31 short writing prompts for Mandarin Chinese (as written by ChatGPT)
A full month of writing prompts with target words provided!
I thought I’d send this out in case anybody else could find it useful.
ChatGPT is all the rage these days (though the newest version ChatGPT4 is already here) and so I thought I’d ask it some questions that would be relevant to my own language studies. It didn’t disappoint.
I’m not sure where this thing ripped these ideas off from, or if they’re just so generic that even a monkey could write them up, but I thought it was good enough for what my purpose is.
The idea is to use a specific set of words each day to complete a writing prompt much like one of the tasks in the HSK 5 writing section. However, the HSK 5 test only gives five words and asks you to write a short paragraph between 80 and 100 characters long whereas this list provides a thematic prompt and along with five words from the HSK 5 list.
And although my original intention was to write these prompts out by hand, I’ve found that it’s sometimes easier to write things out on computer because I’m right there and don’t need to find my notebook. Either way, spending 10-15 minutes a day to write out a prompt is a good way to practice up those grammar constructions and familiarity with actually choosing the correct characters from the choices given when using pinyin input.
Without further adieu, here is the list:
Describe your morning routine using the words 早晨 (zǎochén) - morning, 身体 (shēntǐ) - body, 洗漱 (xǐshù) - to wash up, 早餐 (zǎocān) - breakfast, 准备 (zhǔnbèi) - to prepare.
Write about a time when you felt confident and use the words 自信 (zìxìn) - confidence, 成功 (chénggōng) - success, 实现 (shíxiàn) - to realize, 能力 (nénglì) - ability, 勇气 (yǒngqì) - courage.
Write about your favorite music and use the words 音乐 (yīnyuè) - music, 节奏 (jiézòu) - rhythm, 歌词 (gēcí) - lyrics, 旋律 (xuánlǜ) - melody, 曲风 (qūfēng) - style.
Write about a place you have visited and use the words 景色 (jǐngsè) - scenery, 游览 (yóulǎn) - to tour, 古老 (gǔlǎo) - ancient, 历史 (lìshǐ) - history, 文化 (wénhuà) - culture.
Write about your favorite food and use the words 美食 (měishí) - delicious food, 口味 (kǒuwèi) - taste, 食材 (shícái) - ingredients, 烹饪 (pēngrèn) - cooking, 餐桌 (cānzhuō) - dining table.
Write about a goal you have and use the words 目标 (mùbiāo) - goal, 计划 (jìhuà) - plan, 执行 (zhíxíng) - to execute, 进步 (jìnbù) - progress, 成就 (chéngjiù) - achievement.
Write about your favorite hobby and use the words 爱好 (àihào) - hobby, 兴趣 (xìngqù) - interest, 技能 (jìnéng) - skill, 艺术 (yìshù) - art, 创作 (chuàngzuò) - creation.
Write about a time when you had to make a difficult decision and use the words 决定 (juédìng) - decision, 选择 (xuǎnzé) - to choose, 考虑 (kǎolǜ) - to consider, 犹豫 (yóuyù) - to hesitate, 后悔 (hòuhuǐ) - regret.
Write about a memorable conversation you had and use the words 对话 (duìhuà) - dialogue, 讨论 (tǎolùn) - to discuss, 观点 (guāndiǎn) - viewpoint, 沟通 (gōutōng) - communication, 理解 (lǐjiě) - understanding.
Write about your favorite season and use the words 季节 (jìjié) - season, 天气 (tiānqì) - weather, 温度 (wēndù) - temperature, 风景 (fēngjǐng) - scenery, 空气 (kōngqì) - air quality.
Write about a person you admire and use the words 钦佩 (qīnpèi) - to admire, 成就 (chéngjiù) - achievement, 贡献 (gòngxiàn) - contribution, 坚持 (jiānchí) - to persevere, 信念 (xìnniàn) - belief.
Write about a time when you overcame a challenge and use the words 挑战 (tiǎozhàn) - challenge, 克服 (kèfú) - to overcome, 困难 (kùnnan) - difficulty, 坚强 (jiānqiáng) - strong, 勇气 (yǒngqì) - courage.
Write about your dream job and use the words 梦想 (mèngxiǎng) - dream, 职业 (zhíyè) - profession, 工作 (gōngzuò) - work, 发展 (fāzhǎn) - development, 成长 (chéngzhǎng) - growth.
