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I've lived in China for six months.
How to pronounce 先前
How to pronounce
in Mandarin Chinese
xiān先qián前
before; previously
HSK 6
Synthesized Mandarin audio · Vivian voice
xiānFirst toneqiánSecond tone
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A syllable has a shape.
Tone marks show how pitch changes. Colors help you follow each syllable in the app.
ā First toneHigh and level
á Second toneRising
ǎ Third toneLow, then rising in isolation
à Fourth toneFalling
a Neutral toneShort and light
These are dictionary tones. In natural speech, tones can change with context. A third tone often stays low before another syllable.