Question

Hi Kevin, I don't know that I've had that exact feeling, but my guess would be that you know a lot of disconnected phrases and words, and just need the practice, knowledge, and experience to put them all together. I remember that phase myself, where I knew lots of words and could say words or short phrases, but still felt like I knew very little. My advice would be to continue to spend time with native speakers, sometimes one on one, and sometimes when you are outnumbered. This will aid in listening and picking up the "rhythm" and natural phrasing of the language. Also, see if you can find some Chinese or Taiwanese dramas/movies/etc. If you learn in a way that's enjoyable, you'll be surprised how satisfied you will feel, and how quickly you learn! Hope this helps... 加油！ Keep up the good work!

Kevin, Just keep after it. There is no light that comes on nor a bell that rings but if you are faithful to your studies then one day you will realize that you are actually thinking in Chinese and you will know that you have arrived. It will be a wonderful day. Until then, I hope you have many happy days chasing your dreams.

One thing that helps a lot is when you can hear the words and phrases you used in a new context, and then you suddenly understand. Or when you hear a sentence you know, but it's slightly different by a word or two. Maybe from that sentence you learn a new word or two. Before you know it, all those words and sentences start connecting into a web and the language is just MAKING SENSE! Keep at it.

We all have moments of despair where we're thinking what in earth we're doing trying to learn this **** language but as long as you keep trying on a regular basis, you'll be rewarded by those little moments where you suddenly understand more than you thought. And one day you're suddenly there, you actually speak the language. I've spent the last ten years studying Italian and when I look at my books from when I started and watch how many words I needed to look up, reread phrases that at the time seemed impossible ever to understand, I'm amazed at how much I've learned. I know that some day it'll be the same with Chinese, and that's what keeps me going when things seem hard and impossible.

Thanks everybody, you have been helpful. 谢谢你们！

I'd add that sometimes we learn passively, but not actively. I am not sure if this is happening to you. It explains the phenomenon of second-generation American children who are able to understand their parents' native language, but then have to respond in English. Two hints: (1) Make sure you actually know why a sentence means what it does. Sometimes we learn in chunks, which is good, but it's even better if you can deconstruct the sentence to figure out how it was formed that way and why. It's too easy to know what sentence "means" without actually knowing all the components. (2) Take the pieces of what you learn and apply them to other contexts. Make practice sentences that are unrelated to your lessons, but that use your vocabulary. Good luck!

Learning Chinese can be painful and the rushes from feeling like you've accomplished something can sometimes feel small or too few and far between. Someone once mentioned this before and from my experience it's true. All I can say is hang in there and have faith that you are learning more than you realize.