In the fall of 2022, my husband got a chance to spend three years in Nanjing teaching international law. When we got to China, I began to study Chinese. It was really hard for me to speak putonghua.

For me, it wasn’t the grammar. “I want to buy this book” is pretty straightforward: “我想买这本书”. And I could memorize lots of Chinese characters (hanzi). However, many words sound alike but mean something different. Take the sound “jiàn” for example, it always leaves me guessing-the warship (舰) or the arrow (箭), to meet (见) or to build (建)?

Then, somewhere along the way, I started talking to people around me in Chinese. I tried to communicate with the women in the markets about how to cook vegetables. Sometimes I talked to taxi drivers about the songs on the radio. Gradually I could listen to songs and understand the lyrics without looking them up. I finally reached the point where I could enjoy living in China without using a dictionary.

Now, as our year is up and we pack up to leave, I'm finding my Chinese has improved. I search Baidu maps in Chinese, keep my mobile phone Contacts in Chinese, and send WeChat messages to Chinese friends in Chinese. But mostly, I don’t worry about my performance anymore and enjoy every experience to speak Chinese. Every language is different. For me, finally, I’ve learned that the key to learning Chinese is to enjoy living in China.

1.1. When did the writer start to learn Chinese?

A In 2022.

B In 2023.

C In 2024.

D

解析：选A。细节理解题，题干问作者何时开始学中文。根据原文第一段 “In the fall of 2022... When we got to China, I began to study Chinese”，明确可知作者 2022 年开始学中文。A 选项符合原文，B、C 选项时间与原文不符。故选 A。

2.2. Why does the writer take the sound “jiàn” for example?

A To compare different meanings of the same word.

B To encourage foreigners to memorize Chinese characters.

C To show many words sound alike but have different meanings.

D

解析：选C。细节理解题，题干问作者以 “jiàn” 为例的原因。原文第二段明确提到 “many words sound alike but mean something different. Take the sound ‘jiàn’ for example”，举例是为了佐证前文 “同音异义” 这一观点。A 选项 “比较同一单词的不同含义” 表述错误（并非同一单词）；B 选项 “鼓励外国人记汉字” 与举例目的无关；C 选项 “说明很多词发音相同但意思不同” 与原文逻辑一致。故选 C。

3.3. What can we learn from Paragraph 3?

A No rules, no order.

B Practice makes perfect.

C The written word remains.

D

解析：选B。推理判断题，题干问从第三段能学到什么道理。第三段讲述作者主动用中文与他人交流（菜市场阿姨、出租车司机），逐渐从交流中提升中文能力（听懂中文歌、无需字典生活），核心是 “通过练习取得进步”。A 选项 “没有规矩不成方圆”、C 选项 “文字永存” 均与段落内容无关；B 选项 “熟能生巧” 符合段落传达的道理。故选 B。

4.4.What is the secret to Chinese learning for the writer?

A Enjoying living in China.

B Using mobile phones more.

C Studying the grammar hard.

D

解析：选A。细节理解题，题干问作者学习中文的秘诀。原文最后一段明确总结 “I’ve learned that the key to learning Chinese is to enjoy living in China”，“key” 与题干 “secret” 同义。A 选项与原文一致；B 选项 “多使用手机” 是中文进步后的表现，非秘诀；C 选项 “努力学习语法” 与原文第一段 “it wasn’t the grammar” 相悖。故选 A。