Free A0 Chinese course: complete beginner

A0 is the very start: no Chinese yet. You learn the four tones and pinyin, greet people, say who you are with 是, ask yes/no questions with 吗 and count to 99.

8 grammar lessons, 3 graded stories, 5 videos, flashcards and an AI conversation partner, all free. A0 is roughly HSK 1–2; the two scales measure different things, so treat it as a guide.

What you'll be able to do

• Listening: I can hear the difference between the four tones in single syllables like mā, má, mǎ, mà.
• Listening: I can recognise 你好, 谢谢, 不客气, 对不起 and 再见 when I hear them.
• Speaking: I can say hello, thank you, sorry and goodbye, and give my name with 我叫… or 我是….
• Speaking: I can count from 0 to 99 and say my age with 岁.
• Reading: I can read pinyin with tone marks aloud, including j, q, x, zh, ch, sh and ü.
• Writing: I can write my name, my nationality and a few greetings in pinyin with tones.

What you'll learn

Learning A0 Chinese with AI

At A0 the AI partner keeps to very short sentences and puts the pinyin with tone marks after every Chinese sentence, so you can read what you hear. The AI also explains any wrong answer in a lesson, in plain English. It's included free, with a daily allowance; like any AI it can make mistakes, so the lessons remain the reference. More about learning Chinese with AI.

All 8 A0 grammar lessons

Free to read here. In the app, each one is taught in short steps with audio, practised, and brought back for review.

1. The four tones
2. Pinyin: letters that surprise you
3. Tone changes: 你好, 不 and 一
4. Hello, thank you, sorry, goodbye
5. I, you, he, she: personal pronouns
6. 是: to be (with nouns)
7. Yes/no questions with 吗
8. Numbers 0–99 and your age

Words for A0

HSK 1–2 vocabulary: the first Chinese words (A0–A1): 247 words with pinyin, English and an example sentence.

Reading at A0

• 我叫王明: Wang Ming, a student from Beijing, introduces himself and his older sister.
• 我家: Li Hua, eight, from Chengdu, introduces her parents, her twin brothers and the cat.
• 你喝茶吗？: Mark, an English teacher, meets Zhang Li from Shanghai over a cup of tea.

Listening at A0

• Name, age and gender (Blabla Chinese): Qianqian practises three facts about himself (his name, that he's 30 and that he's a man) through many yes/no and either/or questions, with a few bloopers left in.
• Introducing yourself (Xiaogua Chinese): Wei Xuan, a Chinese teacher, talks about herself: the countries she has been to and wants to visit, the languages she speaks, her husband who loves cooking, and why she does yoga while he goes walking every day.
• Introducing yourself (Lazy Chinese): Su Qing introduces herself, correcting herself as she goes: she's Chinese and lives in Sydney, Australia, and her boyfriend is British. Her mum doesn't like him. He isn't fat, poor or short; the reason is that he won't buy a house in China.
• Rooms and furniture (Speak Your Chinese): A slow description of a single picture of a bedroom. A cartoon cup and plate look in, and the teacher names what she sees: a chair, a rug with shoes on it, a table with a lamp, a bed with an old lady under the quilt, glasses, an alarm clock, a picture of a rabbit, curtains and a mirror.
• Objects and colours (Blabla Chinese): Amber holds up everyday things (cups, a phone, headphones, a toy plane) and asks simple yes/no questions about what they are, what colour they are (green or black) and whether there is coffee or water in the cups.

Questions