What pinyin is, and what it is not
Pinyin writes each Mandarin syllable as an initial (the consonant at the start), a final (the rest of the syllable), and a tone mark. 妈 is m + a with the first tone: mā.
- It is a pronunciation guide, not a replacement for characters. Books, signs, and messages are written in characters; pinyin appears in textbooks, dictionaries, children’s books, and street signs for visitors.
- It is not English spelling. Letters stand for Mandarin sounds: q, x, zh, and c sound nothing like they do in English.
- One syllable, many characters. Mandarin has only about 400 syllables before tones, so each pinyin syllable matches many characters. shì can be 是 (to be), 事 (matter), 市 (city), or 试 (to try). Pinyin tells you the sound; the character tells you the word.
- Taiwan teaches children with a different system, zhuyin (bopomofo: ㄅㄆㄇㄈ), though pinyin is also used there.
The 21 initials
Initials are grouped by where you make the sound. The groups matter: some finals only follow some groups.
| Group | Initials | How to make them |
|---|---|---|
| Lips | b, p, m, f | b and p both use closed lips; see the note below |
| Tongue tip | d, t, n, l | Tongue tip behind the upper teeth |
| Back of the tongue | g, k, h | h is rougher than in many languages, made at the back of the mouth |
| Flat tongue, lips spread | j, q, x | Tongue tip down behind the lower teeth, the middle of the tongue raised |
| Tongue curled back | zh, ch, sh, r | Tongue tip curled up toward the roof of the mouth |
| Tongue tip, hissing | z, c, s | z sounds like "dz", c like "ts" in "cats" |
Aspiration, not voicing. b, d, g, j, zh, and z are made without a puff of air; p, t, k, q, ch, and c with a strong puff. Hold a hand in front of your mouth: bā (八, eight) should barely move the air, pā (趴, to lie on your front) should push it.
The finals
| Group | Finals |
|---|---|
| Single vowels | a, o, e, i, u, ü |
| Vowel pairs | ai, ei, ao, ou |
| Nasal endings | an, en, ang, eng, ong |
| Starting with i | ia, ie, iao, iu (iou), ian, in, iang, ing, iong |
| Starting with u | ua, uo, uai, ui (uei), uan, un (uen), uang, ueng |
| Starting with ü | üe, üan, ün |
| Other | er |
Three sounds need care:
- e is not the e of "bed". It is an unrounded vowel at the back of the mouth, close to "uh": è (饿, hungry).
- ü is "i" said with rounded lips: lǜ (绿, green), nǚ (女, woman).
- i after z, c, s, zh, ch, sh, and r is not "ee". It is a buzzing continuation of the consonant: sì (四, four), shí (十, ten), rì (日, day).
Where y and w come from
y and w are not initials. They are spelling rules for syllables that start with i, u, or ü and have no initial:
| Written alone as | Final |
|---|---|
| yi, ya, ye, yao, you, yan, yin, yang, ying, yong | i, ia, ie, iao, iou, ian, in, iang, ing, iong |
| wu, wa, wo, wai, wei, wan, wen, wang, weng | u, ua, uo, uai, uei, uan, uen, uang, ueng |
| yu, yue, yuan, yun | ü, üe, üan, ün |
So yú (鱼, fish) is ü with the second tone, and yuè (月, moon) is üe.
Tone marks and where they go
Mandarin has four tones and a neutral tone, and pinyin marks them over a vowel:
| Tone | Mark | Example |
|---|---|---|
| First (high and level) | ā | mā 妈, mother |
| Second (rising) | á | má 麻, numb |
| Third (low, dipping) | ǎ | mǎ 马, horse |
| Fourth (falling) | à | mà 骂, to scold |
| Neutral (short, light) | no mark | ma 吗, question word |
When a syllable has more than one vowel, the mark goes on:
- a or e, whenever the syllable has one: hǎo, méi, xiǎng.
- o in ou: dōu, zǒu.
- otherwise, the last vowel: liù (六, six), guì (贵, expensive), duō (多, many).
For how each tone sounds and how tones change next to each other, see Chinese tones. Without marks, pinyin is often written with tone numbers: ma1, ma2, ma3, ma4.
Spellings that trip beginners
- ü without its dots. After j, q, x, and y, ü is written u, because u can never follow those letters: qù (去, to go) and xué (学, to study) both have ü. After n and l the dots stay, because nu and nü are different syllables: nǔ (努) and nǚ (女).
- q and x. q is the puffed partner of j, close to "ch" but with a flat tongue: qī (七, seven). x is a soft hiss between "s" and "sh": xiè (谢, to thank).
- zh, ch, sh versus j, q, x versus z, c, s. Three separate sets. zhū (猪, pig), jū (居, to live), and zū (租, to rent) are different words. Curl the tongue back for zh, keep it flat for j, and put the tip on the teeth for z.
- Shortened finals. iou, uei, and uen lose their middle vowel after an initial: liù is l + iou, duì (对, correct) is d + uei, lùn (论) is l + uen. The vowel is still faintly heard.
- r. Mandarin r is made with the tongue curled back, closer to a buzz than a trill: rè (热, hot).
The apostrophe
Pinyin writes words as joined syllables, which can be ambiguous. When a syllable starting with a, o, or e follows another syllable, an apostrophe marks the break:
- Xī’ān (西安, the city) is two syllables; xiān (先, first) is one.
- nǚ’ér (女儿, daughter), Tiān’ānmén (天安门).
Pinyin for typing
Most people type Chinese with a pinyin keyboard: type the syllables without tones, and pick the character from a list. Typing nihao offers 你好. On most pinyin keyboards, v stands in for ü: nv gives 女.
This is why learning pinyin spelling pays off even if you mostly read characters. For setup on each device, see how to type Chinese.
How to learn pinyin
- Learn it first, in a week or two. Every textbook and dictionary uses it.
- Learn each word with its tone, not the bare syllable. mǎi (买) is to buy; mài (卖) is to sell.
- Move to characters early. Pinyin is a bridge. Once you know a word’s sound, learn its character, for example with the HSK vocabulary lists, which give pinyin for every word.