Chinese tones cheat sheet

四声速查表

Sì shēng sùchá biǎo

Mandarin has four tones plus a neutral one. They are not decoration: 妈 (mother) and 马 (horse) are the same syllable, and only the tone tells them apart. Here is everything on one page.

The five tones

First tone

第一声High and flat

Hold it steady, like the note you'd hum to check a microphone. Don't let it fall at the end.

妈

mā

mother

Second tone

第二声Rising

Like the English “huh?” — start low-mid and lift. Learners usually don't rise far enough.

麻

má

hemp

Third tone

第三声Falling, then rising

In real speech it mostly just drops low and stays there. The full dip only appears when the word is said alone or stressed.

马

mǎ

horse

Fourth tone

第四声Sharp fall

Short and decisive, like saying “Stop!”. Falls from high to low quickly.

骂

mà

to scold

Neutral tone

轻声Light and quick

Unstressed and very short. The second syllable of 谢谢 (xièxie) and 妈妈 (māma) is neutral, not a repeat of the first tone.

吗

(question particle)

The tone-change rules that actually matter

Four rules. Knowing these is the difference between reading pinyin and sounding like a person.

不 (bù) becomes bú before a fourth tone

不是 is bú shì, not bù shì. Everywhere else 不 keeps its fourth tone: 不好 bù hǎo, 不能 bù néng.

一 (yī) shifts depending on what follows

一个 is yí ge (before a fourth tone) and 一半 is yí bàn, while 一天 is yì tiān and 一起 is yìqǐ. Said alone or when counting, it stays yī.

Two third tones in a row: the first becomes a second

你好 is pronounced ní hǎo even though it is written nǐ hǎo. Same with 我也 (wó yě) and 很好 (hén hǎo). The spelling never changes — only the sound.

Half third tone before other tones

In 老师 (lǎoshī) the 老 just drops low; it doesn't dip and rise. Trying to produce the full dip mid-sentence is what makes learners sound slow.

Sounds learners mix up

zh / j: zh is tongue-back and flat (知 zhī); j is tongue-forward and smiling (鸡 jī).
ch / q: Same tongue difference, with a puff of air. 吃 chī vs 七 qī.
sh / x: 深 shēn vs 心 xīn. If your mouth isn't smiling, it's probably sh.
u / ü: 路 lù vs 绿 lǜ. For ü, say “ee” and then round your lips without moving your tongue.
n / ng: 很 hěn ends at the teeth; 行 xíng ends at the back of the mouth.
e / o: 得 de is a relaxed “uh”, not the English “eh”.

Two minutes of daily practice

1Say mā má mǎ mà ma out loud, slowly, five times. Exaggerate.
2Record it on your phone and listen back. You will hear tone 2 and tone 3 collapsing into each other before you can feel it.
3Take one word you use often and check its tones. Then use it in a full sentence — tones live in sentences, not in flashcards.
4Say 你好 as ní hǎo, and 谢谢 with a light second syllable. Those two alone will change how you sound.

你可以的

Nǐ kěyǐ de

Tones are much easier with someone listening

Reading about tones only gets you so far. In a trial lesson Jingyao hears exactly which ones you're producing and fixes them on the spot.