LanguageExplain Like I'm 5Intermediate
Conversational Chinese Fluency course icon

Conversational Chinese Fluency

Like Duolingo, but for Conversational Chinese Fluency. Tomo turns the whole topic into a game you play five minutes a day, until it actually sticks.

For the part of you with thirty open tabs that never became anything.

71 bite-size levelsAbout 5 minutes each

Free during early access · No credit card · iPhone & Android

Pan-Pan the Panda
Conversational Chinese Fluency
with Pan-Pan the Panda
71
Levels
7
Sections
5
Min/day
What you'll learn

Key ideas in Conversational Chinese Fluency

  • Using 'nàge' as a placeholder
  • Using 'jiùshì' to bridge thoughts
  • Constant verbal feedback
  • Pitch and length of 'èn'
  • Using 'nàge' and 'jiùshì' to maintain conversational flow
  • Active listening particles
  • The particle 'ba' lowers the 'force' of a sentence to invite agreement rather than demand it
  • 'Rànhòu' is the primary logical connector for 'and then' when telling a sequence of events
  • Using 'ba' is essential in social settings to avoid appearing overly blunt or bossy
  • Using 'nàge' and 'jiùshì' to maintain conversational flow while searching for a word
  • Overusing 'rànhòu' is a common intermediate trait that mimics how native speakers pace their stories
  • Matching active listening particles to their specific conversational function
  • The role of 'rànhòu' in structuring a chronological narrative
  • 'Nà' (short for nàme) functions as 'In that case' or 'So...' to transition based on previous info
  • Using 'ba' to transform a command into a suggestion
  • Starting a sentence with 'nà' signals that you are summarizing the situation or moving to a result
Why not just Google it

You've tried the other tabs

Wikipedia

Thirty open tabs. Four facts you actually kept.

YouTube

You watched. You nodded. By Sunday it was gone.

ChatGPT

One answer, then back to scrolling.

Online courses

Eight weeks. You meant to finish. You didn't.

Tomo gives Conversational Chinese Fluency the Duolingo treatment: levels, streaks, and quick quizzes that test what you just learned. That game loop is what the tabs above never had, so it's the one you actually finish.

Try a question

Here's what playing it feels like

A real question from this course. Take your best guess.

The Magic of Chinese Fillers

Which word acts like a bridge to help you clarify a thought, similar to saying 'it's like...'?

Get it right to open this lesson and 70 more in the app.

Course map

Where Conversational Chinese Fluency takes you

Bridge the gap between textbook grammar and natural, native-level expression. Master the nuances of particles, resultative structures, and cultural subtext to speak Chinese with confidence and character.

  1. 1

    Sounding Like a Local

    • Conversational Glue and Fillers
    • The Nuance of Modal Particles
  2. 2

    Precision in Action

    • Resultative Complements
    • Directional Complements in Depth
    • The 'Ba' (把) Construction Mastery
  3. 3

    Describing the World Vividly

    • Advanced Comparison Structures
    • Adjective Reduplication and Intensity
  4. 4

    Time, Sequence, and Logic

    • Temporal Logic: Jiu, Cai, and Gang
    • Complex Conjunctions and Flow
    • The 'Shi... De' Construction
  5. 5

    Social Dynamics and Register

    • Politeness and Face (Mianzi)
    • Formal vs. Informal Registers
    • Idiomatic Thinking and Chengyu
  6. 6

    Advanced Communication Strategies

    • Handling Misunderstandings
    • Expressing Opinions and Arguments
    • Regional Variations and Accents
  7. 7

    The Logic of the Language

    • Word Formation and Collocations
    • Decoding Implicit Meaning

7 sections · 18 units · 71 levels. Built to play, not to enroll.

How it's taught

You pick the voice

This course
Explain Like I'm 5

Conversational Chinese Fluency is taught in the Explain Like I'm 5 style: no big words. promise.. Want a different feel? In the app you can spin up the same topic in any of Tomo's teaching styles. Same facts, totally different vibe.

Start free

Start Conversational Chinese Fluency today.

Download Tomo, search Conversational Chinese Fluency, and play your first lesson in under a minute.