Lesson 3
Pronunciation of Finals
Together with the 21 initials to there are also 36 finals. Combining the two makes a Pinyin syllable.
Syllable = initial (consonant) + final (vowel) + tone (of your voice)
Finals |
|||
i |
u |
ü |
|
a |
ia |
ua |
|
o |
uo |
||
e |
ie |
üe |
|
er |
|||
ai |
uai |
||
ei |
uei |
||
ao |
iao |
||
ou |
iou |
||
an |
ian |
uan |
üan |
en |
in |
uen |
ün |
ang |
iang |
uang |
|
eng |
ing |
ueng |
|
ong |
iong |
||
Practically, the finals can be divided up in the following way:
6 single vowel Finals
14 compound vowel Finals
16 nasal Finals
Click Here to Listen to the Audio
Finals |
How They Sound |
Pronunciation Hints and Tips |
a |
Like the a in father | |
o |
Like the ou in four | |
e |
Like the ir in bird | |
i |
Like the ee in see | |
u |
Like the oo in moon | |
ü |
No direct English comparison | Like the "ee" in i and push your lips forward |
er |
Sounds like ehrr | |
ai |
Like the y in my | |
ei |
Like the a in able | |
ao |
Like the ou in out | |
ou |
Like the o in go | |
ia |
No direct English comparison | The sounds of i and a said together. i is short and shallow, the a is long and deep |
ie |
Sounds like the expression...yyeah | |
ua |
Like the whaaa in what | The sounds of u and a said together. u is short and shallow, the a is long and deep |
uo |
Sounds like whaahh | The sounds of u and o said together. u is short and shallow, the o is long and deep |
üe |
Sounds like youehh | The sounds of ü and ê said together. ê is short and shallow, the o is long and deep |
iao |
Sounds like yeowww | The sounds of i and au said together. i is short and shallow, the a and u are long and deep |
iou |
Sounds like yaow | |
uai |
Sounds like whyy | u and ui said together. u and i are short and soft, the middle a is loud and clear |
uei |
Sounds like weigh | u and ei said together. u and i are short and soft, the middle e is loud and clear |
an |
Like the an in ant | |
en |
Like the en in end | |
in |
Like the in in ink | |
ün |
Sounds like yuin | u and en said together |
ang |
Sounds like aahng | |
eng |
Like the ung in hung | |
ing |
Sounds like yuong | |
ong |
Like the ong in song | |
ian |
Sounds like yan | |
uan |
Sounds like a long one | slight emphasis on the ooooone |
üan |
Sounds like yuan | |
uen |
Sounds like a long whin | emphasis the w and n like wwwhinnnn |
iang |
Sounds like a long young | young said slowly, emphasis the g |
uang |
Sounds like whaaang | |
ueng |
Sounds like whuuung | |
iong |
Sounds like yonggg |
Proceed to Lesson 4
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