How to pronounce Deng Xiaoping

Deng Xiaoping (the leader of China’s reform era) is 邓小平 in Chinese, written Dèngxiǎopíng in pinyin and said dung-shyow-peeng.

邓小平 Dèngxiǎopíng

dung-shyow-peeng

Sound by sound

邓dèngdungFourth tone: falling sharply
小xiǎoshyowThird tone: low, dipping down
平píngpeengSecond tone: rising, as in a question

Letters to watch

E alone is the “uh” in “duh”, not “ee” or “eh”.
X is said like the sh in “she”, with the tongue behind the bottom teeth. Never “z” or “ks”.
Ao rhymes with “cow”: mao is “mow” as in “how now”, never “moe”.

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How do you pronounce Deng Xiaoping?

Deng Xiaoping (the leader of China’s reform era) is 邓小平 in Chinese, written Dèngxiǎopíng in pinyin and said dung-shyow-peeng.

What are the tones in Deng Xiaoping?

dèng: fourth tone, falling sharply; xiǎo: third tone, low, dipping down; píng: second tone, rising, as in a question.

What do English speakers get wrong in Deng Xiaoping?

E alone is the “uh” in “duh”, not “ee” or “eh”. X is said like the sh in “she”, with the tongue behind the bottom teeth. Never “z” or “ks”. Ao rhymes with “cow”: mao is “mow” as in “how now”, never “moe”.

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Voices recorded for our word cards. A spelling such as “shyow-mee” is the nearest English sound, not the sound itself: hear the voices.