How to pronounce
in Mandarin Chinese
yīFirst tone
Hear it in conversation
The kids are at one table. We
jiē接著lái來欣賞yī一duàn段師傅xīn辛kǔ苦畫miàn面
Now let's watch the technicians at work.
qí其zhōng中yī一wèi位péng朋you友de的huí回dá答
One friend's response
Select a word for its meaning.
See it in a sentence.
He has a son.
I have a daughter.
。
There are twelve months in a year.
Hear the difference
A syllable has a shape.
Tone marks show how pitch changes. Colors help you follow each syllable in the app.
ā →First toneHigh and level
á ↗Second toneRising
ǎ ↘↗Third toneLow, then rising in isolation
à ↘Fourth toneFalling
a ·Neutral toneShort and light
These are dictionary tones. In natural speech, tones can change with context. A third tone often stays low before another syllable.