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Popup Chinese

Xenia Hell and her stupid useless...

The most convenient way to learn Chinese the way it is actually spoken and used. Start with our basic lessons, and in no time you"ll be listening to music, watching films and television and engaging in the actual language. With free daily podcasts, a vibrant community, online study tools and much more, PopupChinese is the most powerful and personal way to learn mandarin.

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All Episodes

8:41

Popup Chinese — Intermediate: Titanic, A Chinese Romance

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/16

When it comes to tales of both romance and disaster, China is never far away. So in today's Intermediate podcast, we step back into history and show the Chinese connection to the Great Ship itself. Our podcast is less explicitly pedagogical than usual, but we hope you'll still find it both enjoyable and educational. We're still experimenting with recording formats, so welcome thoughts and comments as well.Navigate re-incarnated Popup Chinese archives, including the original customized word-to-word

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6:35

Popup Chinese — Elementary: Andy Lau

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/15

"You should try one," Andy motioned for us to take a cheeze-puff. It was a brand he endorsed, and it was selling better than milk. A ray of sunlight caught a stray tooth mid-gesture, the blinding glare sending a nearby waitress into celebrity swoon. And then the sunglasses were off and he was leaning in, exposing us to the full force of his animal magnetism. "I don't usually endorse digital products, but you guys are the best."We were floating far above Hong Kong: this was the best dream ever

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0:58

Popup Chinese — Advanced listening test: Terror on...

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/14

The rumbling explosion in the lower hold and increasingly acrid smoke on deck sent the captain's assistant scurrying into her master's cabin. But after closing and barring the door behind her, the young woman turned to the captain and froze in astonishment. Expecting to see him prepared for a fight in defense of command, the girl was shocked to find the man bent calmly over his desk examining the nautical charts with a pocket glass, his sword lying sheathed by the nightstand.Avast mateys! Our

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9:50

Popup Chinese — Absolute Beginners: The Secret Lives...

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/13

It's been a while since we've released a lesson for absolute beginners, but we're back in the saddle today with a sequel of sorts to our earlier podcast on how not to be confused for a Scientologist during your weekend trip to Xi'an. So if you've ever fancied yourself more a Brad Pitt (or Angelina Jolie) take a listen as we teach you how to introduce yourself to the locals in style. Maybe you'll get a free lunch out of it.In addition to sharing some useful language for passing yourself off as a

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8:41

Popup Chinese — Absolute Beginners: Feel My Total...

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/12

So, you've woken up at some ungodly hour in the morning to start hauling yourself out of bed when a minor epiphany strikes. Why get out of bed at all? Isn't there something better you can do with your day than this car trip to Tongzhou. And whose crazy idea was this anyway? How about just sleeping in past noon? Now there's a capital idea. And maybe in a few hours you could even head downstairs and get some breakfast, or maybe watch a movie. Or maybe just stay in bed all afternoon.At Popup Chinese

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9:09

Popup Chinese — Absolute Beginners: Where are you from?

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/11

If you've ever been in a Chinese taxi, you've been asked this question, even if you didn't understand it at the time. In fact, being asked where one is from is such a common question we've decided to devote an entire lesson just to it. So join us in this beginner lesson and before long you'll be inventing new and exciting background stories each time you take a trip across town. Yes sir, I am a nuclear scientist from Kazakhstan.Note: it's been a while since we've had a dedicated speaking practice

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11:12

Popup Chinese — Absolute Beginners: On Avoiding the...

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/10

"Don't worry about me," the voice on the phone hoarsely whispered after its wave of violent coughing finally subsided. "I'll be down in an hour so we can keep working on that report."Join us in our Absolute Beginner lesson for today as we learn a polite way of telling others to keep themselves and their infections out of your working space. There is a lot of simple but useful mandarin in this podcast. In addition to introducing a number of common adjectives you can use to express your fatigue and

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1:05

Popup Chinese — Advanced listening test: The Summer Job

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/09

When the Harvard Crimson called the job market depressed, it may as well have been describing its readership. Browsing through the classifieds, Susan was shocked to see so few opportunities for summer employment. Her uncle had been urging her to take a break from academia and "get her hands dirty" at the family business, and she had avoided the thought at first, but -- and then she noticed Michael leafing through the paper a few seats away. Hadn't he been the first in her cohort to land a good

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8:38

Popup Chinese — Intermediate: The Bank Heist

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/08

In today's podcast we teach you everything you need to know to make a sizable withdrawal from a Chinese bank.Navigate re-incarnated Popup Chinese archives, including the original customized word-to-word transcripts for this and every other lesson as PDF files:Reincarnated Popup Cantonese — Popup Cantonese — Popup CantoneseReincarnated Popup Chinese — Popup Chinese — Popup ChineseReincarnated Popup Chinese shows — Popup Chinese shows — Popup Chinese shows

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8:10

Popup Chinese — Intermediate: They Called Me Mad, the...

