EdX

Chinese Idioms: A Thousand Miles (edX)

Offered by MandarinX,
Chinese Idioms: A Thousand Miles (edX)

This course aims to teach Chinese idioms to Chinese language learners, or anyone interested in Chinese culture, while providing a historical background, fun facts, and engaging stories with cultural perspectives.

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see EdX's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

Idioms, which we call chengyu in Chinese, can be directly translated as “already made words” or “formed words.” They are an essential part of the Chinese language. Woven together over thousands of years and taken from ancient myths, fairy tales, philosophical musings, and poetry, Chinese idioms are a testament to the longevity and continuity of the Chinese language. The purpose of this course is to provide a lens for our audience to learn more about Chinese history and culture through these unique idioms.

What you'll learn
You will be able to learn:

  • Commonly used Chinese idioms with daily use and business applications
  • Basic strokes of how Chinese characters are formed
  • Additional vocabulary words used on a daily basis with a variety of different meanings
  • Sentence patterns for making simple conversations
Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

China Humanities: The Individual in Chinese Culture (edX) EdX
HarvardX,Harvard University

China Humanities: The Individual in Chinese Culture (edX)

Explore Chinese history and culture from the perspective of the individual through philosophical texts, literary works, and art. In China’s history, there has been a longstanding belief that being cultured and being moral are necessary for a person to participate in public life. We often think of China in political terms – and focus on the history of government – or in social terms – and study the role of the family in society. But this course looks at the individual and the striving for culture and morality.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Mandarin Chinese Level 1 (edX) EdX
MandarinX

Mandarin Chinese Level 1 (edX)

Mandarin Chinese is rapidly becoming one of the top languages to learn, especially for business. Learnbasic language skills for business scenarios in Mandarin-speaking countries. Chinese is, without a doubt, the most spoken language on the planet. Learning Chinese will help your company or organization break into the biggest market on the planet. Being able to properly and correctly introduce yourself in Chinese will help you open the door to a whole new world.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Translation in Practice (Coursera) Coursera
Nanjing University

Translation in Practice (Coursera)

This course offers you basic but valuable techniques used by a good translator in the translation between English and Chinese. We’ll discuss what is translation, what is good translation, and learn about how to produce good translations. All the examples used in this course are taken from the course instructor's own translations of various genres and topics of writing.

Nov 2nd 2026
5-12 Weeks
Health Concepts in Chinese Medicine (Coursera) Coursera
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology - HKUST

Health Concepts in Chinese Medicine (Coursera)

Chinese Medicine and Modern Medicine are two distinct medical systems, yet they both aim at the prevention and treatment of human diseases. With this in mind, we should understand the practice of Chinese Medicine in the context of Modern Medicine. In this course, we explore the basic theories underlying the practice of Chinese Medicine, compare and contrast the use of Chinese Medicine and Modern Medicine in Preventive Health, and discuss how to restore a healthy condition and understand the pharmacological basis of different types of Chinese tonifying herbs.

Oct 26th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Sino-Japanese Interactions Through Rare Books (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
Keio University

Sino-Japanese Interactions Through Rare Books (FutureLearn)

Learn about the role of books in the relationship between the cultures of Japan and China, with this free online course. Books have played a major role in the formation of Japan’s culture, particularly those brought from China. On this course we’ll examine how big an impact these books have had, as well as looking at how books and religion are connected in Japan and East Asia, and the history of publishing in Japan.

Self Paced
3 Weeks
Géopolitique de la Chine contemporaine (FUN) FUN
Institut Catholique de Paris

Géopolitique de la Chine contemporaine (FUN)

Dans bien des domaines, la Chine est déjà la première puissance économique du monde. Son développement mais aussi ses difficultés, en un mot son évolution même engage notre propre avenir. Le marché chinois transforme les circuits commerciaux et industriels, bouleverse les savoirs et les pratiques du monde. Il est donc important, sinon urgent, de connaître l’histoire de cet Etat-continent, la nature de son régime et de ses ambitions en matière de politique étrangère. Ce MOOC est le premier portant sur la géopolitique de la Chine. Il convient à tout public désireux de se former aux affaires chinoises et plus particulièrement aux personnes qui, dans leur domaine professionnel, seront amenées à travailler en rapport avec la Chine.

No sessions available
5-12 Weeks
An Introduction to Chinese Sign Language and Linguistics (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
Shanghai International Studies University - SISU

An Introduction to Chinese Sign Language and Linguistics (FutureLearn)

Get to grips with Chinese sign language (CSL), sign language linguistics and deaf culture. Learn the basics of Chinese sign language and sign language linguistics. This comprehensive four-week course from the Shanghai International Studies University (SISU) provides you with basic knowledge of Chinese sign language (CSL), sign language linguistics, as well as Chinese deaf culture and deaf education.

Self Paced
5-12 Weeks
Chinese Culture: Interaction (edX) EdX
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University,HKPolyUx

Chinese Culture: Interaction (edX)

This compact course introduces 5 interesting aspects of Chinese cultural exchange and interaction with other countries in history. They are (a) China and the West, (b) China and Central Asia (c) China and Vietnam, (d) Colonialism, Anti-Colonialism and Pan-Asianism, and (e) Chinese Food and Cuisine. This dynamic course forms part of the HKPolyUx series on Chinese culture.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Structuring Values in Modern China (Coursera) Coursera
The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Structuring Values in Modern China (Coursera)

This sequence of four courses will propose a multi-disciplinary approach to the study of Chinese cultural history conceived of as a succession of modes of rationality (philosophical, bureaucratic, and economic). The focus will be on the moments of paradigm shift from one mode of rationality to another. For each of these moments, cultural facts and artifacts—thought, literature, ritual—will be examined in relationship to changing social, political, and economic systems.

Nov 9th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Chinese Language in Culture: Level 2 (edX) EdX
MIT,MITx

Chinese Language in Culture: Level 2 (edX)

Learn both cultural competence and language proficiency for successful participation in Mandarin-speaking societies. This subject is the second of a series that forms an introduction to modern standard Chinese, commonly called Mandarin, the language with the largest number of native speakers in the world. Course objectives are to master Mandarin pronunciation, including the recognition and writing of Pinyin romanization, basic reading and writing skills, and to develop the ability to participate in simple, practical conversations on everyday topics.

No sessions available
5-12 Weeks