài hùzhào. - Don't forget to bring your passport.
你决定了没有？ - Nǐ juédìngle méiyǒu? - have you decided yet?
您要两张票，对吗？ - Nín yào liǎng zhāng piào, duì ma? - You need two tickets, right?
中午吃面条儿，可以吗？ - Zhōngwǔ chī miàntiáo er, kěyǐ ma? - Noodles for lunch, can we?
你喝茶还是喝咖啡？ - Nǐ hē chá háishì hē kāfēi? - Do you want tea or coffee?
真干净！ - Zhēn gānjìng! - So clean!
他跑得多快啊！ - Tā pǎo de duō kuài a! - He ran very fast.
好极了！ - Hǎo jíle! - Great!
他和我一样高。 - Tā hé wǒ yīyàng gāo. - He and I are the same height.
上海没有北京那么冷。 - Shànghǎi méiyǒu běijīng nàme lěng. - Shanghai is not as cold as Beijing.
我把衣服洗了。 - Wǒ bǎ yīfú xǐle. - I had the clothes washed.
行李箱被司机拿走了。 - Xínglǐxiāng bèi sījī ná zǒule. - The luggage was taken by the driver.
他每天骑车上班。 - Tā měi tiān qí chē shàngbān. - He bikes to work every day.
桌子上放着一本书。 - Zhuōzi shàng fàngzhe yī běn shū. - There is a book on the table.
小王叫我去他家玩儿。 - Xiǎo wáng jiào wǒ qù tā jiā wán er. - Xiao Wang asked me to his house to play.
不但…而且… - Bùdàn… érqiě - Not only... but also...
只有…才… - Zhǐyǒu… cái… - Only... can...
我学中文很有『热情』。 - rèqíng - I am 『enthusiastic』 about studying Chinese.
今天我有很多『事情』要做。 - shìqing - Today I have lots of 『things』 to do.
我『同意』你的话。 - tóngyì - I 『agree』 with what you said. 『(lit. same opinion)』
我『愿意』和你一起去。 - yuànyì - I am 『willing』 to go with you.
请大家『注意』。 - zhùyì - Please 『pay attention』 Everyone.
我对你做的菜很『满意』。 - mǎnyì - I am 『pleased』 with your cooking.
这是什么『意思』？ - yìsi - What does this 『mean』?
我很『习惯』吃中国菜。 - xíguàn - I am 『used to』 eating Chinese food.
我天天『练习』中文。 - liànxí - I 『practice』 Chinese every day.
我『复习』汉语水平考试。 - fùxí - I am 『revising』 for the HSK exam.
我喜欢学『数学』。 - shùxué - I like studying 『maths』.
我在加拿大『留学』。 - liúxué - I am 『studying abroad』 in Canada.
我们的『校长』很胖。 - xiàozhǎng - Our 『principal/head』 is fat.
春节是中国最大的『节日』。 - jiérì - Spring festival is China's biggest 『holiday』.
今天的电视『视目』很好看。 - jiémù - Today's TV 『programmes』 look very good.
我最喜欢的『季节』是夏季。 - jìjié - My favourite 『season』 is summer.
我『先』吃饭，再去睡觉。 - xiān - I eat 『first』, then sleep.
你为什么『生气』 - shēngqì - Why are you 『upset』?
我喜欢和我妈妈『聊天』。 - liáotiān - I like to 『chat』 with my mother.
我们的花『特别』香。 - tèbié - Our flowers smell 『especially』 good.
我『不但』说中文，还说英文。 - búdàn - I 『not only』 speak Chinese, also English.
你想吃包子『还是』饺子？ - háishi - Do you want to eat buns 『or』 dumplings?
你的三明治『总是』特别好吃！ - zǒngshì - Your sandwiches are 『always』 especially good!
我惊天『还』没有吃午饭。 - hái - I haven't eaten lunch today 『yet』.

HSK 2 Example Sentences

Sun, 24 Nov 2013 19:14:29 GMT

These HSK 2 example sentences demonstrate the different ways that some HSK 2 words can be used. See my other posts for HSK 1 and HSK 3 examples. They are taken from the HSK information published by Hanban on www.chinesetest.cn . They are also available as a flashcard text file for HSK levels 1-3. Please share any more examples that you have in the comments. 53 sentences are with hanzi, pinyin, and English are shown after the jump!

