Learn Mandarin Chinese with
movies, shows, music, and more

FluentU is a language learning platform that helps you learn Chinese by immersing you in authentic videos, such as movies, TV shows, music videos, and more. With FluentU, learn with any Netflix or YouTube video that has Chinese subtitles. FluentU also has a curated library of Chinese videos that are carefully leveled - so you can easily find content that's just right for your proficiency level. FluentU lets you learn with interactive captions. Click on a Chinese character or word to see detailed definitions, example sentences, and more. Add words to your vocabulary, and review them with a powerful learning engine designed specifically for Chinese language learners.

FluentU makes Chinese movies and shows accessible through several innovative features. Our interactive subtitles let you instantly look up any word by simply hovering over or clicking it. You'll see the definition, pronunciation, example sentences, and even other videos where the word appears. The video player includes adjustable playback speeds so you can slow down difficult sections. For characters you don't recognize, you can see both simplified and traditional forms, pinyin pronunciation, and contextual definitions. Every video also comes with a full transcript and vocabulary list, making it easy to review what you've learned. These tools transform what would be overwhelming authentic content into comprehensible, enjoyable learning material.

While watching Chinese videos is an excellent way to improve your listening skills and vocabulary, FluentU takes it further by turning passive watching into active learning. After watching videos, FluentU guides you through personalized review sessions that reinforce what you've learned. The platform tracks which words and characters you've encountered and helps you practice them through quizzes and exercises. For the most effective learning, we recommend combining video watching with our interactive exercises, along with regular practice speaking and writing Chinese. This comprehensive approach ensures you develop all language skills while enjoying authentic Chinese content.

FluentU uses a sophisticated learning system to help you remember Chinese vocabulary. When you encounter new words in videos, you can add them to your personal vocabulary lists with a single click. These words then appear in personalized quizzes that adapt to your learning progress. Our spaced repetition system ensures you review words at optimal intervals for long-term retention. Each flashcard includes audio pronunciation, example sentences, and video clips showing the word in context. For Chinese specifically, we help you associate characters with their components and meanings, making them easier to recognize and remember. This multi-sensory approach is particularly effective for mastering Chinese characters.

Yes! FluentU includes a variety of Chinese music videos from different genres including pop, rock, folk, and hip-hop. Music is an excellent way to learn Chinese because songs often use repetitive patterns that help reinforce vocabulary and pronunciation. Our music video collection includes popular Chinese artists like Jay Chou, JJ Lin, G.E.M., and many others. Just like with movies and shows, all music videos come with interactive subtitles, vocabulary lists, and learning tools. Many learners find that Chinese songs help them remember phrases and improve their tones in a fun, engaging way.

Absolutely! FluentU has beginner-friendly Chinese content specifically designed for newcomers to the language. We offer videos with simpler vocabulary and clear pronunciation, perfect for beginners. Our interactive subtitles make even authentic Chinese content accessible by providing instant translations and pronunciation guides. You can start with short clips like commercials or children's songs, then gradually progress to more complex content as your skills improve. The learning system adapts to your level, so you'll always be challenged appropriately. Many of our users have started from zero Chinese knowledge and successfully built their skills through our platform.

FluentU's Chrome extension allows you to learn Chinese with Netflix shows and movies that have Chinese subtitles. When watching Chinese content on Netflix, our extension adds interactive features similar to those on the FluentU platform. You can click on any word to see its definition, pronunciation, and examples. This transforms popular shows like 'The Untamed', 'Meteor Garden', or Chinese films on Netflix into powerful learning tools. The extension syncs with your FluentU account, so words you encounter on Netflix can be added to your vocabulary lists for later review. It's a seamless way to expand your Chinese learning beyond the FluentU platform.

FluentU's Chinese library features an extensive variety of authentic content types. You'll find clips from popular Chinese TV dramas like '三十而已' (Nothing But Thirty) and '山河令' (Word of Honor), news broadcasts from CCTV and regional networks, entertaining vlogs from Chinese content creators, music videos from artists like Jay Chou and G.E.M., cooking shows, travel documentaries, interviews, commercials, and educational content. We also include animated content, comedy sketches, and movie trailers. This diversity ensures you're exposed to different speaking styles, vocabulary contexts, and cultural elements. Each content type offers unique learning benefits: dramas for conversational Chinese, news for formal language, vlogs for casual expressions, and music videos for cultural immersion and memorization through rhythm.

