First and foremost, this is not a site for absolute beginners. If you are interested in learning Chinese but have not started the process, here's what you need to do: bookmark this page and hit the books. First, get your pinyins in order. Watch a couple videos on pinyin pronunciation. I won't link to any of them because there are a million out there (and they're all stupid as fuck). Alternatively, you can go through this site to get a handle on the different sounds in 普通话.
Could you not read those characters? Next thing you need to do is get a browser extension that does pop-up character definitions. I use Zhongwen for Chrome and can recommend it. No recommendations for Firefox users, but I know there are extensions out there. Safari and IE people... Just stop.
Use the built-in features in Zhongwen to start making your vocabulary list, or Anki, or paper flashcards, or a combination of all of them. Get a book and start burning through it like Kim fucking Peek. Learn how to write that shit because you don't want to be an illiterate 乡巴佬 (xiāngbalǎo, hick). Learning how to write the characters is essential because it helps with memorizing and differentiating similar characters.
Last but not least, make sure you take time out of your busy life to study every day.
That's it for my tips on how to begin learning Chinese. The format for how this website will offer phrases is simple:
English word/phrase - 汉字 (pīnyīn)
I may or may not include pictures, video, audio, or other resources that will help reinforce the material.
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