Learn Hardcore Chinese: wǒmen zài zhèlǐ xué zhōngwén.

English: We are here learning Chinese.
Chinese structure: 我们在这里学中文。
- 我们 – we
- 在 – at / in (location marker)
- 这里 – here
- 学 – study / learn
- 中文 – Chinese (language)

The main verb is 学, so you do not add 是.
Chinese doesn’t need a separate “be” verb to link the subject to the action the way English does. You just say:

Subject + (在 + place) + Verb + Object
我们在这里学中文。 – We (at here) study Chinese.

Why can’t I say 我们是在这里学中文?

You can say 我们是在这里学中文, but it has a different nuance.

我们在这里学中文。
Neutral statement: We study/are studying Chinese here.
我们是在这里学中文。
Adds emphasis/contrast to 在这里:
It is *here that we study Chinese (not somewhere else).*

Pattern: 是……的 is often used to emphasize or clarify certain information (time, place, manner, etc.):

我们是在这里学中文的。 – It’s here that we study Chinese.
(often used when correcting or explaining)

So:

For a simple, neutral sentence, use 我们在这里学中文。
Use 我们是在这里学中文（的）。 when you want focus/contrast on “here”.

Why is the word order 我们在这里学中文 and not 我们学中文在这里?

The most natural word order in Mandarin is:

Subject + 在 + Place + Verb + Object

So:

我们在这里学中文。
我们 (Subject) + 在这里 (Place) + 学 (Verb) + 中文 (Object)

Putting the place after the object (我们学中文在这里) is technically possible but feels unnatural or marked and is usually only used for special emphasis or in very specific contexts.

General rule to remember:

Time and place phrases usually come before the main verb:
- 我今天在学校学中文。 – I study Chinese at school today.
  Subject + Time + Place + Verb + Object

What exactly is 在 zài doing in this sentence?

Here, 在 is a location marker, similar to “at” or “in” in English.

Two common roles of 在:

As a location preposition:
- 我们在这里学中文。 – We study Chinese here.
- 他在家工作。 – He works at home.
As a “to be located” verb:
- 我们在这里。 – We are here.
- 书在桌子上。 – The book is on the table.

In your sentence, 在这里 functions like “at here / here”, giving the place of the action 学.

What’s the difference between 这里 (zhèlǐ) and 这儿 (zhèr)?

Both mean “here” and are interchangeable in most cases.

这里 zhèlǐ – more common in the south and in standard written Chinese.
这儿 zhèr – more common in northern speech (e.g. Beijing).

Examples:

我们在这里学中文。
我们在这儿学中文。

Both are fine and mean the same thing.
As a learner, you can pick one and be consistent. 这里 is safest for writing and for textbooks.

What is the nuance of 学 vs 学习 in 学中文?

学 (xué) and 学习 (xuéxí) both mean “to study / to learn”, and in many cases you can swap them.

In this sentence:

我们在这里学中文。
我们在这里学习中文。

Both are correct.

Nuances (not strict rules):

学
- Short, casual, very common in speech.
- Often used with specific subjects: 学中文, 学数学, 学开车 (learn to drive).
学习
- Slightly more formal or “bookish”.
- Can be used as a noun-like verb:
  - 我喜欢学习。 – I like studying.
  - 努力学习。 – study hard.

So 学中文 is perfectly natural in everyday speech.

What’s the difference between 中文, 汉语, and 普通话?

All are related to “Chinese,” but they have different focuses:

中文 (zhōngwén)
- Literally “Chinese language (as a whole)”
- Can refer to the Chinese language in general (spoken + written).
- Very common in learner contexts: 学中文 – learn Chinese.
汉语 (hànyǔ)
- Literally “the language of the Han people.”
- More technical/linguistic; often used in formal or academic contexts.
- Synonym in many cases: 学汉语 – learn Chinese.
普通话 (pǔtōnghuà)
- Literally “common speech.”
- Refers specifically to Standard Mandarin (the official national standard).

So your sentence:

我们在这里学中文。 – We learn Chinese here.
You could also hear:
我们在这里学汉语。 – very similar meaning.
If you want to be very specific:
我们在这里学普通话。 – We learn (Standard) Mandarin here.

Does 学 mean “to study” or “to learn”? Are both meanings included?

学 (xué) covers both English verbs “study” and “learn”, depending on context.

