Learning Chinese Language with Duolingo In-depth Guide 2024 (Is it Free?)

One of the most popular platforms that helps you to learn a new language easily is Duolingo. It is the platform that helps you to learn the language whether it is a popular or nonpopular language. If you are thinking to learn of a popular language like Chinese from this platform then you must know if it is worth it to learn from here or not. Thus, here we will help you to know what it looks like when you are learning Chinese language with Duolingo platform. 

Quick Takeaways

• The Duolingo Chinese course has a lot of various sections that have different numbers of units in it. Once you complete a  once you complete a single once you complete all the lessons in a single unit you are eligible to unlock the next lesson.
• There are two special features that you get in this course which are Duolingo stories and the features that will help you to learn the writing style which is known as Pinyin. 
• The other most popular features that you get in this course are Duolingo gems, leagues, heart system, etc.
• You can either take up the free version or pay for the subscription plan.
• If you are looking for high-level fluency then this platform is not for you.

However, you must read till the end so that you get a better understanding of how it looks like when you are learning the Chinese language with Duolingo.

How is the Chinese course designed on Duolingo?

When you are learning a new language on Duolingo, it is very important to understand the structure of the course available on this platform. If you are already a user of Duolingo, you must be aware that all the courses follow a similar structure. However, if you are new to Duolingo and want to learn the Chinese language, you must understand how the course on this platform works. For every course, whether it is Korean or Chinese, you will have to follow a path that was earlier known as the Duolingo tree.

In this part, you will get different sections which will have different units helping you focus on a single skill just like Greek language. Each skill has a different number of lessons that will help you to develop your language skills more strongly. To unlock a new unit you will have to complete all the lessons of the previous unit. The duration of these lessons is short and you can also download them offline.

These units are designed in such a manner that you can start from the beginner’s level and get to the intermediate level in the Chinese language. There are 63 units in the Chinese course of the Duolingo platform. Specific units help you to focus on a particular skill. When you complete the skill in a course you get to unlock the legendary level which further helps you in earning a crown.

What are some of the exercises that you get in the Chinese course on Duolingo?

Following are the exercises that you will be taking part in on Duolingo while learning the Chinese language-

• Speak this sentence
• Fill in the blanks
• Tap the pairs (standard and audio)
• Complete the translation 
• Tap what you hear
• Mark the correct meaning
• Select the missing word 
• Sentence shuffle Translation 
• Picture flashcards 

Is learning Chinese language with Duolingo worth it?

When you are learning any new language like Korean, Spanish, or Chinese, it is very important to know if the platform you are using is worth it or not. Therefore before taking up a Chinese course on Duolingo, it is very important for you to understand if you should use it or not. According to the official website of this platform, you can only get the language at the intermediate level. So if you are looking for a platform that will help you to get to an advanced level then this is not a place for you.

However, if you have just started learning the language and have a low budget then you must use this platform to understand the basics. If you are a person who loves to learn along with engaging games then you must go for this platform. It is because Duolingo is one such platform that follows the gamified approach. Further, we have discussed the benefits and drawbacks of learning the Chinese language with Duolingo.

What are the advantages of learning the Chinese language with Duolingo?

The following are the benefits of learning the Chinese language with Duolingo-

• If you are a beginner then you must take advantage of this platform as it is developed for learners who do not have any knowledge of the language.
• If you are tight on budget then this is a perfect place for you as it offers a free version.
• It is the most motivating platform as when you miss up a lesson you will see the owl prompting on the screen and reminding you.
• The lessons developed on this platform are not only easy but also very engaging.

What are the disadvantages of learning the Chinese language with Duolingo?

The following are the drawbacks of learning the Chinese language with the Duolingo platform-

• The platform has a heart system due to which you only get five chances to make up a mistake in the lesson.
• If you are looking for advanced content then this is not a perfect place for you as it only has content that will help you to get perfect at the intermediate level.
• As there are fewer explanations, you may not find it interesting to learn the lesson from this platform.
• According to various learners, the translations are too poor which makes it tough to understand the language easily.

Does the Chinese course have any special features on Duolingo?

If you are an English speaker you must be well aware that there are 40 different courses that you can learn on Duolingo. Along with it, you must also know that all the courses are created in a different manner and every course has its own special feature. The most common specific features that you can get in various languages are Duolingo stories, Podcasts, match madness, and AI-powered features. Sadly, you will not be getting all these features for this platform except for Duolingo stories.

Duolingo stories are the feature on this platform that helps you to improve your reading, listening, and speaking skills. All the stories that you will be getting in this course will be in Chinese language and you will have to practice reading and answer the questions. In addition to that, this course also has a special feature which is very likely available in any other course.

