Before you can read Chinese characters, you need a way to write down how words sound. Mandarin has two systems that do this: pinyin, which uses the Latin alphabet, and zhuyin, also called bopomofo, which uses 37 signs of its own. Both write exactly the same sounds and tones. Which one you should learn first depends mostly on where you'll use your Mandarin, and a little on how you learn.
The same word, both ways
Pinyin writes 謝謝 as xièxie. Zhuyin writes it ㄒㄧㄝˋ ˙ㄒㄧㄝ. Same sounds, same tones, different symbols.
Pinyin
Pinyin was developed in mainland China in the 1950s and is now the standard romanization worldwide. Taiwan adopted Hanyu Pinyin as its official romanization in 2009 (Wikipedia), which is why you'll see it on many street and station signs there.
What it's good at
- You can start today. You already know the letters.
- It's everywhere for learners. Most textbooks, courses, dictionaries and apps use it.
- Typing. The most common Chinese input method on phones and computers outside Taiwan is pinyin: type xiexie, pick 謝謝.
- Names and signs. Place names and street signs, including many in Taiwan, use it.
Where it trips learners up
The letters look familiar but don't sound the way they do in English. That's the main cost of pinyin, and it's a real one.
- q, x, zh, c don't sound like English q, x, zh or c. Pinyin q is close to the "ch" in "cheese", x is between "s" and "sh", c is "ts" as in "cats".
- Vowels change with their neighbours. The i in shi, si and xi is three different sounds. And the u in lu and the u in ju are two different sounds: after j, q and x, pinyin writes ü as a plain u.
- English habits leak in. Learners who read "xie" as "zee" or "can" as the English word carry those sounds for a long time.
None of this is a reason not to use pinyin. It's a reason to learn its sounds from audio, never from the spelling alone.
Zhuyin
Zhuyin fuhao (注音符號, "phonetic symbols") was first drafted by the Republic of China's Ministry of Education in 1913 (Wikipedia). It's still how children in Taiwan learn to read: in their first weeks of school, before characters. Its 37 signs are taken from pieces of old characters, so they look like part of the writing system rather than a foreign alphabet.
What it's good at
- No habits to unlearn. Every sign is new, so there's no English sound attached to it. ㄒ is just the Mandarin sound it stands for.
- One sign, one sound. Zhuyin spells each syllable as at most an initial, a middle sound and a final, and it doesn't play spelling tricks with the vowels.
- It's what Taiwan uses. Children's books, textbooks and learning materials in Taiwan print zhuyin beside the characters, and many people in Taiwan type with a zhuyin keyboard.
- It looks like Chinese. Sitting beside a character, it feels like part of reading, not a crutch on top of it.
Where it's harder
- A week of upfront work. You need to learn 37 new symbols before you can use it. Most people can do that in about a week of short daily practice.
- Fewer resources. Most English-language courses and dictionaries are built on pinyin. You'll find zhuyin in Taiwanese materials and some apps, but less often in general learner content.
- Outside Taiwan, few people use it. Mainland China, Singapore and most teachers abroad use pinyin.
Bopomo is an iPhone app for speaking Mandarin with Lin, your AI tutor, on a trip around Taiwan. The first 500 on the waitlist get the founding price. Join the waitlist.
So which should you learn?
Learn zhuyin first if you're learning for Taiwan: travel, family, a partner, work, or Taiwanese shows and music. It's what you'll see in Taiwanese learning materials and what the people you'll talk to learned with. It also helps if you've struggled with pinyin pronunciation: a fresh set of symbols makes it easier to hear the sounds as they are.
Learn pinyin first if your course, teacher or textbook uses it, if you're learning mainly for mainland China, or if you want to start reading example words today.
Most learners end up reading both, and that's fine. They write the same sounds, so the second system takes days, not months. If you learn zhuyin first, you'll still need to read pinyin for names and signs. If you learn pinyin first, an afternoon with a zhuyin chart will make Taiwanese materials far less mysterious.
| Zhuyin | Pinyin | |
|---|---|---|
| Symbols | 37 signs of its own | Latin letters |
| Time to learn the symbols | About a week | Already known, but the sounds take practice |
| Used in Taiwan | Schools, children's books, phone keyboards | Street signs, official romanization |
| Used in mainland China | Rarely | Everywhere |
| Learner resources in English | Fewer | Most |
| Main pitfall | Upfront memorising | English sounds creeping in |
A week to learn zhuyin
If you decide to try zhuyin, learn it in the groups it's taught in: the lip sounds ㄅ ㄆ ㄇ ㄈ on day one, the tongue tip ㄉ ㄊ ㄋ ㄌ and the back of the mouth ㄍ ㄎ ㄏ on day two, and so on. Say each sign out loud every time you see it, and read real words in zhuyin as soon as you can; reading 謝謝 as ㄒㄧㄝˋ ˙ㄒㄧㄝ teaches more than staring at the chart. Our zhuyin chart has all 37 signs with Lin's voice and a one-week plan.
What Bopomo does
Bopomo teaches Mandarin the Taiwan way, so it shows zhuyin beside the characters and makes each sign a sticker you collect by saying it. Pinyin appears beside it in answers, because you'll meet it on signs. You don't have to choose forever on day one.
Questions
Is zhuyin harder than pinyin?
Zhuyin takes about a week to learn because the symbols are new. After that many learners find it easier to pronounce from, because the symbols carry no English sounds.
Do people in Taiwan use pinyin?
Hanyu Pinyin has been Taiwan's official romanization since 2009 and appears on many signs. But schools teach Mandarin sounds with zhuyin, and many people type with a zhuyin keyboard.
Can I learn Mandarin with only zhuyin?
You can, especially for Taiwan. But you'll meet pinyin in names, signs and most English-language dictionaries, so it's worth being able to read it too.
Is bopomofo the same as zhuyin?
Yes. Bopomofo is a nickname from the first four signs, ㄅ ㄆ ㄇ ㄈ (bo, po, mo, fo).
Which is better for typing Chinese?
Both work. Pinyin input is the most common outside Taiwan. In Taiwan many people type with a zhuyin keyboard, which can be faster once you know it.
Keep reading
- How to learn Mandarin fast: a speaking-first planLearn Mandarin Chinese faster by speaking from day one. Honest hours, a 12-week plan, and the first lines to say out loud, like 我聽不懂 and 一點點.
- Traditional vs simplified Chinese: which should you learn?Traditional or simplified Chinese? Where each is used (Taiwan, Hong Kong, the mainland, Singapore), what each costs a learner, and how to read both.
- How long does it take to learn Mandarin?The US FSI plans 2,200 class hours for professional Mandarin. What that means, how long conversational Chinese takes, and Taiwan's TOCFL hour estimates.
