{"id":181675,"date":"2019-12-30T10:14:19","date_gmt":"2019-12-30T15:14:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/chinese-tones\/"},"modified":"2025-01-17T00:50:20","modified_gmt":"2025-01-17T05:50:20","slug":"chinese-tones","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/chinese\/chinese-tones\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Master Chinese Tones: A Comprehensive Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

Chinese is a tonal language, which means that the tone or pitch you use when you say a word determines its meaning. I promise it’s simpler than you’d expect. We actually use tones in English all the time to indicate questions and emotions.<\/p>\n

In this post, we’ll learn all the Mandarin Chinese tones, pitch, tone pairs and more.<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc skip=4]<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

What Are Chinese Tones?<\/h2>\n

Every language has its own unique sound system. Linguists call the study of these systems phonology.<\/p>\n

Mandarin Chinese has its own sound system too, and tones are an essential part of it.<\/p>\n

In Chinese, the tone of a word is what gives it meaning.<\/strong> When you change the tone\u2014or accidentally use the wrong one\u2014you change the meaning of the word. Take, for example, these words:<\/p>\n

\u5988 (<\/em>m\u0101<\/em>)<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 mom<\/p>\n

\u9ebb (<\/em>m\u00e1<\/em>)<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 hemp or flax<\/p>\n

\u9a6c (<\/em>m\u01ce<\/em>)<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 horse<\/p>\n

\u9a82\u00a0(<\/em>m\u00e0<\/em>)<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 to scold or verbally abuse<\/p>\n

\u5417 (<\/em>ma<\/em>)<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 a question particle<\/p>\n

While each of these words looks as if they sound the same, they have different tones\u2014which give them different meanings.<\/p>\n

1. First tone (flat tone)<\/h3>\n

The first tone is made when your voice becomes higher and flatter. The pitch is raised and the syllable is pronounced with a drawn-out tone that doesn’t drop or rise.<\/p>\n

In pinyin, the first tone is written as a long line above the vowel or as the number 1 (for example, instead of m\u0101<\/em> you might occasionally see\u00a0ma1<\/em>). The numerical version isn’t near as common as the actual tone mark, so you likely won’t see it as often.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Chinese<\/th>Pinyin<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
\u559d <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>h\u0113<\/i><\/td>To drink<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u5929 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>ti\u0101n<\/i><\/td>Sky<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u9ed1 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>h\u0113i<\/i><\/td>Black<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u4e00 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>y\u012b<\/i><\/td>One<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u53d1 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>f\u0101<\/i><\/td>To send<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u5fc3 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>x\u012bn<\/i><\/td>Heart<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u74dc <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>gu\u0101<\/i><\/td>Melon<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u732b <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>m\u0101o<\/i><\/td>Cat<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u4e09 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>s\u0101n<\/i><\/td>Three<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u51fa <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>ch\u016b<\/i><\/td>To go out<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

2. Second tone (rising tone)<\/h3>\n

The second tone is made with a rising voice. The pitch starts out low and then becomes higher. In pinyin, it’s written as a rising dash above the vowel or the number 2 (i.e. mang2<\/em>):<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Chinese<\/th>Pinyin<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
\u5fd9 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>m\u00e1ng<\/i><\/td>Busy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u7403 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>qi\u00fa<\/i><\/td>Ball<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u9f99 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>l\u00f3ng<\/i><\/td>Dragon<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u5589 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>h\u00f3u<\/i><\/td>Throat<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u6765 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>l\u00e1i<\/i><\/td>To come<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u660e <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>m\u00edng<\/i><\/td>Bright<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u96be <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>n\u00e1n<\/i><\/td>Difficult, hard<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u9c7c <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>y\u00fa<\/i><\/td>Fish<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u65f6 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>sh\u00ed<\/i><\/td>Time<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u623f <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>f\u00e1ng<\/i><\/td>House<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

3. Third tone (dip tone)<\/h3>\n

The third tone is one of the hardest for Mandarin learners. The pitch falls lower before rising higher again.<\/p>\n

In pinyin, the third tone is written as a dip above the vowel or the number 3 (i.e.\u00a0wo3<\/em>):<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Chinese<\/th>Pinyin<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
\u6211 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>w\u01d2<\/i><\/td>I\/me<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u597d <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>h\u01ceo<\/i><\/td>Good<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u4f60 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>n\u01d0<\/i><\/td>You<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u5f88 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>h\u011bn<\/i><\/td>Very<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u70b9 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>di\u01cen<\/i><\/td>Point<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u59d0 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>ji\u011b<\/i><\/td>Elder sister<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u4e5f <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>y\u011b<\/i><\/td>Also<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u72d7 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>g\u01d2u<\/i><\/td>Dog<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u5c0f <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>xi\u01ceo<\/i><\/td>Small<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u53ef <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>k\u011b<\/i><\/td>Can<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

4. Fourth tone (falling tone)<\/h3>\n

To pronounce the fourth tone correctly, say the word with force, making your pitch fall. In pinyin, the fourth tone is written as a falling slant or dash above the vowel, or the number 4 (i.e. shi4<\/em>):<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Chinese<\/th>Pinyin<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
\u662f <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>sh\u00ec<\/i><\/td>To be<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u540e <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>h\u00f2u<\/i><\/td>Behind<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u4e0d <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>b\u00f9<\/i><\/td>No, not<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u70ed <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>r\u00e8<\/i><\/td>Hot<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u65e5 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>r\u00ec<\/i><\/td>Day<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u56db <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>s\u00ec<\/i><\/td>Four<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u7238 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>b\u00e0<\/i><\/td>Dad, father<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u90a3 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>n\u00e0<\/i><\/td>That<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u4e0b <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>xi\u00e0<\/i><\/td>Down<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u53bb <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>q\u00f9<\/i><\/td>To go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

5. Fifth tone (neutral tone)<\/h3>\n

Whether the fifth tone is actually considered a tone is up for debate. Instead of making your voice go up or down, this tone is simply neutral\u2014which means the word has no tone.<\/p>\n

Pinyin doesn’t mark the fifth tone because there’s nothing you have to change or emphasize, although you’ll sometimes see it represented by the number 5 (i.e. ma5<\/em>).<\/p>\n

For example, the previously mentioned question particle \u5417\u00a0turns statements into yes\/no questions and is pronounced with a neutral (or no) tone.<\/p>\n

Other neutral tone words include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Chinese<\/th>Pinyin<\/th>English<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
\u5427 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>ba<\/i><\/td>Suggestion particle (turns a statement into a suggestion)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u4e48 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>me<\/i><\/td>Interrogative suffix [eg. \u4ec0\u4e48 (sh\u00e9n me)<\/em> \u2014 what]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u513f <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>er<\/i><\/td>R sound<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u7684 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>de<\/i><\/td>Possessive particle<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u5462 <\/a>\n <\/b><\/td>ne<\/i><\/td>Particle for asking questions back to the original asker<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

Now you know all five tones. I recommend bookmarking this guide on how to practice Chinese tones so you can move on to it after finishing this one:<\/p>\n

How to Practice Chinese Tones: 11 Tips to Master Pronunciation<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n