6元 - 6 yuán - RMB6
第三 - dì-sān - 3rd
9公斤 - 9 gōngjīn - 9kg
等一下。 - Děng yíxià． - Wait a moment.
每次 - měi cì - Every time
你别去游泳了。 - Nǐ bié qù yóuyǒng le． - Don't go to swim
那里的天气非常热。 - Nàlǐ de tiānqì fēicháng rè． - The weather there is very hot.
我最喜欢喝咖啡。 - Wǒ zuì xǐhuan hē kāfēi． - Coffee is my favourite drink.
他们一起去机场了。 - Tāmen yìqǐ qù jīchǎng le． - They went to the airport together.
我们正在看电视。 - Wǒmen zhèngzài kàn diànshì． - We are watching TV.
他已经到学校了。 - Tā yǐjīng dào xuéxiào le． - He already arrived at school.
她下星期就回来了。 - Tā xià xīngqī jiù huílai le． - She is coming back next week.
我也有一块这样的手表。 - Wǒ yě yǒu yí kuài zhèyàng de shǒubiǎo． - I also have a watch like this.
她还没起床。 - Tā hái méi qǐchuáng． - She hasn't got up yet.
你的字写得真漂亮！ - Nǐ de zì xiě de zhēn piàoliang! - Your handwriting is really good!
欢迎再来！ - Huānyíng zài lái! - Come back soon!
因为下雨，所以他没去踢足球。 - Yīnwèi xià yǔ, suǒyǐ tā méi qù tī zúqiú. - Because it's raining, he didn't play football.
虽然下雨，但是他去踢足球。 - Suīrán xià yǔ, dànshì tā qù tī zúqiú. - Although it's raining, he played football. ×××
他80岁了，但是身体很好。 - Tā 80 suì le, dànshì shēntǐ hěnhǎo. - He is 80 years old, but he is very healthy.
她从中国回来了。 - Tā cóng Zhōngguó huílai le． - She came back from China.
他对我很好。 - Tā duì wǒ hěn hǎo． - He is nice to me.
我比她高。 - Wǒ bǐ tā gāo． - I am taller than her.
向左走。 - Xiàng zuǒ zǒu． - Go left.
学校离我家很近。 - Xuéxiào lí wǒ jiā hěn jìn． - School is close to my home.
现在你可以走了。 - Xiànzài nǐ kěyǐ zǒu le． - Now you can go.
我要学游泳。 - Wǒ yào xué yóuyǒng． - I want to learn to swim.
明天可能下雨。 - Míngtiān kěnéng xià yǔ． - It might rain tomorrow.
书是哥哥的。 - Shū shì gēge de． - The book is my older brother's.
那个杯子是我的。 - Nàge bēizi shì wǒ de． - That cup is mine.
这件衣服是最便宜的。 - Zhè jiàn yīfu shì zuì piányi de． - This item of clothing is the cheapest.
我买了一些吃的。 - Wǒ mǎile yìxiē chī de． - I bought some food.
那边打电话的是我丈夫。 - Nàbiān dǎ diànhuà de shì wǒ zhàngfu． - My husband is making a phone call there.
你做的对。 - Nǐ zuò de duì． - You did the right thing.
现在快10点了吧？ - Xiànzài kuài 10 diǎn le ba? - It's almost 10 o'clock?
她笑着说：“明天见。” - Tā xiàozhe shuō: "Míngtiān jiàn." - She smiled and said "see you tomorrow."
我买了一本书。 - Wǒ mǎile yì běn shū． - I bought a book.
我学过汉语。 - Wǒ xuéguo Hànyǔ． - I studied Chinese before.
你去问问他。 - Nǐ qù wènwen tā． - You go and ask him.
让我想一想。 - Ràng wǒ xiǎngyixiǎng． - Let me have a think.
你是中国人吧？ - Nǐ shì Zhōngguórén ba? - Are you Chinese?
他为什么没来？ - Tā wèi shénme méi lái? - Why isn't he here?
从这儿到那儿多远？ - Cóng zhèr dào nàr duō yuǎn? - How far is it from here to there?
你喝不喝茶？ - Nǐ hēbuhē chá? - Do you want some tea? (lit. Do you drink tea?)
我们一起去，好吗？ - Wǒmen yìqǐ qù, hǎo ma? - Can we go together?
别说话。 - Bié shuōhuà． - Don't speak.
不要吃太多。 - Bú yào chī tài duō． - Don't eat too much.
真好吃！ - Zhēn hǎochī! - Really yummy!
今天比昨天冷。 - Jīntiān bǐ zuótiān lěng． - Today is colder than yesterday.
他们正在打篮球。 - Tāmen zhèngzài dǎ lánqiú． - They are playing basketball.
他买了一斤苹果。 - Tā mǎile yì jīn píngguǒ． - He bought 500g of apples.
我看过这个电影。 - Wǒ kàn guò zhè gè diàn yǐng. - I saw this movie.
火车要开了。 - Huǒchē yào kāi le． - The train is about to leave.
外面下着雨。 - Wàimiàn xiàzhe yǔ. - It's raining outside.