Tone pair chart · 4–1
Fourth + first tone words
All 41 HSK 1–4 words with a fourth tone then a first tone, each to hear in a female or male voice. Tap a word to hear it, again for slower.
The 41 words
How 4–1 is said
Each tone keeps its own shape: the first syllable falls from high to low, then the second stays high and level, as in 面包 miàn bāo.
Questions
What are some fourth + first tone words?
面包 (miàn bāo, bread), 大家 (dà jiā, everyone), 上班 (shàng bān, to go to work), 下班 (xià bān, to get off work), 必须 (bì xū, must), 菜单 (cài dān, menu). This page has all 41 on the HSK 1 to 4 lists that we have checked recordings of.
How many tone pairs are there in Mandarin?
Twenty. Each of the four tones can be followed by any of the four, which makes 16, and each can be followed by the neutral tone, which makes 4 more.
Practise the pairs
Pinyin test: one word for each of the 20 pairs, one score. Tone practice: say a word and see your tones over a native speaker’s. Pinyin trainer: more of the pairs you miss until they stick.
Voices by ElevenLabs, the same two as the app’s word cards.