Lesson 1: Pinyin Alphabet
The simplest way of learning Chinese is through Pinyin, an alphabet system developed in China back in the 50's. It is quite close to the English pronunciation system where a Chinese syllable can be composed of an initial and final.
Simple Finals:
Pinyin contains 6 simple single lettered finals and 30 compound finals. We are only going to look at the 6 simple finals for this lesson. The compound finals will be introduced in lesson 2. Please note, all of the tones will be applied to these simple final alphabets. (we will explain the tones in lesson 2) The 6 simple finals are:
a |
As the vowel "u" in English, except a little longer. e.g. "hut", "bug", "cup" | |
o |
As the letter combination "wor" in English, but don't curl the tongue!. e.g. "work" |
|
e |
Similar to the letter combination "er" in English, but don't curl the tongue! |
|
i |
Similar to the letter combination "ea" in English. e.g. "beat", "east" | |
u |
As the letter combination "woo" in English. e.g. "wood" | |
ü |
This is the hardest one, don't worry if you can't get it yet, move on... |
Click to play all of the simple finals at once according to the order: a, o, e, i, u, ü
TIPS:
- Many Asian languages may appear to have very short syllables when speaking, but when practicing pinyin, do not be afraid to extend the length of a sound.
- pinyin may appear to be very similar to English letters, but the actual sound of each pinyin symbol can be very different from their English counterparts. Try to distinguish them well.
Initials:
Initials consist of consonants or semi-vowels. They sound very similar to the matching English letter as they appear as the first letter of a word. There are 21 initials in total:
b |
Similar to the English letter "b" in "bird" + pinyin final "e" | |
p |
Similar to the English letter "p" in "perfect" + pinyin final "e" | |
m |
Similar to the English letter "m" in "merge" + pinyin final "e" |
|
f |
Similar to the English letter "f" in "fir" + pinyin final "e" | |
d |
Similar to the English letter "d" in "dirt" + pinyin final "e" | |
t |
Similar to the English letter "t" in "term" + pinyin final "e" | |
n |
Similar to the English letter "n" in "nerve" + pinyin final "e" | |
l |
Similar to the English letter "l" in "learn" + pinyin final "e" | |
g |
Similar to the English letter "g" in "girl" + pinyin final "e" | |
k |
Similar to the English letter "k" in "kiss" + pinyin final "e" | |
h |
Similar to the English letter "h" in "herb" + pinyin final "e" | |
j |
Similar to the English letter "j" in "jeep" | |
q |
It gets harder from this one down, similar to "chea" in "cheat" but flatter. | |
x |
Like the one above, similar to "shee" in "sheet" but flatter. | |
z |
This is like the plural combo "ds" as in "kids". | |
c |
This is like the plural combo "ts" as in "kits" | |
s |
Similar to the English letter "s" in "sam" | |
zh |
This is the hardest one, try "ju" as in "just" | |
ch |
Similar to the English letter "ch" in "chat" | |
sh |
Similar to the English letter "sh" in "shape" | |
r |
Similar to the English letter "r" in "rain" |
Click to play all of the initials at once following the order: b, p, m, f, d, t, n, l, g, k, h, j, q, x, z, c, s, zh, ch, shi, r
Dialog:
Pinyin |
Chinese Pronunciation |
Chinese Character |
English |
||
initial |
final |
combination |
|||
d |
a |
da |
大 |
big |
|
sh |
o |
shuo |
说 |
speak |
|
h |
e |
he |
喝 |
drink |
|
n |
i |
ni |
你 |
you |
|
m |
u |
mu |
木 |
wood |
|
l |
ü |
lü |
绿 |
green |
|
Questions and Comments
