Pinyin chart · xian
How to say xian
xian in all four tones, said in a female or a male voice. Tap a tone to hear it.
xian
Tap a tone to hear it; tap it again to hear it slower.
How to say it
x: Between s and sh: the tongue tip rests behind the lower teeth and the lips stay spread, like a soft “sh”.
ian: In ian the a sounds close to the e of “yen”, not the a of “father”.
Its tones
xiān 先 first · xián 咸 salty · xiǎn 显 to show · xiàn 线 thread. The pinyin trainer practices telling them apart in real words.
Sounds near it
Learners often mix xian up with these. Listen to them one after the other.
Words with xian
The voices are generated speech (ElevenLabs), the same two the app’s word cards use, each tone said as one real word. The words are from the official HSK list (the exam’s 2025 syllabus), easiest first. Every syllable is on the pinyin chart.