Pinyin: letters that surprise you
Pinyin letters that surprise English speakers: q, x, j, zh, ch, sh, r, z, c, ü and the -i of zhi/shi/si
Part of the free A0 Chinese course (about HSK 1–2). Examples are in Simplified characters with pinyin; press the speaker to hear one with your device's Chinese voice.
Pinyin is the official way to write Mandarin sounds with Latin letters. It was designed for Chinese, not for English, so some letters stand for sounds you wouldn't guess. Most letters (m, n, f, l, s, h…) are close to English. This lesson covers the ones that trip English speakers up. The tone marks are in The four tones.
b and p, d and t, g and k: a puff of air
In pinyin, p, t, k are said with a strong puff of air (hold your hand in front of your mouth: you should feel it). b, d, g have no puff: they sound close to the p in spin, the t in stop, the k in skin.
| Pinyin | Sounds like | Example |
|---|---|---|
| b | p in spin (no puff) | 爸爸 bàba (dad) |
| p | p in pin (strong puff) | 怕 pà (to fear) |
| d | t in stop | 大 dà (big) |
| t | t in top (strong puff) | 他 tā (he) |
j, q, x: tongue flat, lips spread
Put the tip of your tongue behind your lower teeth and smile slightly.
| Pinyin | Sounds like | Example |
|---|---|---|
| j | j in jeep, softer | 叫 jiào (to be called) |
| q | ch in cheese | 去 qù (to go) |
| x | sh in she, with a smile | 谢谢 xièxie (thank you) |
The letter q never sounds like the English qu in queen, and x never sounds like the x in box.
- 我去学校。(Wǒ qù xuéxiào.)I'm going to school.
- 我叫王小雨。(Wǒ jiào Wáng Xiǎoyǔ.)My name is Wang Xiaoyu.
zh, ch, sh, r: tongue curled back
Curl the tip of your tongue back towards the roof of your mouth. zh is like the j in judge, ch like the ch in church (with a puff), sh like the sh in shoe, all said further back. r is somewhere between the r in run and the s in pleasure.
- 她是中国人。(Tā shì Zhōngguórén.)She is Chinese.
- 我吃早饭。(Wǒ chī zǎofàn.)I'm having breakfast.
- 今天是星期日。(Jīntiān shì xīngqīrì.)Today is Sunday.
z and c
| Pinyin | Sounds like | Example |
|---|---|---|
| z | ds in beds | 早 zǎo (early) |
| c | ts in cats (with a puff) | 菜 cài (dish) |
The i in zhi, chi, shi, ri, zi, ci, si
After these seven sounds, i is not "ee". It is a buzzy continuation of the consonant: keep your tongue where it was and just let your voice sound. Shì (是) is not "shee", and sì (四, four) is not "see".
- 四是四，十是十。(Sì shì sì, shí shì shí.)Four is four, ten is ten.
ü: "ee" with rounded lips
Say "ee", then round your lips as if to whistle, without moving your tongue. That is ü.
- After n and l, the dots are written, because nu and nü are different syllables: 女 nǚ (woman), 路 lù (road), 绿 lǜ (green).
- After j, q, x and y, pinyin drops the dots, because only ü can follow them anyway: 去 qù, 学 xué, 雨 yǔ all have the ü sound.
- 我有一个女儿。(Wǒ yǒu yí gè nǚ'ér.)I have a daughter.
A few vowels
| Pinyin | Sounds like | Example |
|---|---|---|
| e | u in fun, said further back | 喝 hē (to drink) |
| ian | yen | 天 tiān (day; sky) |
| ui | way | 对 duì (right) |
| iu | yo (as in yoga) | 六 liù (six) |
| ong | ung in lung, with rounder lips | 中 zhōng (middle) |
- 我喝茶。(Wǒ hē chá.)I drink tea.
The apostrophe in nǚ'ér just shows where one syllable ends and the next begins.
Common mistakes
"kween"for qù: pinyin q is like the ch in cheese."ksee"for xī: pinyin x is like sh with a smile."shee"for shì: after zh, ch, sh, r, z, c, s the i is a buzz, not "ee".- Saying 去 qù with an "oo": after j, q, x and y, the u is really ü.
- Saying c as in cat: pinyin c is the ts of cats.
- Saying b and p the same: only p has the puff of air.
Practice
- The pinyin q, as in 去 (qù, to go), sounds closest to…Options: the ch in “cheese” · the k in “queen” · the kw in “quick”
Show the answer
the ch in “cheese” — Pinyin q is a ch-like sound, with the tongue flat and the lips spread.
- The pinyin x, as in 谢谢 (xièxie), sounds closest to…Options: the sh in “she”, said with a smile · the ks in “box” · the z in “zoo”
Show the answer
the sh in “she”, said with a smile — Pinyin x is a soft sh with the lips spread.
- The pinyin c, as in 菜 (cài, dish), sounds like…Options: the ts in “cats” · the c in “cat” · the s in “sit”
Show the answer
the ts in “cats”
- The pinyin z, as in 早 (zǎo, early), sounds like…Options: the ds in “beds” · the z in “zoo” · the ch in “church”
Show the answer
the ds in “beds”