How to pronounce
in Mandarin Chinese
shāoFirst tone
Hear it in conversation
rán然hòu后bǎ把guō锅lǐ里miàn面shāo烧rè热yī一点
Then heat up the wok very hot
suàn蒜duō多yī一点,茄zi子shāo烧chū出lái来hǎo好chī吃
Eggplant tastes good with lots of garlic.
Select a word for its meaning.
See it in a sentence.
The fire is still burning.
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.