This feature helps you to understand how this language is written. The writing style of this language is Pinyin and this feature will help you to learn the pronunciation of characters. To make you understand more the platform has started providing this phonetic system more often in the lessons.

What are the other features of the Chinese course on Duolingo?

Following are the other common features that those who get into the Chinese course on Duolingo-

1. Duolingo Gems

Duolingo gems are nothing but a currency that can help you to unlock new features on this platform. To earn them you will need to participate in the Duolingo leagues, complete the daily challenge, and finish a lesson. The gems can be used to refill your life or to buy a booster like streak freeze or XP boost. When you are using Duolingo on the mobile app then they are named Duolingo gems. However, when you are using it on the desktop version they are known as lingots. The color you will be getting for Duolingo gems is blue whereas for Lingots, it is red.

2. XP score

XP, or experience points, are awarded to you when you use this platform. Every action you take, whether it’s finishing a course or accepting a challenge, will earn you experience points. You should keep in mind, that some tasks may award you with more experience points than others. You have to keep your XP score constant even when you are playing in a league. Experience points are also created to keep you motivated to learn the language.

3. Duolingo leagues

Duolingo leagues are basically competition that happens weekly. In these challenges, you along with 30 other members take part to complete. There are a total of ten such leagues starting from bronze and ending up at the silver league. The winners of the bronze league are moved forward to the next league and the process goes on. To get high on these leadership boards you will need to get an XP score as high as you can.

4. Health system

When you are using this platform on a mobile phone then you also get a heart system. The heart system is basically chances given to you for making a wrong mistake. There are five chances that you get on the platform. It means that when you make a mistake you lose a single heart for it. If you lose a heart, it will take you 4 hours to refill a single life. However, you can take the help of a practice session to refill the life you lost. An important point that you must remember is that if you are using this platform on the desktop version, you will be getting an unlimited heart system. 

5. Duolingo happy hour 

Duolingo happy hour is nothing but an hour that helps you get extra XP for completing a lesson in that hour. Usually, this hour comes in the evening time and allows you to get 5 extra XP scores for it. So suppose you have completed a lesson that gives you 10 XP in usual, you will be getting 15 extra XP for it. Further, if you are 9in this particular hour you may be getting 30 XP for that particular lesson. It is a perfect way of earning XP faster and maintaining your position in the Duolingo leagues. 

6. Friends

Duolingo is a platform that not only helps you to learn a language but also helps you to create friends and increase your network. To be a friend on this platform you will need to follow a person and that person should also follow you back. The importance of having a friend on this platform is that you can take part in the friend quest challenge. When you make your first three friends on this platform you are also able to earn gems for it. Further, you must also remember that when you follow up with a friend on this platform, the chances to complete the course on this platform increase by 5 times.

7. Duolingo Plus

Duolingo is a platform that offers free as well as paid versions. If you are a person who has taken the subscription plan of this platform then you will be known as Duolingo Plus or presently super Duolingo member. There are two types of plans that you can take up – Individual and Family plans. The price that you will have to pay will depend upon which type of plan you have taken along with the duration of it. Suppose you have taken a plan for 1 month then it will be higher than the annual subscription when calculated monthly. The main benefit of taking up this subscription plan is the removal of the heart system and the unnecessary ads.

8. Duolingo Events

The Duolingo events are an additional tool that may help in your language learning process. They are the best way to get better at communicating with people all over the world. All you have to do to participate in such events is participate in a video conference with other people and speak in the target language. Basically, Duolingo events provide you with additional support along with the material in the basic lesson. Upon completion of these events, you will receive 250 gems. It was previously available to everyone for free, the most recent update requires you to pay money, and also you will no longer receive gems in exchange for it.

9. Streak score

Streak school is a score that you will be getting based on the number of days you take to complete a lesson. Just like the XP score, it is a way of keeping you motivated to do your daily challenges and complete your daily lessons. When you receive the street score of 365 days, you get to unlock special features known as streak society and are also able to get VIP status. The streak society allows you to buy different boosters like streak freeze that will help you to prevent the streak score from breaking up. 

Conclusion

Duolingo is one of the great platforms that helps you to learn any language freely and that too by sitting at your home. You can get various languages including Chinese on this platform. If you are also thinking of learning the Chinese language with Duolingo, it is important to understand if it will help you or not. The first thing you must remember is that the content you get on this platform is developed only for beginners to intermediate learners.

Thus, if you want to learn Chinese at an advanced level then this platform is not for you. However, if you are just a beginner and have a tight budget then you can definitely try learning the Chinese language on this platform. This platform also has a special feature that helps you to learn its writing style which is known as Pinyin.

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