iPhone Hacks for Chinese Learners

With the use of technology, the process of learning any language has become significantly more accessible than ever before! Here are some tips, tricks and hacks specifically for iPhone and Apple users to up your language game with just your Apple device and without downloading any apps. The tips provided will directly relate to the Chinese language but can also be applied to any other languages compatible with Apple.

Quick Links

• Translate Chinese Text to English
• Translate Message to Chinese
• Read Chinese Text Aloud
• Chinese Keyboard
• Cantonese Dictation
• Scan and Input Chinese Text
• Switch Between Traditional and Simplified Chinese Text
• Activate Siri

Translate Chinese Text

Have a document or menu that you cannot read? Here is how you can translate it with just your Apple device. You can use this for physical items in front of you or digital readings such as websites. Accuracy of translations may vary.

Highlight text > Translate

* Press the right arrow button until you see the translate button is displayed.

Translate message to Chinese

Looking to send a message to a relative in Chinese but don’t know how to read or write. Use this simple trick to quickly translate text in any of your messaging apps. I would use this for only simple phrases. Accuracy of translations may vary.

Type message > Highlight text > Translate > Replace with Translation

Read Chinese Text Aloud

If you can understand spoken Chinese but cannot read characters, use this tip to get your device to read the text. You will need to turn on this feature in the settings first. Then, you can set the device to read in Chinese and choose among various voice options to get your desired Chinese language. Below are the steps I used to get Cantonese.

Settings > Accessibility > Spoken Content > Voices > Chinese > 

Chinese (Hong Kong)

To use this feature, highlight any text (messages, documents, website, etc.) and click the right arrow button until you see the option for speak. Then just sit back and listen. If you need to adjust the reading speed, just head back to the settings. In the spoken context, you will see the option under speaking rate. Look for the turtle and rabbit and adjust to the speed you desire.

Chinese Keyboard

There are many options to write Chinese into your phone including a phonetic system, handwriting and more. Personally, I use phonetic systems for characters I know and then handwriting for words I do not know and need to look up. This is how I added a jyutping keyboard to my iPhone.

Settings > General > Keyboard > Keyboards > Add New Keyboard > Cantonese, Traditional > Phonetics (Jyutping)

To use the Chinese keyboard, hold onto the little world icon in the bottom left corner of your keyboard screen located at the bottom of your phone to see your language keyboard options. It does use Chinese characters to differentiate the different keyboards so here is a translation if you have multiple keyboards.

• 廣東話拼音 – Cantonese jyutping
• 廣東話手寫 – Cantonese handwriting
• 繁體拼音 – Traditional characters pinyin (Mandarin)
• 简体拼音 – Simplified characters pinyin (Mandarin)

Cantonese Dictation

Can you speak Chinese but cannot write it? Dictation is the easiest way to get your spoken words down into written words. First you will need to enable dictation and have a Chinese writing keyboard set up to use this (see steps above). This is how I turned on dictation for Cantonese but there are options for Mandarin – Taiwan and China mainland, as well as Shanghainese.

To use the dictation feature, select the correct language in your keyboard. Select the microphone button located at the bottom right of the keyboard/screen. Say your message and the device will record what it hears.

• If you select English and speak Chinese, it will not type Chinese. Make sure the keyboard is on the right setting.
• If you speak incorrectly, it will also record the wrong words. Occasionally it will be able to self correct and figure out what you’re trying to say. This method is good if you can read and can confirm what is written is what you wanted.
• If you cannot read, there is also the option to send audio messages within the message app and many other apps such as WhatsApp and WeChat.

Scan and Input Chinese Text

Have a word in front of you and need it on your phone, just use the camera feature to scan the text without having to use the Chinese keyboard function. It used to be much easier to get this feature. Apple has added the “Autofill” button as an additional step before you see the “Scan Text” button.

Tap where to input text > Autofill > Scan Text > Camera – Position text on screen > Insert

Switch Between Traditional and Simplified Chinese Text

Want a quick way to translate your text between simplified and traditional Chinese? Use the 简 ⇔ 繁 button to quickly change it. This only works with messages or notes that you are writing. You cannot use it on messages you are receiving, documents or websites. It does change most of the characters correctly. Occasionally it will miss a character so double check it for errors.

Activate Siri in Chinese

Change the language of Siri without changing the language of your phone. This is great speaking and listening practice without the sacrifice of losing the ability to read the default content on your phone. There are 4 Chinese language available: Cantonese (Hong Kong or China) and Mandarin (Taiwan or China).

Settings > Siri & Search > Press Side Button for Siri > Enable Siri > Choose Chinese Language

With the advancement of technology, I can see these features improving over time. Learning Chinese and communication has really become more accessible for families overseas. Even my kids are able to use these features to help themselves with their Chinese learning. Was there any trick that I missed? Let me know in the comments and I will update this post.

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