Chinese for Travel
English
Unit 0 · Basics Lesson 2 6 min Free in the app

Pinyin and the four tones

Hear how a tone changes a word's meaning, plus the two tone changes you'll meet every day. The snack lanes around Yu Garden, Shanghai. Vendors call out, and your tone decides whether you buy or sell.

四声

Key phrases

The 6 phrases this lesson is built around, with the words that make them up. Tap ▶ to listen, or the turtle to hear it slowly.

  • 妈。

    Mā.

    Mother — 1st tone: high and level

  • 麻。

    Má.

    Numb (like Sichuan pepper) — 2nd tone: rising

  • 马。

    Mǎ.

    Horse — 3rd tone: dips low

  • 骂。

    Mà.

    To scold — 4th tone: falls sharply

  • 买。

    Mǎi.

    To buy — 3rd tone

  • 卖。

    Mài.

    To sell — 4th tone

More phrases for this situation

Every other phrase from the lesson: 9 in all.

  • 四。

    Sì.

    Four — 4th tone

  • 十。

    Shí.

    Ten — 2nd tone

  • 汤。

    Tāng.

    Soup — 1st tone

  • 糖。

    Táng.

    Sugar — 2nd tone

  • 水。

    Shuǐ.

    Water — 3rd tone

  • 睡。

    Shuì.

    To sleep — 4th tone

  • 不是。

    Bú shì.

    No, it isn't — 不 → 2nd tone

  • 一个。

    Yí ge.

    One (of something) — 一 → 2nd tone

  • 好吗？

    Hǎo ma?

    Is that OK? — 吗: neutral tone, said lightly

What you’ll hear, and how to answer

Staff won’t follow your script. These are things they are likely to say here, with a reply that works.

  1. Staff

    小笼包，买一笼吧！

    Xiǎolóngbāo, mǎi yì lóng ba!

    Soup dumplings — buy a basket!

    You

    买。

    Mǎi.

    To buy — 3rd tone

  2. Staff

    要喝点什么？

    Yào hē diǎn shénme?

    What would you like to drink?

    You

    水。

    Shuǐ.

    Water — 3rd tone

Play the scene

The snack lanes around Yu Garden, Shanghai. Vendors call out, and your tone decides whether you buy or sell.

上海·豫园 · Yu Garden, Shanghai

  1. Staff

    小笼包，买一笼吧！

    Xiǎolóngbāo, mǎi yì lóng ba!

    Soup dumplings — buy a basket!

  2. You

    买。

    Mǎi.

    To buy — 3rd tone

  3. Staff

    再来一碗汤？

    Zài lái yì wǎn tāng?

    And a bowl of soup?

  4. You

    汤。

    Tāng.

    Soup — 1st tone

  5. Staff

    要喝点什么？

    Yào hē diǎn shénme?

    What would you like to drink?

  6. You

    水。

    Shuǐ.

    Water — 3rd tone

  7. Staff

    这把伞是你的吗？

    Zhè bǎ sǎn shì nǐ de ma?

    Is this umbrella yours?

  8. You

    不是。

    Bú shì.

    No, it isn't — 不 → 2nd tone

Culture tip

Same syllable, four meanings

Mandarin has four tones plus a light neutral one. mā, má, mǎ, mà are four different words: mother, numb, horse, scold. Exaggerate the tones at first; a clear tone helps people understand you more than perfect consonants do.

Which word means “to sell”?

Show the answer

卖