How to pronounce
in Mandarin Chinese
zuòFourth tonewèiFourth tone
Hear it in conversation
qián前pái排de的liǎng两gè个zuò座wèi位
The two seats in the front row
tū突rán然,tā她de的shàng上司zǒu走dào到tā她de的zuò座wèi位páng旁,
Suddenly, her boss walks up to her desk and
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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.