Boxi Learn › Chinese › Stage 1 · Observe and Say
One character, two sounds: let the sentence decide
CN-4 Reading needs evidenceCN-5 Sound and rhythmX-1 Guess, then check
What many people think
Each character has only one sound; once you know it, you can read it everywhere.
The idea
Many characters have more than one reading, and each reading goes with its own meaning: 长 is cháng in 长江 (long) but zhǎng in 长大 (grow); the words around it tell you which.
Explain it
A friend reads 还 as hái everywhere. Use 还在 and 还给 to show them why that's wrong, and say which word told you each time.
Try at home
Play 'two-sound tag' with someone: one person says a character from this page, the other makes one word for each reading (长: 长短, 长大). One point per correct reading, then swap.