Write about a person who has influenced you and use the words 影响 (yǐngxiǎng) - influence, 印象 (yìnxiàng) - impression, 指导 (zhǐdǎo) - to guide, 感悟 (gǎnwù) - realization, 教育 (jiàoyù) - education.
Write about your favorite book or movie and use the words 读物 (dúwù) - reading material, 电影 (diànyǐng) - movie, 情节 (qíngjié) - plot, 主题 (zhǔtí) - theme, 角色 (juésè) - character.
Write about a time when you felt proud and use the words 自豪 (zìháo) - proud, 成就 (chéngjiù) - achievement, 功绩 (gōngjì) - accomplishment, 重要 (zhòngyào) - important, 贡献 (gòngxiàn) - contribution.
Write about your favorite travel destination and use the words 旅游 (lǚyóu) - travel, 目的地 (mùdìdì) - destination, 风俗 (fēngsú) - customs, 文化 (wénhuà) - culture, 体验 (tǐyàn) - experience.
Write about a time when you felt grateful and use the words 感恩 (gǎn'ēn) - gratitude, 感谢 (gǎnxiè) - to thank, 珍惜 (zhēnxī) - to cherish, 幸福 (xìngfú) - happiness, 家庭 (jiātíng)
Write about your favorite hobby and use the words 爱好 (àihào) - hobby, 技能 (jìnéng) - skill, 创意 (chuàngyì) - creativity, 放松 (fàngsōng) - relaxation, 热爱 (rè'ài) - passion.
Write about a time when you had to make a difficult decision and use the words 决定 (juédìng) - decision, 选择 (xuǎnzé) - choice, 抉择 (juézé) - to choose, 做出决策 (zuòchūjuécè) - to make a decision, 感到犹豫 (gǎndàoyóuyù) - to feel hesitant.
Write about a childhood memory and use the words 童年 (tóngnián) - childhood, 回忆 (huíyì) - memory, 玩具 (wánjù) - toy, 活泼 (huópō) - lively, 纯真 (chúnzhēn) - innocent.
Write about a current event and use the words 时事 (shíshì) - current events, 新闻 (xīnwén) - news, 社会 (shèhuì) - society, 政治 (zhèngzhì) - politics, 经济 (jīngjì) - economy.
Write about your favorite food and use the words 食物 (shíwù) - food, 烹饪 (pēngrèn) - cooking, 味道 (wèidào) - taste, 餐桌 (cānzhuō) - dining table, 健康 (jiànkāng) - health.
Write about a memorable trip and use the words 旅行 (lǚxíng) - trip, 经历 (jīnglì) - experience, 风景 (fēngjǐng) - scenery, 交流 (jiāoliú) - communication, 冒险 (màoxiǎn) - adventure.
Write about a person you miss and use the words 怀念 (huáiniàn) - to miss, 想念 (xiǎngniàn) - to long for, 熟悉 (shúxī) - familiar, 回忆 (huíyì) - memory, 分别 (fēnbié) - separation.
Write about a goal you have and use the words 目标 (mùbiāo) - goal, 计划 (jìhuà) - plan, 实现 (shíxiàn) - to achieve, 进步 (jìnbù) - progress, 成功 (chénggōng) - success.
Write about your daily routine and use the words 日常 (rìcháng) - daily, 生活 (shēnghuó) - life, 工作 (gōngzuò) - work, 休息 (xiūxi) - rest, 健康 (jiànkāng) - health.
Write about a time when you helped someone and use the words 帮助 (bāngzhù) - to help, 支持 (zhīchí) - to support, 关心 (guānxīn) - to care, 合作 (hézuò) - to cooperate, 爱心 (àixīn) - love and care.
Write about a memorable achievement and use the words 成就 (chéngjiù) - achievement, 进步 (jìnbù) - progress, 努力 (nǔlì) - effort, 挑战 (tiǎozhàn) - challenge, 感动 (gǎndòng) - moved.
Write about a famous person you admire and use the words 崇拜 (chóngbài) - to admire, 成功 (chénggōng) - success, 才华 (cáihuá) - talent, 勇气 (yǒngqì) - courage, 影响 (yǐngxiǎng) - influence.
Write about a time when you faced a difficult situation and use the words 困难 (kùnnán) - difficulty, 挑战 (tiǎozhàn) - challenge, 克服 (kèfú) - to overcome, 勇气 (yǒngqì) - courage, 坚持 (jiānchí) - persistence.
I hope that helps!
Let me know if there’s anything else I can help out with.
Steve