Mandarin Chinese uses Pinyin to show pronunciation with Latin letters, and tones change meaning. This guide covers tones, initials, and finals with examples.
Tones
Mandarin has four main tones plus a neutral tone; each tone changes a syllable's meaning so it's important to practice them carefully. Tone marks in Pinyin guide you to pronounce each syllable with the correct pitch pattern.
| Tone | Hanzi | Pinyin | English | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (high) | 妈 | mā | mother | |
| 2 (rising) | 麻 | má | hemp | |
| 3 (fall-rise) | 马 | mǎ | horse | |
| 4 (fall) | 罵 | mà | scold | |
| Neutral | 吗 | ma | question particle |
When you say 'ma' in Mandarin as 'ma?', this 'ma' is neutral tone used to form a question.
Pinyin
Pinyin uses Latin letters to show pronunciation, and tone marks guide you in saying each syllable correctly. Learn Pinyin first to read aloud and look up words.
| Hanzi | Pinyin | Pinyin | English | Hint | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 八 | b | bā | eight | “b” in “bat” | |
| 爬 | p | pā | climb | aspirated “p” like “p” in “pat” | |
| 妈 | m | mā | mother | “m” in “mom” | |
| 发 | f | fā | send/emit | “f” in “fun” | |
| 打 | d | dā | hit/beat (or play) | “d” in “dog” |
Initials (Consonants)
Initials are consonant sounds that start a syllable. Some sound like English letters and others are different, so listen and imitate carefully.
| Initial | Hanzi | Pinyin | English | Hint | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| j | 鸡 | jī | chicken | “j” as in “jeep” but tongue behind lower teeth | |
| q | 七 | qī | seven | like “chee” but sharper | |
| x | 西 | xī | west | like “she” but tongue flat | |
| zh | 珍 | zhēn | precious | “j” in “judge” | |
| ch | 吃 | chī | eat | “ch” in “church” |
Finals (Vowels / Ending Sounds)
Finals are vowel or vowel-plus-consonant sounds that come after an initial. They determine the syllable's tone and melody. Practice clearly so each word sounds distinct.
| Final | Hanzi | Pinyin | English | Hint | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| a | 妈 | mā | mother | “a” as in “father” | |
| o | 波 | bō | wave | “o” as in “bore” | |
| e | 哥 | gē | older brother | “e” as in “her” | |
| i | 咪 | mī | meow (sound) | “ee” as in “see” | |
| u | 木 | mū | wood | “oo” as in “moon” | |
| ü | 绿 | lǜ | green | like German ü, lips rounded |
Neutral Tone
The neutral tone is light and quick without a strong pitch; it often appears in common particles and unstressed syllables. In Pinyin the neutral tone has no mark, and mastering it makes speech sound natural and fluent.
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 包子 | bāozi | bun | neutral tone on second syllable | |
| 什么 | shénme | what | neutral tone on second syllable | |
| 谢谢 | xièxie | thanks | neutral tone on second syllable | |
| 妈妈 | māma | mom | neutral tone on second syllable |
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 你们 | nǐmen | you (plural) | |
| 老师 | lǎoshī | teacher | |
| 桌子 | zhuōzi | table | |
| 朋友 | péngyou | friend | |
| 苹果 | píngguǒ | apple |
Summary
Practice listening and repeating with tone accuracy; use pinyin to guide your pronunciation and check your tones carefully.
Feel free to ask for more examples or exercises on any part of Pinyin and pronunciation.
- Tones: Mandarin has 4 main tones + neutral tone; tone changes meaning.
- Pinyin: Latin letters show pronunciation with initials (consonants), finals (vowels), and tone marks.
- Initials: Consonants that start a syllable (e.g., b, p, m, f; also j, q, x; zh, ch, sh).
- Finals: Vowels or vowel+consonant endings that carry tone (e.g., a, o, e, i, u, ü; compound finals like iao).
- Neutral Tone: Light, quick syllable without a tone mark; common in particles and unstressed syllables.
Initials
Initials are consonant sounds at the start of a syllable; they shape syllable identity. Some initials like q, x, and zh represent sounds that don't exist in English, so listen and imitate carefully.
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 八 | bā | eight | |
| 吐 | tǔ | spit | |
| 嫩 | nèn | tender | |
| 哥 | gē | older brother | |
| 快乐 | kuài lè | happy |
Finals
Finals are vowel or vowel-plus-consonant sounds that come after the initial; they determine the syllable's rhyme and tone. Finals can be simple vowels like a or compound ones like iao, and they carry the tone mark in Pinyin.
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 妈 | mā | mother | |
| 米 | mǐ | rice | |
| 猫 | māo | cat | |
| 毛 | máo | fur | |
| 灰 | huī | ash |
Last updated: Fri Oct 24, 2025