All pinyin syllables ›zhui
Pinyin syllableHow to pronounce “zhui” in Chinese
zhui = zh + ui,[ʈʂweɪ].Used in 2 tones and 1 word from HSK 1–3.
Hear it, then say it
Tap play for each tone, then record yourself — your pitch curve is drawn on top of the model.
Hold one steady high note, like a doctor’s “aaah”. English has no flat pitch, so it will feel unnaturally robotic — that is correct.
— model— your pitch· Shape, not score. Scoring lives in the app.
This tone exists, but no HSK 1–3 word uses it yet — practise the sound on its own.
Start at the top and drop fast, like a firm “No!”. Short and decisive.
— model— your pitch· Shape, not score. Scoring lives in the app.
The initial: zh
[ʈʂ]
- What the mouth does
- Tongue tip curled back toward the roof of the mouth, released without a puff.
- Closest English sound
- The j in “jar” said with the tongue pulled back and the tip curled up.
- Where learners slip
- Flattening it into English j, which erases the zh/j contrast that carries real words.
- Drill that fixes it
- Say “r” as in “run”, freeze the tongue there, then make a d-like closure from that position — that is zh.
The final: -ui
[weɪ]
- What the mouth does
- Written ui, pronounced uei — a hidden e sits in the middle.
- Closest English sound
- The “way” in “away”.
- Where learners slip
- Reading it literally as “oo-ee”.
- Drill that fixes it
- Rewrite it: duì is “dwei”, not “du-i”.
“zhui” in real words
Every word below comes from the HSK 1–3 vocabulary, so you can practise on words you will actually meet.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| zhuī | to chase | 3 |
Syllables you might confuse with this one
One sound apart from this syllable — the pairs that make natives mishear you.
Questions people ask about this syllable
How do you pronounce “zhui” in Chinese?
“zhui” is the initial zh plus the final ui, pronounced [ʈʂweɪ]. Tongue tip curled back toward the roof of the mouth, released without a puff. Written ui, pronounced uei — a hidden e sits in the middle. It occurs in 2 tones, and the tone changes the word completely.
Which mistake do English speakers make on “zhui”?
Flattening it into English j, which erases the zh/j contrast that carries real words. Reading it literally as “oo-ee”. Fix it like this: Say “r” as in “run”, freeze the tongue there, then make a d-like closure from that position — that is zh.
The other half is producing it so a native hears the right tone. The free 2-minute check tells you which syllables are actually your weak ones.