Resources
Free reference guides for Mandarin learners — a phrasebook, tone guide, and pronunciation guide. Tap any Chinese word to hear it spoken.
Mandarin Phrasebook
50 common phrases with pinyin and English translation.
Greetings & Basics
Introductions
Eating & Drinking
Shopping & Money
Getting Around
Conversation Helpers
Tone Guide
The four Mandarin tones plus the neutral tone, with visual pitch contours.
1st Tone — High Flat
āStart high and hold the note flat, like a doctor's "ahhh". Don't let it sag.
2nd Tone — Rising
áRise decisively from mid to high, like a disbelieving "What?". Under-rising is the common mistake.
3rd Tone — Low Dip
ǎIn real speech, just make it low and creaky like a slow "uh-oh". The full dip only appears when stressed.
4th Tone — Falling
àDrop sharply from high to low, like an emphatic "No!". Be bossy — a gentle fall gets misheard.
Neutral Tone — Light
aShort, weak, and unstressed — like the "-er" in "father". Half the length of the syllable before it.
Pronunciation Guide
The Mandarin sounds that give English speakers the most trouble — and how to make each one.
How: Like English "j" but with the tongue tip curled up and back toward the roof of the mouth.
Common mistake: Using a flat English "j" — the retroflex curl is what natives hear.
How: Like "ch" in "church" but with the tongue curled back, with a strong puff of air.
Common mistake: Confusing it with pinyin q — ch is retroflex (tongue back), q is palatal (tongue forward).
How: Like "sh" in "shirt" but with the tongue tip curled back. Darker and deeper than English sh.
Common mistake: Collapsing shì (is) into sì (four) — a real meaning difference, not just an accent.
How: Same curled-back tongue position as sh, but voiced — closer to the "s" in English "measure" than an English r.
Common mistake: Using the English "r" of "red", which sounds heavily accented.
How: Say "ee" and hold it, then round your lips as if to whistle without moving your tongue.
Common mistake: Substituting "oo" — nǚ (woman) becomes a different word. Note: after j, q, x, y, a written "u" is actually ü (去 qù).
How: An unrounded throat vowel like the "u" in "duh", with the tongue pulled slightly back.
Common mistake: Reading it as "eh" or "ey" — 喝 hē is not "hey".
How: A "ts" sound as in "cats", with a puff of air. Cài = "tsai".
Common mistake: Reading it as English "k" — càidān (menu) is "tsai-dan", never "kai-dan".
How: Soft, smiley sounds made with the tongue forward: x ≈ a soft "sh", q ≈ a soft "ch", both with spread lips.
Common mistake: Making them with the tongue curled back — that turns them into sh/ch and changes words.