How to pronounce
in Mandarin Chinese
kùFourth toneziNeutral tone
Hear it in conversation
Don't pull my pants
hé和yī一tiáo条shēn深色de的kù裤zi子,
and dark pants,
huò或zhě者bù不yào要yǎo咬wǒ我de的kù裤zi子
Or don't bite my pants
Select a word for its meaning.
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.