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Pronunciation guide

How to pronounce Chinese names, brands and words

The words English speakers look up most, and the ones they get wrong most: 49 entries with the tone shape, the syllable breakdown, and an honest respelling — plus what you are probably saying instead.

Why the usual respellings fail

Guides tell you Beijing is “bay-jing” and stop there. That gets the consonants roughly right and throws away the tones entirely — and tone is what makes a Chinese word recognisable. Every entry here shows the pitch shape of each syllable, and flags the cases where the tones change when syllables meet.

Brand

Xiaomi小米 xiǎo mǐlittle riceHuawei华为 huá wéiChina + achievement — roughly “Chinese achievement”Shein希音 xī yīnrare sound — from a line in the Tao Te ChingBaidu百度 bǎi dùa hundred times — from a Song-dynasty poem about searchingTsingtao青岛 qīng dǎogreen islandBYD比亚迪 bǐ yà díthe Chinese name is a transliteration; the letters stand for “Build Your Dreams”Douyin抖音 dǒu yīnshaking sound — the Chinese TikTokWeChat — Weixin微信 wēi xìnmicro-message

City

Beijing北京 běi jīngnorthern capitalShanghai上海 shàng hǎiupon the seaShenzhen深圳 shēn zhèndeep drains — it was farmland sixty years agoGuangzhou广州 guǎng zhōubroad prefectureChongqing重庆 chóng qìngdouble celebrationXi'an西安 xī ānwestern peaceChengdu成都 chéng dūbecoming a capitalHangzhou杭州 háng zhōuthe prefecture of HangQingdao青岛 qīng dǎogreen island

Surname

Zhang张 zhāngto draw a bow — one of the most common surnames on earthXu徐 xúslow, unhurriedZhao赵 zhàoan ancient state; a classic surnameXie谢 xièto thank — the same character as in xièxieLiu刘 liúthe surname of the Han dynasty emperorsZhou周 zhōua circuit, a week; also the Zhou dynastyHuang黄 huángyellowCai蔡 càian ancient stateXue薛 xuēan old clan nameQiu邱 qiūa mound, a hill

Person

Xi Jinping习近平 xí jìn píngfamily name Xi; the given name means “near” + “level”

Phrase

Ni hao — hello你好 nǐ hǎoyou goodXie xie — thank you谢谢 xiè xiethanks, thanksWo ai ni — I love you我爱你 wǒ ài nǐI love youZai jian — goodbye再见 zài jiànagain seeXin nian kuai le — happy new year新年快乐 xīn nián kuài lènew year happyGong xi fa cai恭喜发财 gōng xǐ fā cáiwishing you prosperity — the money-focused new year greetingSheng ri kuai le — happy birthday生日快乐 shēng rì kuài lèbirth day happyZao shang hao — good morning早上好 zǎo shang hǎoearly morning goodJia you — you got this加油 jiā yóuadd oil — shouted at athletes, students and anyone strugglingGan bei — cheers干杯 gān bēidry the cup

Culture

Feng shui风水 fēng shuǐwind waterTai chi — taiji太极 tài jísupreme ultimateQi — chi, life energy气 qìair, breath, vital energyMahjong麻将 má jiànghemp sparrowQipao旗袍 qí páobanner gownGuanxi关系 guān xiconnections, relationships — the social capital that runs Chinese business

Food

Sichuan — Szechuan四川 sì chuānfour riversXiaolongbao小笼包 xiǎo lóng bāolittle basket bun — the soup dumplingBaozi包子 bāo zisteamed stuffed bunMapo tofu麻婆豆腐 má pó dòu fupockmarked old woman’s tofu — named after the cook who invented itKung pao chicken宫保鸡丁 gōng bǎo jī dīngpalace guardian diced chicken — named after a Qing official

Common questions

Why do English speakers say “Beijing” with a zh sound?

Habit, not Chinese. Mid-century English borrowed the word through spellings that suggested a soft French j, and it stuck. Pinyin j is the sound in “jeep”, said with the tongue tip behind the lower teeth.

Do I need the tones to be understood?

For a single word in an English sentence, usually not. Speaking Chinese, yes — tone is not decoration, it is part of the word, and the wrong tone is a different word.

Why is the same city spelled Tsingtao and Qingdao?

Two romanisation systems. Tsingtao is Wade-Giles, which most of the world used until the 1980s; Qingdao is pinyin, the modern standard. Same sounds, different letters.

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