The four tones of Mandarin, the Pinyin romanization system, initials and finals, and your first 50 characters. Learn to hear, pronounce and read Chinese from day one.
0 / 16 lessons · 0%
The Four Tones of Mandarin
Mandarin has 4 tones + a neutral tone. The same syllable with different tones means completely different things.
mā (妈)
1st tone ¯ · MAH (high flat)
flat, high
mother
má (麻)
2nd tone ´ · MAH (rising)
rising
hemp/numb
mǎ (马)
3rd tone ˇ · MAH (dip-rise)
dip then rise
horse
mà (骂)
4th tone ` · MAH (falling)
sharp falling
to scold
ma (吗)
neutral tone · muh (light)
light, short
question particle
bā (八)
1st tone · BAH
eight
八个人 — eight people
shí (十)
2nd tone · SHIH
ten
十块钱 — ten yuan
wǒ (我)
3rd tone · WOH
I / me
我是学生 — I am a student
Tones are NOT optional — they change meaning completely. 买 (mǎi, 3rd tone) = buy, 卖 (mài, 4th tone) = sell. Practice with tone pairs every day!
Māma mà mǎ ma? 妈妈骂马吗？
Is mom scolding the horse?
Wǒ yǒu bā ge péngyǒu. 我有八个朋友。
I have eight friends.
Pinyin Initials & Finals
Pinyin is the romanization system for Chinese. It has 21 initials and 36 finals that combine to form all syllables.
b, p, m, f
· bah, pah, mah, fah
lip sounds
bā, pá, mā, fā
d, t, n, l
· dah, tah, nee, lai
tongue-tip sounds
dà, tā, nǐ, lái
zh, ch, sh, r
· johng, chih, shih, ren
retroflex (tongue curled)
zhōng, chī, shì, rén
j, q, x
· jee, chee, shee
palatal (tongue flat)
jǐ, qī, xǐ
z, c, s
· dzai, tsih, sih
dental sibilants
zài, cì, sì
a, o, e, i, u, ü
· dah, dwoh, duh, ee, woo, lyew
basic finals
大, 多, 的, 一, 五, 绿
The trickiest sounds for English speakers: zh, ch, sh, r (curl your tongue back) and j, q, x (flatten your tongue). The ü sound is like French 'u'.
Zhōngguó rén chī mǐfàn. 中国人吃米饭。
Chinese people eat rice.
Qǐng zuò. 请坐。
Please sit down.
First 30 Characters — Strokes & Radicals
Chinese characters are built from strokes and radicals. Learn the building blocks and your first essential characters.
一 yī
1st tone · EE
one
第一 — first
二 èr
4th tone · AR
two
二月 — February
三 sān
1st tone · SAHN
three
三个 — three (of sth)
人 rén
2nd tone · REN
person/people
中国人 — Chinese person
大 dà
4th tone · DAH
big/large
大学 — university
小 xiǎo
3rd tone · SHYOW
small/little
小孩 — child
中 zhōng
1st tone · JOHNG
middle/center
中国 — China
国 guó
2nd tone · GWOH
country/nation
美国 — America
学 xué
2nd tone · SHWEH
to study/learn
学生 — student
好 hǎo
3rd tone · HOW
good/well
你好 — hello
Characters are written in a specific stroke order: top to bottom, left to right, outside to inside. Radicals (部首) give clues about meaning: 氵= water, 木 = wood, 口 = mouth.
Zhōngguó shì yī ge dà guó. 中国是一个大国。
China is a big country.
Wǒ shì dàxué xuéshēng. 我是大学学生。
I am a university student.
Numbers, Dates & Measure Words
Numbers are the gateway to daily life: prices, dates, ages, phone numbers. Plus the essential concept of measure words (量词).
四 sì
4th tone · SIH
four
五 wǔ
3rd tone · WOO
five
六 liù
4th tone · LYOW
six
七 qī
1st tone · CHEE
seven
九 jiǔ
3rd tone · JYOW
nine
十 shí
2nd tone · SHIH
ten
个 ge
neutral · guh
general measure word
一个人 — one person
块 kuài
4th tone · KWAI
measure word for money
十块钱 — ten yuan
岁 suì
4th tone · SWAY
years old
二十岁 — 20 years old
号 hào
4th tone · HOW
date/number
三月五号 — March 5th
Chinese uses measure words (量词) between numbers and nouns. You can't say '三书' — you must say '三本书' (three BOOKS). 个 is the most common and can be used as a default.