How to pronounce Putonghua
Putonghua (standard Mandarin) is 普通话 in Chinese, written pǔtōnghuà in pinyin and said poo-toong-hwah.
普通话
poo-toong-hwah
Sound by sound
- 普pooThird tone: low, dipping down
- 通toongFirst tone: high and level
- 话hwahFourth tone: falling sharply
Letters to watch
- Ong rhymes with the “oo” of “book” plus ng, not with “long”.
Everyday words
- ni hao (hello) 你好 nee-how
- xie xie (thank you) 谢谢 shyeh-shyeh
- zai jian (goodbye) 再见 dzye-jyen
- qi (chi) 气 chee
- tai chi (taiji) 太极 tie-jee
- kung fu (gongfu) 功夫 goong-foo
- feng shui 风水 fung-shway
- yin and yang 阴阳 yeen-yahng
- hanzi (Chinese characters) 汉字 hahn-dzuh
- pinyin 拼音 peen-yeen
- xin nian kuai le (Happy New Year) 新年快乐 sheen-nyen-kwye-luh
- jia you 加油 jyah-yoh
- guanxi 关系 gwahn-shee
- mianzi (face) 面子 myen-dzuh
- shifu 师父 shr-foo
- laoshi (teacher) 老师 low-shr
- meimei (little sister) 妹妹 may-may
- gege (big brother) 哥哥 guh-guh
How do you pronounce Putonghua?
Putonghua (standard Mandarin) is 普通话 in Chinese, written pǔtōnghuà in pinyin and said poo-toong-hwah.
What are the tones in Putonghua?
pǔ: third tone, low, dipping down; tōng: first tone, high and level; huà: fourth tone, falling sharply.
What do English speakers get wrong in Putonghua?
Ong rhymes with the “oo” of “book” plus ng, not with “long”.
More free tools
Voices recorded for our word cards. A spelling such as “shyow-mee” is the nearest English sound, not the sound itself: hear the voices.