FluentU's Chinese video library is carefully curated to accommodate all proficiency levels, from complete beginners to advanced learners. For beginners, we offer specially selected content with simpler vocabulary, clearer pronunciation, and basic sentence structures. These include short commercials, simple dialogues, children's content, and videos specifically designed for language learners. Intermediate learners can access a wider range of content like vlogs, TV clips, and interviews with more natural speaking speeds. Advanced learners will find challenging content including news broadcasts, in-depth discussions, and regional dialect samples. Every video is tagged with an appropriate difficulty level, and our sophisticated filtering system helps you find content that's perfectly matched to your current abilities while gradually introducing new challenges.

Yes, FluentU offers flexible subtitle options for Chinese videos. You can choose to display Chinese characters only, pinyin only, English only, Chinese with pinyin, Chinese with English, or all three simultaneously. This flexibility allows you to customize your learning experience based on your current needs and proficiency level. For example, beginners might start with all three subtitle types, then gradually reduce dependency on English and pinyin as they improve. The dual-language subtitle feature is particularly helpful for understanding context while still challenging yourself to recognize Chinese characters. You can easily toggle between subtitle options during playback without interrupting the video, allowing you to test your comprehension by hiding certain subtitle types temporarily.

Absolutely! FluentU makes it simple to save any word or phrase you encounter in Chinese videos. When watching, just click on any word in the interactive subtitles and select 'Add to Vocabulary' to save it to your personal word list. You can also save entire sentences or expressions that you find useful. All saved items are automatically incorporated into your personalized review sessions and flashcards. The system organizes your saved vocabulary by video source, difficulty level, and word type, making it easy to review related terms together. You can create custom vocabulary lists for specific topics or goals, such as 'Business Chinese Terms' or 'Travel Vocabulary.' This feature ensures you never lose track of useful language you discover while watching.

Yes, every Chinese video on FluentU is accompanied by interactive exercises designed to reinforce what you've learned. After watching, you can enter 'Learn Mode' which transforms the video content into a personalized language lesson. These exercises include vocabulary quizzes, listening comprehension questions, sentence building activities, and speaking practice. For Chinese specifically, exercises include character recognition, tone identification, and measure word usage. The questions adapt to your performance, focusing more on areas where you need practice. All exercises use the actual vocabulary and grammar from the video you just watched, creating a seamless learning experience that connects passive watching with active practice. This approach ensures you retain and can actively use the language elements you encounter in videos.

Yes, FluentU offers comprehensive filtering options for Chinese videos. You can filter by difficulty level (beginner, intermediate, advanced), topic categories (business, entertainment, everyday life, etc.), video format (interviews, music videos, news, etc.), video length, and even by specific dialect regions (Mainland China, Taiwan, Singapore, etc.). You can also filter content by HSK level if you're studying for these exams, or by specific grammar points if you're focusing on particular structures. The search function allows you to find videos containing specific vocabulary you want to learn. These filtering capabilities make it easy to find content that perfectly matches your interests and learning goals, whether you're looking for short beginner-friendly clips about daily life or advanced business discussions from specific regions.

Yes, FluentU continuously updates its Chinese video library with fresh content. Our content team adds new videos weekly, ensuring you always have access to current, relevant material that reflects contemporary Chinese language and culture. We regularly incorporate trending topics, popular shows, viral videos, and current events to keep the learning experience engaging and up-to-date. This regular refresh is particularly important for Chinese, as the language evolves quickly with new slang and expressions, especially in online contexts. We also expand our library based on user requests and learning needs, adding more content in areas where learners express interest. This commitment to regular updates ensures that you're learning modern, practical Chinese that you'll actually encounter in real-world situations.

Yes, FluentU is perfect for complete beginners! We offer specially curated content for those just starting their Chinese journey. Our beginner videos feature simple vocabulary, clear pronunciation, and basic grammar structures. The interactive subtitles show pinyin (pronunciation guide) alongside Chinese characters, making it easy to follow along even if you can't read characters yet. We also provide comprehensive explanations of basic concepts like tones, character components, and essential grammar patterns. Many of our users have successfully started learning Chinese from zero using FluentU, building a solid foundation through our engaging video-based approach.

Yes, FluentU supports both Simplified and Traditional Chinese characters. You can easily toggle between character sets in your account settings based on your learning goals. All videos display your preferred character set in the interactive subtitles, and dictionary lookups show both forms for comparison. This flexibility is especially helpful if you're focusing on mainland China (which uses Simplified) or Taiwan/Hong Kong (which use Traditional). Some learners even use this feature to gradually familiarize themselves with both writing systems. Our learning system tracks your vocabulary progress separately for each character set, ensuring a personalized experience regardless of which form you choose to study.

