{"version":"1.0","type":"rich","provider_name":"Acast","provider_url":"https://acast.com","height":250,"width":700,"html":"<iframe src=\"https://embed.acast.com/$/671683b6c054f53907d2cb8f/697caf5a65c54ec919944984?\" frameBorder=\"0\" width=\"700\" height=\"250\"></iframe>","title":"Why “Ask” Is Wrong in Mandarin | Mandarin & English Podcast | Mailbag Episode","thumbnail_width":200,"thumbnail_height":200,"thumbnail_url":"https://open-images.acast.com/shows/671683b6c054f53907d2cb8f/1769779010874-cc03db0a-c091-4a5b-888c-8f0d048ad43c.jpeg?height=200","description":"<p>This is a mailbag episode of the Mandarin Monkey Podcast.</p><p><br></p><p>We answer listener questions about a deceptively common Mandarin mistake:</p><p>why you can’t use “ask” the way you do in English.</p><p><br></p><p>Ula explains why 問 is for asking questions, but doesn’t work when you’re asking someone to do you a favour, and why 請 is often the natural choice, even though it doesn’t translate cleanly into English.</p><p><br></p><p>We also respond to listener emails about:</p><p><br></p><ul><li>learning Mandarin without a clear end goal</li><li>why grammar turns people off languages</li><li>patience, time, and long-term progress</li><li>how hangouts and lessons help people stick with it</li></ul><p><br></p><p>Ula speaks Mandarin pretty much throughout.</p><p>Tom speaks English pretty much throughout.</p><p><br></p><p>🎧 Lessons, hangouts, and more:</p><p>mandarinmonkey.com</p>","author_name":"Mandarin Monkey"}