我在学校学中文。
Can be understood as either:
- I study Chinese at school.
- I learn Chinese at school.

Chinese doesn’t make a strong distinction between “study” and “learn” the way English does. The verb 学 just means “to gain knowledge/skill in X,” whether that’s through studying or learning.

So 我们在这里学中文 comfortably covers both ideas:
“We study Chinese here” / “We learn Chinese here.”

How do I say clearly “We are studying Chinese here right now” vs “We study Chinese here (in general)”?

Your original sentence is time-neutral.
Depending on context, 我们在这里学中文 can mean:

We study Chinese here (regularly / as a rule).
We are studying Chinese here (could be now, could be general).

To clearly show right now / currently, you often add 正在 or another time phrase:

我们现在在这里学中文。 – We are now studying Chinese here.
我们正在这里学中文。 – We are in the middle of studying Chinese here.

Pattern for progressive aspect:

Subject + 正在 + (在 + place) + Verb + Object
我们正在这里学中文。

For habitual/general:

我们平时在这里学中文。 – We usually/regularly study Chinese here.
我们每个星期在这里学中文。 – We study Chinese here every week.

Can I drop 我们 or 这里 in real conversation?

Yes, Mandarin often omits obvious information when it’s clear from context.

Dropping 我们 (we):
If it’s clear you’re talking about yourselves (e.g., you and classmates):
- 在这里学中文。 – (We) study Chinese here.
  Native speakers often omit the subject like this.
Dropping 这里 (here):
If your location is obvious:
- 我们在学中文。 – We are studying Chinese. (location not specified)
Dropping both, in a reply:
- Q: 你们在做什么？ – What are you (pl.) doing?
- A: 在这里学中文。 – (We’re) studying Chinese here.

Omission is natural, but as a beginner it’s fine (and sometimes safer) to keep everything explicit as in 我们在这里学中文。

Why doesn’t 中文 need a measure word? Why not say 一个中文?

中文 here is an uncountable noun, like “Chinese (as a language)” or “English” in English.

You usually don’t say:

one Chinese, two Englishes
Similarly, in Chinese you just say:
学中文 – study Chinese
说中文 – speak Chinese

You only use measure words when you’re counting specific things:

一种中文 – one kind of Chinese (variety/dialect)
一门语言 – one language
- 一门外语 – one foreign language

So for “learn Chinese (the language)”, just 学中文, no measure word.

How would I turn this into a yes–no question like “Do you (plural) study Chinese here?”?

There are a few simple ways.

Using 吗 (ma):

Start with the statement, add 吗 at the end, and adjust the subject if needed.

你们在这里学中文吗？
– Do you (plural) study Chinese here? / Are you studying Chinese here?

Pattern:

Subject + 在 + Place + Verb + Object + 吗？

Using A-not-A (verb-negation-verb):

你们在这里学不学中文？
Literally: You (plural) here study-not-study Chinese?
– Do you study Chinese here?

Both are common. 吗-questions are usually easier for learners at first.

How do I say “We study Chinese here, not Japanese”?

You can express contrast using 不 (bù) with the second part:

我们在这里学中文，不学日文。
– We study Chinese here, (we) don’t study Japanese.

Or make the contrast even clearer:

我们在这里学中文，不是在这里学日文。
– Here we study Chinese, not Japanese (it’s Chinese that we study here, not Japanese).

Key point:
Use 不 before the verb to negate it: 不学 – don’t study / don’t learn.

Any pronunciation tips for this sentence, especially tones?

Word by word:

我们 wǒmen – wǒ (3rd tone), men is neutral tone
- So it sounds like: WO (low-dipping) + men (light, short)
在 zài – 4th tone (falling): strong and sharp, like “zai!” going down.
这里 zhèlǐ
- 这 zhè – 4th tone (falling)
- 里 lǐ – 3rd tone (low / dipping)
  Together: zhè (fall) + lǐ (low/dip), no tone change between them.
学 xué – 2nd tone (rising), like asking “yeah?”
中文 zhōngwén
- 中 zhōng – 1st tone (high and steady)
- 文 wén – 2nd tone (rising)

Full tone sequence:

wǒ·men zài zhè·lǐ xué zhōng·wén
3 (＋neutral), 4, 4, 3, 2, 1, 2

Try to keep men very light, and make zài and zhè clearly falling tones.