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Chapters, updates and scrolling

Day 1 of 15~12 minHow online manhua are published and read
Pinyin help
Tone colours
漫画 · 条漫 · 更新 · 连载

Most new manhua are published online, a chapter at a time, as a long vertical scroll made for a phone. The words around them are about chapters, updates and waiting for the next one, and you will see them on every page of every reading app.

What you are reading

The words for the thing itself.

漫画
mànhuà
comics, manhua
The same characters as the Japanese manga, read the Chinese way.
条漫
tiáomàn
a vertical-scroll comic
Strip comic: the long-scroll format made for phones.
第一话
dì yī huà
chapter one
Chapters are counted in 话 huà or 章 zhāng.
更新
gēngxīn
an update, a new chapter
今天更新了吗？ is it out today? Also used for phone updates.
Why it works

Online manhua are serial, so the vocabulary is about time: when the next chapter comes, whether it is still coming, whether it has finished. That is different from printed comics, which are counted in books.

Around the chapter

What readers say about a series.

作者
zuòzhě
the author
The one being asked for updates.
连载
liánzǎi
serialised, ongoing
连载中 means still coming out; 完结 wánjié means finished.
催更
cuīgēng
to hurry the author for updates
Readers 催更 in the comments: please post the next one!
追漫
zhuī màn
to follow a comic as it comes out
追 is to chase: 追剧 is to follow a drama the same way.
Why it works

追 and 催 are two of the most useful verbs in this course. Chasing a story and hurrying its author are what reading online feels like, and both words work for dramas and novels too.

Print words, phone words

How reading a comic changed with the format.

A comic, a chapter
In print
一本漫画
yì běn mànhuà
On a phone
一话
yí huà
Books are counted with 本, online chapters with 话.
Reading it
In print
看漫画
kàn mànhuà
On a phone
刷漫画
shuā mànhuà
刷, brushing through, is how people describe reading on a phone.
It's finished
In print
出完了
chū wán le
On a phone
完结了
wánjié le
完结 is the tag on a finished series.
Why it works

Both columns are correct Chinese. The right one depends on how the comic is published, and for new manhua that is nearly always online.

Left to right, top to bottom

Japanese manga read right to left. Chinese manhua read left to right, and the vertical-scroll kind simply read downwards. If you have read manga, there is nothing to reverse here.

Carry over, from earlier days
再见
zàijiàn
goodbye
今天
jīntiān
today
我喜欢
wǒ xǐhuan
I like

8 questions. Get 5 right to finish the day.

  1. 条漫 is…

    • a comic shop
    • a vertical-scroll comic
    • a comic strip in a newspaper
    • a cartoon film
    Show the answer

    a vertical-scroll comic Strip comic, made for phones.

  2. 更新 means…

    • an update, a new chapter
    • the final chapter
    • a new author
    • a reprint
    Show the answer

    an update, a new chapter Also used for phone updates.

  3. 连载 means…

    • cancelled
    • on sale
    • serialised, still coming out
    • finished
    Show the answer

    serialised, still coming out 连载, serialised.

  4. Type the pinyin for 漫画.

    Show the answer

    mànhuà Both fourth tone.

  5. 催更 is…

    • reading fast
    • buying a chapter
    • rating a chapter
    • hurrying the author for updates
    Show the answer

    hurrying the author for updates 催, to urge.

  6. 追漫 means…

    • following a comic as it comes out
    • drawing a comic
    • selling comics
    • chasing a character
    Show the answer

    following a comic as it comes out 追剧 is the drama version.

  7. Chinese manhua read…

    • left to right, or top to bottom
    • bottom to top
    • in a circle
    • right to left
    Show the answer

    left to right, or top to bottom Unlike Japanese manga.

  8. Type the Chinese or pinyin for today.

    Show the answer

    jīntiān Both first tone.

More from this course

See all 15 days of Chinese for manhua