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/07

At Popup Chinese we are strong supporters of science. Which is why our Intermediate podcast for today teaches a turn of phrase we think you'll find particularly useful the next time you're writing an academic grant proposal, updating colleagues on your post-doc, or reanimating Tom Hanks in your secret basement lab.Navigate re-incarnated Popup Chinese archives, including the original customized word-to-word transcripts for this and every other lesson as PDF files:Reincarnated Popup Cantonese — Popup

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8:51

Popup Chinese — Intermediate: A Terrible Hunger

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/06

Revenge is a dish best served cold, and without any incriminating evidence linking you to the crime. That's why the heads of major criminal syndicates have to be a bit circumspect in making certain requests, and it's why we return to our mob series today with an update on the dealings of the Beijing demi-monde. In this episode, join us as our mob boss is seized with a terrible hunger which can be sated only through violence.Our dialogue today is on the easier side for an Intermediate lesson, but

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9:40

Popup Chinese — Elementary: My Brother is Good Looking

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/05

While you were cracking the spine on that Kangxi dictionary in grad school, your younger brother was hitting the gym. Twice a day even. So does it matter that he can't tell the difference between the first and fourth tone? Or straighten his arms? With his brawn and your brain the two of you are an unstoppable force for good. And you're getting filthy rich in the process too.That said, despite the fact that David spent a curious amount of time hunting down the photo accompanying this lesson, we're

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10:03

Popup Chinese — Elementary: The Upsell

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/04

Developed over 5000 years of history, the traditional Chinese approach to sales involves deploying armies of salespeople to flank the merchandise, and opening a single cashier three floors away to ring up sales. Stamped receipts issued by this critical employee can hypothetically be exchanged for the actual product, although we've never heard of anyone successfully completing the transaction.Perhaps times are changing though. Along with efforts to lure the few remaining foreign factories into

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15:41

Popup Chinese — Advanced: Watercooler Gossip: Dream...

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/03

We're taking a new approach to our Advanced series with this lesson, so let us know what you think. Instead of a Chinese-only discussion on a more general topic, we've got an in-depth bilingual discussion about what everyone in Beijing is talking about: the new television series of Dream of the Red Chamber. If you're not up on the latest gossip surrounding this production, join us as we complain about the bad casting, director scandals, atrocius haircuts and everything else your coworkers are

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10:42

Popup Chinese — Absolute Beginners: What sign are you?

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/02

Ever wonder what a Chinese chicken sounds like, or what to do when someone tells you they are one? In today's lesson Brendan, David and Echo take to the studio and talk about Chinese horoscopes. You may not believe in the Chinese zodiac, but you'll need to know how it works if you're ever going to navigate the animal barnyard that is the dating scene in China. If only because when you meet someone special here you can be sure they're going to be thinking about it.This podcast is part language lesson

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7:06

Popup Chinese — Absolute Beginners: Pinyin Practice -...

Popup Chinese ·

2026/08/01

Curious why the pinyin for some characters is written with an umlaut which vanishes in similar-sounding words? Is there really a difference in the way we should pronounce these sounds? The answer to these questions and more is revealed in our pinyin practice lesson for today, which will take you on a whirlwind tour through a maze of similar sounding words.For extra feedback, we've enabled our recording hotline for this lesson to give you an opportunity to get personal feedback on your pronunciation

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9:18

Popup Chinese — Absolute Beginners: Yes, I'm a Student

Popup Chinese ·

2026/07/31

We haven't come out with a lesson for absolute beginners in a while, partially because whenever we start teaching something simple Brendan segues into a rambling discourse on character etymology and before we know it we've produced another graduate seminar about regional dialects in the Song dynasty. So today we slowed him down with an intentionally simple and very straightforward dialogue. This one teaches how to ask basic questions and tell others a bit about yourself.In fact, those of you without

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7:39

Popup Chinese — Absolute Beginners: How about Korean...

Popup Chinese ·

2026/07/30

It happens to the best of us. Even if your home or office is strategically located in the heart of Sichuan street, surrounded by a hundred different Chinese restaurants with upwards of a hundred different dishes each, there will come a point when your stomach rebels and your heart starts pining for simpler fare. Or maybe you'd kill for Chinese food but the only restaurant that delivers is the Korean one down the street.Almost miraculously, this lesson is useful in either situation. If you're totally

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9:19

Popup Chinese — Absolute Beginners: Where does it hurt?

Popup Chinese ·

2026/07/29

This lesson takes place in a doctor's office, and while we hope you won't have too many encounters with the Chinese medical system, it is one of the many places the words and phrases we teach in this podcast will come in useful. So if you're new to learning the Chinese language, put on your earphones and get listening. By the time this podcast is over, you'll know enough mandarin to ask how others are doing and be expert at pointing and complaining whenever someone else returns the courtesy.navigate

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9:11

Popup Chinese — Absolute Beginners: You found what in...

Popup Chinese ·

2026/07/28

Johns Hopkins University recently published a study that followed ten thousand subjects over a ten year period, and closely monitored the eating habits of its participants. Among the results? The experiment showed conclusively that those who dispose of leftover Chinese take-out within the week have longer lifespans, whiter teeth and fuller hair. The remainder suffered from chronic headaches, extreme sensitivity to sunlight and a predisposition to Kenny G's "Going Home".Even in the absence of

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161 results

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