How to pronounce
in Mandarin Chinese
shāFirst toneziNeutral tone
Hear it in conversation
lots of sand.
shā沙zi子zhè r这儿yǒu有yì一xiē些shā沙zi子
. There's some sand here,
Select a word for its meaning.
See it in a sentence.
。
There is sand at the bottom of the ocean.
Hear the difference
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.