No, you don't need to know pinyin before starting with FluentU. Our platform actually helps you learn pinyin naturally as you watch videos. Every Chinese word in our interactive subtitles includes the pinyin pronunciation, and you can click to hear audio pronunciation by native speakers. For beginners, we recommend starting with our introductory videos that specifically teach pinyin basics, including the four tones and special pronunciation rules. As you progress, you'll gradually become comfortable with pinyin while simultaneously learning characters and vocabulary in context. This integrated approach helps you develop reading, listening, and pronunciation skills together.

Yes, FluentU places special emphasis on teaching Chinese tones and pronunciation. Every word in our interactive subtitles includes audio from native speakers that clearly demonstrates the correct tones. Our video player allows you to slow down playback to better hear tone distinctions, and you can replay individual words as many times as needed. For beginners, we offer dedicated videos explaining the four tones of Mandarin, tone pairs, and pronunciation rules. The dictionary feature shows tone marks over pinyin, and many of our videos specifically focus on common pronunciation challenges for English speakers. Through repeated exposure to native speech in various contexts, you'll naturally develop an ear for proper tones and pronunciation.

Absolutely! FluentU's approach to teaching Chinese characters (hanzi) is particularly effective because you learn them in meaningful contexts. When you click on a character in a video, you'll see its meaning, pronunciation, and example sentences. For more complex characters, our system shows you the component parts and their meanings, helping you understand the logic behind character construction. The spaced repetition review system ensures you encounter characters repeatedly at optimal intervals for memorization. We also show you which characters appear frequently in everyday Chinese, helping you prioritize the most useful ones first. Many learners find that seeing characters used naturally in videos makes them much more memorable than studying them in isolation.

Yes, FluentU is highly adaptable to different learning preferences. If you want to focus on speaking and listening skills, you can use our video content without emphasizing character recognition. Many learners begin by focusing on understanding spoken Chinese and developing proper pronunciation before tackling the writing system. Our audio pronunciation features, speaking practice exercises, and listening comprehension quizzes support this approach. You can set your learning preferences to emphasize audio-based exercises over written ones. However, we find that most learners eventually become curious about characters as they progress, and our platform makes it easy to gradually incorporate reading skills at your own pace.

FluentU's learning system maintains detailed tracking of your Chinese language progress. The platform remembers every word you've encountered in videos and how well you know each one based on quiz performance. Your personal dashboard shows statistics on vocabulary acquisition, video completion, time spent learning, and mastery level across different skills. For Chinese specifically, we track your familiarity with characters, words, and phrases separately. The system uses this data to recommend appropriate content and customize review sessions to target your weak areas. You can view progress charts showing your improvement over time, vocabulary growth, and proficiency development. This comprehensive tracking helps maintain motivation by visualizing your advancement in learning Chinese.

Yes, FluentU features a sophisticated flashcard and review system specifically designed for Chinese vocabulary. After watching videos, words you've encountered automatically become available for review through our Learn Mode. These aren't just basic flashcards—they're multimedia learning tools that include audio pronunciation, example sentences, and video clips showing the word in context. Our spaced repetition algorithm determines the optimal review schedule for each word based on your performance. The review exercises include various question types: audio recognition, meaning matching, fill-in-the-blank sentences, and speaking practice. For Chinese specifically, we include character recognition exercises, tone practice, and component analysis to help you master the unique aspects of Chinese vocabulary.

Yes, FluentU excels at teaching authentic Chinese culture and contemporary slang through real-world videos. Our content includes street interviews, TV shows, commercials, and vlogs that showcase everyday Chinese life and current cultural trends. You'll learn colloquial expressions that textbooks rarely cover, like internet slang (网络用语), regional expressions, and casual conversational phrases. Many videos include cultural explanations that help you understand the context behind certain expressions or customs. We also feature content about traditional holidays, food culture, social etiquette, and modern youth culture in Chinese-speaking regions. This cultural immersion helps you communicate more naturally and understand the 'why' behind language patterns, not just memorize phrases.

FluentU helps you develop the ability to understand different Chinese accents and regional speech patterns. Our video library includes content featuring speakers from various regions including Beijing, Shanghai, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and other areas with distinctive accents. While standard Mandarin (普通话/國語) is our primary focus, exposure to regional variations prepares you for real-world conversations. The platform includes videos that specifically address regional pronunciation differences and common dialect influences on Mandarin. As you progress, you'll develop an ear for different speaking styles and regional vocabulary variations. Many learners report that after using FluentU regularly, they're much better prepared to understand different accents when traveling or speaking with Chinese speakers from various backgrounds.

