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Learn Chinese online with these easy Mandarin Chinese lessons. Learn how to say it in Chinese!
Learning Chinese Tones is EASY!
Chinese is a tonal language - which means that the pitch or the "tone" of each syllable is vital to the meaning of the spoken words. There are 4 different tones and a "fifth" neutral tone in Mandarin Chinese.
In English, for example, we can say the word "dog" with a flat tone (1st tone), rising tone (2nd tone), a "scooping" tone (3rd tone), or a sharp falling tone (4th tone) and the meaning of "dog" never changes. But in Chinese, each of the tones is a different utterance entirely.
Let's take a look at the syllable "da" to see how the meaning can change simply by changing its tone:
- da1 - to hang over something
- da2 - to answer
- da3 - to hit
- da4 - big
The "fifth" or "neutral tone" is never used by itself and so never has a meaning.
Download FREE audio lessons of the Chinese tones:
Our friends over at ChinesePod have 5 great audio lessons that cover all 4 tones and the neutral tone in great detail. (Make sure to sign up for the FREE one-week trial as well!)