Chinese tones practice: hear them, say them, tell them apart

First tone: high and level (˥ 55)

Pitch your voice a little higher than normal and hold it perfectly flat, like singing one long note or a doctor's “aaah”. Don't let it fall at the end, as English words do at the end of a sentence.

Written: ā ē ī ō ū ǖ (a flat line over the vowel)

• 妈 (mā)mother
• 飞 (fēi)to fly
• 书 (shū)book
• 喝 (hē)to drink
• 天 (tiān)sky, day

Second tone: rising (˧˥ 35)

Rise from the middle of your voice to the top, as in a surprised English “What?” or “Yes?”. Start in the middle, not low, and rise quickly and evenly.

Written: á é í ó ú ǘ (a mark rising to the right)

• 麻 (má)hemp; numb
• 来 (lái)to come
• 茶 (chá)tea
• 人 (rén)person
• 学 (xué)to study

Third tone: low (dipping) (˨˩˦ 214)

Think low, not dipping: drop your voice to the bottom of your range and stay there, a bit creaky. Only a word said alone or at the end of a phrase rises again at the end (2-1-4). Before another syllable it stays low; before another third tone it becomes a second tone.

Written: ǎ ě ǐ ǒ ǔ ǚ (a v-shaped mark)

• 马 (mǎ)horse
• 我 (wǒ)I, me
• 好 (hǎo)good
• 水 (shuǐ)water
• 买 (mǎi)to buy

Fourth tone: falling (˥˩ 51)

Start high and drop sharply to the bottom, like a firm “No!” or stamping your foot. It's short and decisive; English speakers often start it too low, so it sounds weak.

Written: à è ì ò ù ǜ (a mark falling to the right)

• 骂 (mà)to scold
• 是 (shì)to be
• 去 (qù)to go
• 大 (dà)big
• 谢 (xiè)to thank

Neutral tone: light and short (short, light)

Say the syllable quickly and lightly, with no effort of its own; its pitch just follows from the syllable before (a little lower after tones 1, 2 and 4, a little higher after tone 3). Particles like 吗, 的, 了 and the second half of doubled words are neutral.

Written: no mark: ma, de, le, ne, the second syllable of 妈妈, 谢谢

• 吗 (ma)question particle
• 妈妈 (māma)mum
• 谢谢 (xièxie)thank you
• 朋友 (péngyou)friend
• 我的 (wǒ de)my, mine

First tone (high, level) vs fourth tone (falling)

A level note and a falling one are easy to confuse at first, especially when the high tone isn't held high. Mixing them turns soup into “scalding hot” and a book into a tree.

Second tone (rising) vs third tone (low)

The pair English speakers mix up most. Both may rise at the end, so listen to the start: the second tone starts in the middle and climbs; the third goes down low first and mostly stays there.

Third tone (low) vs fourth tone (falling)

Both end low, but the fourth tone starts high and falls fast, while the third stays low. Get it wrong and you sell instead of buying, or say “good” (hǎo) when you mean a date (hào).

First tone (high, level) vs second tone (rising)

Both end high, so the difference is the start: the first tone is already high and flat, the second climbs to get there. Soup or sugar depends on it.

Two third tones in a row

When two third tones meet, the first one is said as a second tone. Pinyin still writes both as third tones (the dictionary form), so you make the change yourself as you read. Before any other tone, a third tone stays low and doesn't rise.

• 你好 (nǐ hǎo)said ní hǎo: hello
• 很好 (hěn hǎo)said hén hǎo: very good
• 可以 (kěyǐ)said kéyǐ: can, may
• 水果 (shuǐguǒ)said shuíguǒ: fruit
• 老师 (lǎoshī)stays low before tone 1: teacher

不 (bù) becomes bú before a fourth tone

不 is bù, but before a fourth tone it becomes bú. Most textbooks, and this course, write the changed tone. Between two words, as in 对不起 or 好不好, it is usually neutral.

• 不是 (bú shì)bú before tone 4: isn't, not
• 不去 (bú qù)bú before tone 4: not going
• 不好 (bù hǎo)stays bù before tone 3: not good
• 不忙 (bù máng)stays bù before tone 2: not busy
• 对不起 (duìbuqǐ)neutral in the middle: sorry

一 (yī) becomes yí or yì before another syllable

一 is yī on its own, when counting and in numbers like 十一 or 第一. Before a fourth tone (and 个 gè) it becomes yí; before tones 1, 2 and 3 it becomes yì. This course writes the changed tone.

• 一 (yī)alone or counting: one
• 一个 (yí gè)yí before tone 4: one (of something)
• 一天 (yì tiān)yì before tone 1: one day
• 一年 (yì nián)yì before tone 2: one year
• 一起 (yìqǐ)yì before tone 3: together

How many tones does Mandarin have?

Four, plus a neutral tone: high and level (mā), rising (má), low (mǎ) and falling (mà), and a short, light neutral tone (ma). The tone is part of the word, so changing it changes the meaning.

Which tones do English speakers mix up most?

The second (rising) and third (low) tones. Both can rise at the end, so listen to the start: the second starts in the middle and climbs; the third goes down low first and mostly stays there.

Can I practise tones with my own voice?

Yes. In the app, read a word or sentence aloud and speech recognition shows what it heard, compared character by character; when it hears a different character with the same sound, that often points to the tone. The speaker buttons on this page use your device's own Chinese voice.

Do I need to know the tone changes?

Yes, three of them: two third tones in a row (你好 is said ní hǎo), 不 before a fourth tone, and 一 before other syllables. Pinyin writes the dictionary tones for the first, so you make that change yourself as you read.