Absolutely! Chinese idioms (成语) and expressions are an important focus in FluentU's content. We offer videos specifically dedicated to teaching common chengyu (four-character idioms) and their origins, as well as everyday expressions and proverbs (谚语). When these expressions appear in videos, the interactive subtitles provide detailed explanations of their literal meanings, figurative interpretations, and cultural backgrounds. Our dictionary feature includes usage examples showing how these idioms appear in different contexts. We also have themed collections focusing on idioms related to specific topics like success, relationships, or wisdom. Learning these expressions not only enhances your language skills but also deepens your understanding of Chinese cultural values and thinking patterns.

Yes, FluentU is an excellent resource for HSK exam preparation. Our content is tagged by HSK level (1-6), allowing you to filter videos and focus on vocabulary and grammar patterns specific to your target exam level. The vocabulary tracking system shows which HSK words you've mastered and which need more practice. We offer dedicated video playlists covering HSK vocabulary and grammar points for each level. The interactive transcripts and quizzes help you practice reading comprehension and vocabulary recognition—key skills tested on the HSK. While FluentU isn't designed to replace a dedicated HSK prep course, many users successfully use it as a supplementary tool to make their exam preparation more engaging and to develop the real-world listening skills that help them excel on the test.

Yes, FluentU's video player includes several features specifically designed to help with difficult Chinese passages. You can adjust playback speed from 0.5x to 1.5x, making it easier to catch rapid speech or complex tonal patterns at slower speeds. The loop feature allows you to repeat challenging sections as many times as needed until you fully understand them. You can also create custom video clips by setting start and end points to focus on specific dialogues or expressions. For particularly difficult words or phrases, you can click on them in the interactive subtitles to hear them pronounced clearly and see detailed explanations. These playback controls are especially valuable for Chinese learners since the tonal nature of the language often requires careful listening to master pronunciation nuances.

Yes, FluentU offers comprehensive quizzes that test both comprehension and grammar skills. After watching a Chinese video, you can take a quiz specifically generated from that content. These quizzes include multiple question types: vocabulary recognition, sentence completion, audio comprehension, and grammar application. For grammar specifically, our quizzes test your understanding of sentence patterns, measure word usage, particle placement, and other Chinese-specific grammatical features. The questions adapt to your proficiency level, becoming more challenging as you improve. All quiz questions are contextual, based on real examples from videos rather than abstract rules, helping you understand how grammar functions in natural Chinese speech. Your performance on these quizzes informs our system about areas where you need additional practice.

Absolutely! FluentU works excellently as a complement to formal Chinese education. Many students use our platform to reinforce what they're learning in class or with a tutor. You can share your progress reports with your teacher to show what vocabulary and grammar points you've been practicing. The video content provides authentic context for the structures you learn in class, helping bridge the gap between textbook Chinese and real-world usage. Many tutors and teachers actually recommend FluentU to their students for independent practice between lessons. You can also use our content to prepare for upcoming class topics or review material you found challenging. The combination of structured classroom learning and FluentU's immersive approach creates an ideal environment for rapid Chinese language acquisition.

Learning Chinese through movies, TV shows, and music offers numerous advantages over traditional textbook methods. These authentic materials expose you to natural, contemporary Chinese as it's actually spoken today, including slang, idioms, and cultural nuances that textbooks often miss. The emotional engagement of stories and music creates stronger memory connections, helping vocabulary stick in your long-term memory. Chinese tones become more intuitive when heard in the rhythm of natural speech and songs. Media content also provides crucial cultural context that helps you understand not just what Chinese speakers say, but why they say it that way. Research shows that learning through enjoyable content increases motivation and reduces study fatigue. Seeing language used in real-life situations prepares you for actual conversations more effectively than memorizing isolated phrases.

FluentU transforms Chinese movies, TV shows, and music into powerful learning tools through several innovative features. Our interactive subtitles let you instantly click any word to see definitions, pronunciation guides, and examples, turning passive watching into active learning. The video player's adjustable playback speed helps you catch rapid speech, while the loop feature allows you to repeat challenging sections. For music, we provide both character-by-character translations and overall meaning explanations, helping you understand expressions in songs. After watching, our Learn Mode converts the video content into personalized quizzes that reinforce what you've learned. The platform remembers every word you've seen and schedules optimal review sessions. By connecting vocabulary to memorable scenes and songs, FluentU creates emotional anchors that make Chinese more memorable than traditional study methods.

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