1 · Sounds and characters
Tone changes
tone sandhi, and how this site writes it
Two third tones in a row, and the words yī and bù, change their tone before another syllable.
In connected speech a few tones change according to the syllable that follows; Chinese calls this 变调. The most frequent change is between two third tones: the first one is said in the second tone. 你好 is said níhǎo, 很好 is said hén hǎo, and 可以 kéyǐ. This site, like dictionaries and textbooks, does not write this change. It happens by itself in every speaker’s mouth, and writing ní would hide that 你 is a third tone everywhere else.
一, one, has three pronunciations. Counting, in ordinal numbers, in dates and at the end of a word it keeps the first tone: 第一, 一月, 十一. Before a fourth tone it becomes yí: 一样, 一定, and also 一个, because 个 is a fourth tone even when it is said lightly. Before a first, second or third tone it becomes yì: 一起, 一年, 一些.
不, not, is a fourth tone, and before another fourth tone it becomes bú: 不是, 不去, 不客气. Before every other tone it stays bù: 不吃, 不来, 不好.
Unlike the third tones, the changes of 一 and 不 are written on this site as they are spoken: they depend on the next word, and a learner who reads the dictionary form would have to work them out again in every sentence. So when you see yí, yì or bú, say what you see. The usual mistake is the opposite one: saying yī and bù everywhere, which sounds like reading out a word list.
The form
| third + third: written as it is, the first said rising | 你好、很好、可以 |
| yī before a fourth tone: yí | 一样、一个、一定 |
| yī before a first, second or third tone: yì | 一起、一年、一些 |
| yī when counting, in ordinals and in dates | 第一、一月、十一 |
| bù before a fourth tone: bú | 不是、不去、不客气 |
| bù before every other tone | 不好、不来、不吃 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
Two third tones in a row: the first is said in the second tone, but this site writes both as third tones.
你好，我叫王明。Hello, my name is Wang Ming.
Before a fourth tone, yī becomes yí.
这两件衣服一样贵。These two pieces of clothing cost the same.
Before a first, second or third tone, yī becomes yì.
我们一起去吧。Let's go together.
Counting, ordinal numbers, dates and the end of a word keep yī.
今天是一月一号。Today is the first of January.
Before a fourth tone, bù becomes bú; before every other tone it stays bù.
我不是老师，我不教书。I'm not a teacher — I don't teach.
A closer look
Longer runs of third tones
When three or more third tones follow each other, speakers group the words. 我很好 is usually wǒ hén hǎo, with hěn hǎo as one group; said quickly it can become wó hén hǎo, with only the last syllable low. There is no need to calculate this. Listen and copy whole phrases; the written tones stay as they are, so you can always look up what each word really is.
Before a first, second or fourth tone, a third tone is only half said: it goes low and stays there, without the rise. 北京, 很忙 and 好看 all begin with a low, flat syllable. The full dip and rise is heard mainly at the end of a phrase or in a word said on its own.
Exceptions and special cases (2)
-
一 is part of a number, a date or an ordinal
it stays yī, whatever tone follows: 一号, the first of the month, although 号 is a fourth tone.
我的生日是十月一号。My birthday is on the first of October.
The change belongs to 一 in the sense of “one” or “a”, in front of a measure word or inside a word. A digit or a position in a series is said clearly, as when counting.
-
不 stands inside a word such as 对不起, or between two identical verbs in a question such as 去不去
it is said lightly, almost without a tone, and this site writes it without a mark.
对不起，我来晚了。Sorry I'm late.
A syllable in the middle of a fixed expression loses its stress, and with it its pitch. The question 去不去 runs together like one word, so it is written as one word.
How to spot it
- 一
- 一
- 不
- 你好
Example sentences
你等一下。Wait a moment.
我不会说法语。I can't speak French.
他不喝咖啡。He doesn't drink coffee.
我买了一本书。I bought a book.
我很好，谢谢。I'm fine, thanks.
他住在一楼。He lives on the ground floor.
8 more example sentences
我们一起吃午饭吧。Let's have lunch together.
这个和那个不一样。This one and that one are different.
不用谢！No need to thank me!
请给我一杯水。Please give me a glass of water.
你可以坐这儿。You can sit here.
我住在十一号。I live at number eleven.
今天我不忙。I'm not busy today.
你有一点儿时间吗？Have you got a little time?
Worth knowing (2)
-
Yí ge, though ge is said lightly
The measure word 个 is a fourth tone, but after a number it is usually said lightly, without a mark. It still counts as a fourth tone for 一, which is why it is 一个 and never yì ge.
我有一个哥哥。I have an older brother.
-
One said as yāo
In telephone numbers, room numbers and bus numbers many speakers say the digit one as yāo instead of yī, so that it cannot be confused with qī, seven. You will hear it read out at counters and in lifts; you need not say it yourself, though nobody will mind if you do.
请告诉我你的电话号码。Please tell me your phone number.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
The dictionary gives 不 in the fourth tone, and it is natural to say it that way everywhere. Before a fourth tone such as shì it is said bú, and this site writes it so: read the mark under the character, not the one you remember from the dictionary.
Yī and bù rise before a fourth tone, yī falls before the other tones, and two third tones keep their written marks but the first is said rising.
Your turn
9 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.