Pinyin (拼音) is the official romanisation of Mandarin. It uses Latin letters, but the sounds don't always match English. Most of the alphabet behaves; only about ten sounds need special attention.
The sounds English doesn't have
| Pinyin | How to say it (approximation) | Example |
|---|---|---|
| zh | "j" with the tongue curled back | 中 zhōng (middle) |
| ch | "ch" with the tongue curled back, with a puff of air | 吃 chī (eat) |
| sh | "sh" with the tongue curled back | 是 shì (to be) |
| r | between "r" and the "s" in "measure", no trill | 人 rén (person) |
| x | a soft "sh", tongue forward behind the lower teeth | 谢 xiè (thank) |
| q | a soft "ch", tongue forward, with a puff of air | 请 qǐng (please) |
| j | a soft "j", tongue forward | 家 jiā (home) |
| ü | say "ee" and round your lips as for "oo" | 女 nǚ (woman) |
| c | "ts" as in "cats" | 菜 cài (dish / vegetable) |
| -i after zh/ch/sh/r/z/c/s | not "ee" — a buzzed, held "er/uh" | 四 sì (four) |
All 21 initials: where the lips and tongue go
Mandarin has 21 initials (the consonant at the start of a syllable). They fall into seven groups by where you make them, from the lips to the back of the tongue; sounds in one group share a mouth position and differ only in air or voice. Tap a word to see the mouth move into position and hear it.
Press both lips together, then open them. The tongue stays relaxed.
Rest your upper front teeth lightly on your lower lip and let the air through.
Keep the tongue flat and put the tip against the back of your upper front teeth.
Touch the tip of your tongue to the gum ridge just behind your upper front teeth.
Curl the tip of your tongue up and back, just behind the gum ridge. The underside of the tip faces forward.
Rest the tip behind your lower teeth and push the middle of the tongue up against the roof of your mouth, lips spread as in a smile.
Keep the tip low and raise the back of your tongue to the soft part at the back of the roof of your mouth.
Side view, facing left. Dashed line: the tongue at rest. Dot: where it touches or comes closest. Tap a word to hear it.
y and w are not separate sounds: they are how pinyin spells i, u and ü at the start of a syllable (yī = i, wǔ = u, yú = ü).
The vowels: tongue height and lip shape
Mandarin has six simple vowels. What changes between them is how high the tongue sits, whether the front or the back of it rises, and whether the lips are rounded. Then come the buzzing -i after z/c/s and zh/ch/sh/r, er, and the two endings -n and -ng.
Open your mouth wide and keep the tongue low and flat.
Round your lips and raise the back of the tongue halfway.
Same tongue as o, but with the lips relaxed, not rounded.
Spread your lips as in a smile and raise the front of the tongue close to the roof of the mouth.
Round your lips tightly and raise the back of the tongue high.
Tongue as for i, lips rounded as for u: say "ee", then round your lips without moving the tongue.
The vowel just carries on the z / c / s: keep the tongue where it is and let your voice buzz.
Keep the tongue curled back as for zh and voice through it.
Say a relaxed "uh" and curl the tip of the tongue up toward the roof, without touching it.
End the syllable with the tip of the tongue on the gum ridge, as for n.
End with the back of the tongue raised to the soft palate, as in English "sing". The tip stays down.
Side view, facing left. Dashed line: the tongue at rest. Dot: the highest point of the tongue (for -n and -ng, where it closes). Purple lips: rounded.
-n and -ng change the meaning: 三 sān (three) ends with the tip up, 湯 tāng (soup) with the back up. Say them one after the other and feel where the tongue stops.
Note: ü is written as a plain "u" after j, q, x and y, because those initials never meet a normal "u". So 去 qù is pronounced "qü", not "qoo".
Four tones + the neutral tone
| Tone | Mark | Pitch movement | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ā | high and flat, like singing one note | 妈 mā (mother) |
| 2 | á | rising, like asking "huh?" | 麻 má (hemp / numb) |
| 3 | ǎ | dips then rises, low and a little longer | 马 mǎ (horse) |
| 4 | à | sharp fall, like a command: "Sit!" | 骂 mà (to scold) |
| neutral | a | short and light, follows the previous tone | 吗 ma (question particle) |
The sentence 妈妈骂马吗？Māma mà mǎ ma? ("Does mother scold the horse?") uses the syllable "ma" five times with different tones. It's not a joke — it's why tones have to be learned from day one.
Tone changes you must know (tone sandhi)
- Two third tones in a row: the first becomes a second tone. 你好 nǐ hǎo is said "ní hǎo".
- 不 bù becomes bú before a fourth tone: 不是 bú shì, 不要 bú yào.
- 一 yī becomes yí before a fourth tone (一个 yí ge) and yì before tones 1, 2 and 3 (一天 yì tiān).
How to practise properly
Minimal pairs: listen to two words that differ only in tone, guess which is which, then imitate. Five minutes a day for two weeks beats hours of reading tone theory. Record yourself; our ears often "hear" a tone we didn't actually produce.
Every sentence on Mixora AI has pinyin with tone marks, can be switched to zhuyin, and has native-speaker audio you can play word by word. Tap any character to hear it.
