Chinese Tones: The Four Tones and the Neutral Tone

What a tone is

Mandarin is a tonal language: every syllable is said with a pitch pattern, and that pattern is part of the word. The syllable ma said high and level means "mother"; said falling, it means "to scold". English uses pitch too, but for mood (a rising "yes?"). Mandarin uses it to tell words apart.

A Mandarin syllable has three parts: an initial consonant, a final (the vowel part, sometimes ending in n or ng) and a tone. Pinyin, the official romanization used in mainland China, writes all three: m + a + a tone mark gives mā, má, mǎ or mà.

Hearing the shape of each tone

Think of your comfortable speaking range as five steps. The first tone sits steadily near the top, as if you were holding a note. The second tone climbs, like the end of a surprised English "what?". The fourth tone drops fast, like a firm "No!". The third tone lives at the bottom of your range.

In real speech the third tone rarely does its full dip and rise. Before another syllable it usually stays low and flat, the so-called half third tone. Aim for low rather than for the dip, and your third tones will sound natural.

• 八

  bā

  eight

  First tone: hold it high.

• 茶

  chá

  tea

  Second tone: rise.

• 水

  shuǐ

  water

  Third tone: go low.

• 爸

  bà

  dad

  Fourth tone: fall.

How pinyin marks tones

The tone mark sits on the main vowel of the syllable. Three rules place it every time:

1. If the syllable has a or e, the mark goes there: hǎo, xiè.
2. In ou, it goes on the o: dōu, zǒu.
3. Otherwise it goes on the last vowel: duì, liù.

• 好

  hǎo

  good

• 谢谢

  xièxie

  thank you

  The second 谢 is neutral: no mark.

• 对

  duì

  right, correct

• 六

  liù

  six

Some textbooks and apps write tones as numbers instead (ma1, ma2, ma3, ma4). The numbers mean the same thing; the marks are the standard way to write pinyin.

The neutral tone

Some syllables are said so lightly that they lose their own tone. Pinyin writes them without a mark. You will sometimes see this called the fifth tone, or tone 5 in numbered pinyin, but it is not a pitch shape of its own: it is short and unstressed, and its height follows the syllable before it.

The neutral tone appears in grammar words such as 吗, 的 and 了, in the second half of repeated family words, and in the second syllable of many common two-character words.

• 爸爸

  bàba

  dad

• 你好吗？

  Nǐ hǎo ma?

  How are you?

• 我的朋友

  wǒ de péngyou

  my friend

Tone changes you will hear

A few tones change when syllables meet. You do not need them on day one, but they explain why a native speaker's 你好 does not sound like two separate third tones.

Two third tones in a row

When a third tone comes before another third tone, the first one is said as a second tone. Pinyin keeps writing both as third tones: you read nǐ hǎo and say ní hǎo.

• 你好

  nǐ hǎo

  hello

  Said ní hǎo.

• 很好

  hěn hǎo

  very good

  Said hén hǎo.

一 and 不

一 (one) is yī when you count or say it alone. Before a fourth tone it becomes yí; before the other tones it becomes yì. 不 (not) is bù, but bú before a fourth tone. Most learner materials, including ours, write the tone you actually say.

• 一个

  yí ge

  one (of something)

  个 was originally a fourth tone, so 一 rises.

• 一天

  yì tiān

  one day

• 不是

  bú shì

  is not

• 不好

  bù hǎo

  not good

Common beginner mistakes

A wrong tone does not just sound foreign: it can say a different word. These three mix-ups are classics.

• Not: 我要卖一本书。

  But: 我要买一本书。 Wǒ yào mǎi yì běn shū.

  Buy is mǎi (low third tone). With a falling fourth tone it becomes mài, and you have just offered to sell the book.

• Not: 请吻

  But: 请问 qǐngwèn

  "Excuse me, may I ask" ends in a falling wèn. With a dipping third tone it sounds like wěn, to kiss.

• Not: 我要糖。

  But: 我要汤。 Wǒ yào tāng.

  Soup is tāng, high and level. A rising táng is sugar.

• Learn the tone together with the word from the start; do not plan to add tones later.
• Exaggerate while you practise: make the first tone higher and the fourth tone steeper than feels natural.
• Record yourself saying a word and compare it with a native speaker.

Practice: which tone is it?

Press Listen to hear the syllable with your device's voice, then choose the tone. If your device has no Chinese voice, use the character and meaning to recall the tone.

1. 妈 mother

   • First tone
   • Second tone
   • Third tone
   • Fourth tone
   Show the answer

   mā: First tone

2. 麻 hemp

   • First tone
   • Second tone
   • Third tone
   • Fourth tone
   Show the answer

   má: Second tone

3. 马 horse

   • First tone
   • Second tone
   • Third tone
   • Fourth tone
   Show the answer

   mǎ: Third tone

4. 骂 to scold

   • First tone
   • Second tone
   • Third tone
   • Fourth tone
   Show the answer

   mà: Fourth tone

5. 茶 tea

   • First tone
   • Second tone
   • Third tone
   • Fourth tone
   Show the answer

   chá: Second tone

6. 水 water

   • First tone
   • Second tone
   • Third tone
   • Fourth tone
   Show the answer

   shuǐ: Third tone

7. 八 eight

   • First tone
   • Second tone
   • Third tone
   • Fourth tone
   Show the answer

   bā: First tone

8. 卖 to sell

   • First tone
   • Second tone
   • Third tone
   • Fourth tone
   Show the answer

   mài: Fourth tone

1. Tones

   你好 is written nǐ hǎo. How is 你 said in it?

   你好

   1. with a rising second tone
   2. with a full third tone
   3. with a falling fourth tone
   Show the answer

   Answer: A, with a rising second tone.

   A third tone before another third tone is said as a second tone: ní hǎo. Pinyin still writes nǐ.

2. Tones

   Which is right for 一个 (one, one of)?

   1. yí ge
   2. yī ge
   3. yì ge
   Show the answer

   Answer: A, yí ge.

   一 rises to yí before a syllable that was originally fourth tone, and 个 (gè) is one: yí ge.

3. Pinyin

   Where does the tone mark go in dui (对, correct)?

   1. duì
   2. dùi
   3. dúì
   Show the answer

   Answer: A, duì.

   There is no a, e or ou, so the mark goes on the last vowel: duì.

Tones in the HSK levels

Tones are the first thing to get right. HSK 1 introduces the four tones, the neutral tone and the most common tone changes; from HSK 2 on you practise them in longer sentences and faster listening. Every word in the dictionary shows its pinyin with tone marks.