WeChat ( 微信 — wēi xìn) is a Chinese app often compared to Facebook. It includes messaging, social media, mobile payments and much more.
It first showed up in 2011, and by 2018 became one of the most-used apps in the world with over a billion active users per month. In this post, we’ll discover how to learn Chinese on WeChat regardless of your level.
The search function under the “Discover” section is where you’ll find most of the content we’ll be talking about in this article. To use WeChat for Mandarin learning, you’ll need to have a Chinese keyboard installed on your device. (Here’s a list of the best ones for Android and the best for iPhone.)
However, you don’t need to use 汉字 (hàn zì — Chinese characters) exclusively to search around WeChat. 拼音 (pīn yīn) — Chinese Romanization and English can also be used.
WeChat Features to Help You Learn Chinese
Channels
Under the “Discover” tab, WeChat has “channels.” This is where you can find and create video content—think reels, shorts, TikTok, etc. While much of it is short-form content, there is long-form as well. Videos can be up to an hour long. You can also explore hashtags, which lets you find creators, influencers and brands.
There are four feeds in Channels: accounts you follow, content liked by your contacts, trending and posts from locations near you (if you’ve given WeChat location permissions).
This is an excellent way to stay connected to modern Chinese culture—such as Internet trends, hot products and relevant influencers—and improve your language skills simultaneously.
Top Stories
Also found in the “Discover” tab is the Top Stories feature. This is where you can find and read articles. Anyone can create articles on WeChat and it’s commonly used as a way for self-publishers to get their work out there and for brands to promote themselves.
WeChat’s algorithm recommends articles to you in Top Stories. It uses information like the accounts you follow and your location (if applicable) to personalize these recommendations.
But what makes this great for Chinese learners is that each story also has a “Listen to Full Text” option that you can use for listening practice. And you can compile a list of future listening exercises using the “Listen Later” feature.
Translating Functions
Moving away from the “Discover” section, the “Chats” tab has an incredible translation feature that lets you take a picture and translate it. You can use it by going to “Chats,” clicking “+” and then “Scan.”
For example, if you order something online and when it arrives, the package and instructions are in Chinese and you can’t understand it all, you can use WeChat to take a picture of the paper and it will translate all the text into English.
WeChat also has mini-programs—apps that work alongside WeChat—that serve various daily functions, like taxi apps, booking travel tours, movie reviews, etc. Some of them also now have translation options, making them even more accessible and easy to use if you’re living in China.
Finally, you can also translate the articles.
How to Learn Chinese on WeChat
Find a Chinese teacher.
Many online learners may try to learn Chinese with professional tutors via Skype. WeChat offers a similar service and many Chinese teachers use WeChat to provide classes.
The easiest way to find teachers on WeChat is to search for the following keywords:
“Mandarin tutor”
“Chinese tutor”
“中文老师” (“Chinese teacher”)
“中文导师” (“Chinese tutor”)
italki is one website that’s great for finding awesome Mandarin tutors and teachers. Be sure to thoroughly look through tags and official accounts to find the best tutors for you. Keep in mind that most tutors and teachers on WeChat will charge for their services.
Find accounts with a focus on Chinese learning.
Many accounts on WeChat boast videos, graphics and other media for Chinese learning. To find WeChat accounts that have helpful tips and tricks, try searching for the following:
“Learn Chinese”
“Learn Mandarin”
“学习中文” (“study Chinese”)
“学中文” (“learn Chinese”)
Meet native speakers.
You can find either individual people to chat with on WeChat or whole groups dedicated to language exchange.
WeChat has an interesting “shake” function. Simply shake your phone with the app open and you’ll automatically get connected with the closest WeChat user who has also recently shaken their phone. It’s like ChatRoulette for Chinese speakers, essentially. You can also utilize the “People Nearby” section and connect with anyone who may be nearby.
Many Chinese users boast a QR code on their social media profiles. Simply scan this QR code from within WeChat to add them as a friend and start chatting.
Otherwise, you can meet new people on WeChat via groups.
Here are some keywords and groups to search for and join:
“Chinese study group”
“Mandarin study group”
TravelChina is a great group for non-Chinese travelers looking for language buddies while traveling abroad in a Mandarin-speaking country.
Another great way to learn Chinese through groups is to start your own group and post the QR code around Chinese language forums, such as the LearnChinese forum on Reddit.
Select “Group Chat” and add at least two of your contacts to the group. You’ll need to have a couple of Mandarin-learning or speaking friends to add to build the group.
Name your group chat. It would be wise to include keywords that other learners can search for and select the size capacity of the group. Opt for notifications as well so you can keep track of new additions to the group and introduce yourself.
Select “OK” and you’re all set!
As the administrator of the group, you can change the group’s name, post bulletins and delete or add new members as you wish.
There are tons of Mandarin native speakers looking for English-speaking pals to exchange languages. Likewise, WeChat is becoming more popular in Western countries.
Use the “voice message” function to practice your speaking and listening skills.
The voice message function on WeChat is very handy. Once you have a friend on your contact list to communicate with, you can use the voice message function to practice your speaking and listening skills in Mandarin.
It’s easy as pie to set up:
Go into the “Permissions” section of WeChat’s “App info” on your smartphone device.
Allow for Microphone access, then return to the WeChat app.
Find a contact you’d like to speak to, navigate to “Messages” and click the microphone icon in the corner.
Select and hold down the “Hold to Talk” button and record your message.
Click “Voice Call” and select which members of the group, if not all of them, you’d like to add to the voice chat. From there, your microphone is automatically activated and you can speak and listen to other users. You can also select the “Open Camera” button to do a video chat.
How awesome is WeChat for Mandarin learning? Once you’re all set up with WeChat, you might be ready to explore other learning tools, like FluentU.
FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.
You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.
If you want to continue learning Chinese with interactive and authentic Chinese content, then you'll love FluentU.
FluentU naturally eases you into learning Chinese language. Native Chinese content comes within reach, and you'll learn Chinese as it's spoken in real life.
FluentU has a wide range of contemporary videos—like dramas, TV shows, commercials and music videos.
FluentU brings these native Chinese videos within reach via interactive captions. You can tap on any word to instantly look it up. All words have carefully written definitions and examples that will help you understand how a word is used. Tap to add words you'd like to review to a vocab list.
FluentU's Learn Mode turns every video into a language learning lesson. You can always swipe left or right to see more examples for the word you're learning.
The best part is that FluentU always keeps track of your vocabulary. It customizes quizzes to focus on areas that need attention and reminds you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. You have a 100% personalized experience.
