Practice

Replies

Replies is a short exchange in Chinese with another learner. Every exchange has a scene: a given situation and a goal the two of you work towards. You do not have to answer right away — your partner studies when it suits them too.

What a scene is

A scene sets a situation and a goal: arrange a meeting, find something out, agree on something. It is not an open chat — the exchange has an ending, and once the goal is reached the scene closes.

Each scene comes with hints matched to your level, to help you get started if you are stuck. Using them is optional.

Who starts

Roles sort themselves out. Open a new scene and you go first. Answer someone’s waiting scene and you become the second participant.

That has a useful consequence: the queue never skews. Everyone either drains it by answering others or adds to it by opening their own.

One scene at a time

You cannot start a new exchange before finishing the current one. There is a real person on the other end, and abandoning them mid-scene is the worst thing you can do here.

What you need to start

You need a dictionary of at least a dozen words. The bar is low, and it protects your partner rather than you: an exchange falls apart when one side has nothing to answer with.

It is only checked when you enter a new scene. If you are already in an exchange, you will not have to learn more words in the middle of it.

What to do if…

I cannot start a new exchange

Either your previous scene is unfinished — complete it — or your dictionary is still too small. Either way Tomyo will say which it is.

I do not know what to write

Check the hints for the scene: they are matched to your level and give you phrases to lean on. A short answer beats a perfect one you never send.

The scene ended and I wanted to carry on

A scene closes once its goal is reached — that is by design. Open a new one: your partner will most likely be someone else, and that is fine.