How to Convert English to Chinese Writing

By C. Taylor

Several online resources offer free translation between English and Chinese words.
i chinese language image by peter Hires Images from <a href='http://www.fotolia.com'>Fotolia.com</a>

The Chinese written language uses a series of characters, called hanzi, which were originally used to visually represent animals, people, objects and activities. Today, the objects these characters represent may be difficult to decipher, since the Chinese writing language has become increasingly stylized. Unlike English words, these characters offer no hint as to pronunciation, so words are frequently presented with the hanzi, as well as a phonetic pronunciation, called Pinyin.

Step 1

Go to Mandarin Tools and try its Chinese-English dictionary (see Resources). You can enter an English word and select "English" in the drop-down menu. When you click "Look It Up!," you will be offered a variety of translations, along with the full English definition, Pinyin pronunciation and links to hear the proper pronunciation.

Step 2

Check out Chinese Tools' Chinese English Dictionary (see Resources). On this site, you can enter an English word and just click "Search." You will be given a remarkably comprehensive range of definitions, complete with the Chinese written characters and Pinyin.

Step 3

Try out the MDBG Translation service (see Resources). You can enter a word or block of text in box, and click "English => Chinese" to translate it into Chinese characters. The entire phrase will be translated as a sentence and also broken down into individual components.

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