What can you actually say with your first 10 Chinese concepts?
More than ten translations. The point of an efficient beginner sequence is that each new concept should combine with earlier material and increase the number of useful sentences you can understand and produce.
Important clarification
Ten concept units do not mean ten total words.
Speak1000 uses a small support vocabulary—pronouns, everyday nouns, question particles, and location words—so the core concepts can be practised in real sentences. Some concept units also intentionally pair closely related verbs such as 吃 / 喝 and 能 / 会.
The measurement that matters
The useful question is not “How many cards did I finish?” It is “How much more Chinese can I now understand, retrieve, and recombine?”
Read the Concept Unlock MethodThe first ten concept units
A sequence designed for combination power
These are the first ten reusable speaking concepts in the current curriculum sequence. Open any card to see its meaning, combinations, and related concepts.
Cumulative sentence yield
Watch the network become more useful
The examples below are not a phrasebook to memorise. They demonstrate how the same small set of structures can be varied as new concepts enter the network.
Unlock 1
Identity and possession
是 + 有
The first concepts let you identify people and things, then talk about possession and existence.
我是学生。
wǒ shì xuésheng
I am a student.
你是老师吗？
nǐ shì lǎoshī ma?
Are you a teacher?
我有时间。
wǒ yǒu shíjiān
I have time.
这里有咖啡。
zhèlǐ yǒu kāfēi
There is coffee here.
Unlock 2
Wants and movement
要 + 去
Adding intention and movement immediately turns simple labels into practical plans and choices.
我要这个。
wǒ yào zhège
I want this.
你要不要？
nǐ yào bú yào?
Do you want it?
我要去北京。
wǒ yào qù Běijīng
I want to go to Beijing.
你有时间去吗？
nǐ yǒu shíjiān qù ma?
Do you have time to go?
Unlock 3
Everyday actions
吃 / 喝 + 做
A small action vocabulary gives the earlier concepts somewhere useful to go.
我们去吃饭。
wǒmen qù chīfàn
Let’s go eat.
我要喝水。
wǒ yào hē shuǐ
I want to drink water.
你在做什么？
nǐ zài zuò shénme?
What are you doing?
我不会做。
wǒ bú huì zuò
I do not know how to do it.
Unlock 4
Actions in progress
在 + 看 / 听
The network now supports descriptions of what is happening at this moment.
我在看书。
wǒ zài kàn shū
I am reading.
他在听中文课。
tā zài tīng Zhōngwén kè
He is listening to a Chinese lesson.
我在喝咖啡。
wǒ zài hē kāfēi
I am drinking coffee.
他要去看老师。
tā yào qù kàn lǎoshī
He wants to go see the teacher.
Unlock 5
Ability and communication
说 + 能 / 会
The tenth concept unit adds ability, learned skill, permission, and practical communication.
我会说中文。
wǒ huì shuō Zhōngwén
I can speak Chinese.
你能去吗？
nǐ néng qù ma?
Can you go?
你会说吗？
nǐ huì shuō ma?
Can you say it?
这里不能吃。
zhèlǐ bù néng chī
You cannot eat here.
Recognition
Can you understand the sentence when you hear or read it?
Retrieval
Can you produce it from the meaning or situation without seeing the answer?
Recombination
Can you change one element and create a new sentence that still makes sense?
Explore the network instead of another word list.
Use the interactive map to select a concept, see its strongest connections, and inspect the sentences those connections unlock.