Complete Pinyin Chart — Learn Chinese Pronunciation
What is Pinyin?
Pinyin (拼音, pīnyīn) is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese, developed in the 1950s. The word literally means "spell sound" in Chinese.
It uses 26 Latin letters (plus ü) to represent all sounds in Mandarin. Pinyin is used to teach pronunciation in schools, input Chinese characters on keyboards, and help foreign learners build a foundation.
Pinyin is NOT the same as English pronunciation — letters like "x", "q", "zh" have unique sounds you will not find in English.
The 4 Tones of Mandarin Chinese
Mandarin Chinese is a tonal language — the same syllable said in different tones has completely different meanings. The classic example is mā (妈, mother), má (麻, hemp), mǎ (马, horse), mà (骂, scold).
High and flat. Hold the pitch steady at a high level.
mā 妈 (mother)
Rising. Start mid-pitch and rise sharply, like asking 'what?'.
má 麻 (hemp/numb)
Dipping. Start mid, dip low, then rise slightly. Often shortened in speech.
mǎ 马 (horse)
Falling sharply. Start high and drop quickly, like a command.
mà 骂 (scold)
Tone Mark Placement Rules
The tone mark always goes on the vowel. Rules: a and e always take the mark. If there is an 'ou', the mark goes on o. Otherwise, the mark goes on the last vowel. Examples: guī, liú, xiǎo.
Tone Sandhi — When Tones Change
Two consecutive 3rd tones change: the first becomes a 2nd tone. For example, nǐ hǎo (你好) is actually pronounced ní hǎo. This is called tone sandhi (变调, biàndiào).
Neutral Tone (5th Tone)
Some syllables are unstressed and have no fixed tone — they are called the neutral tone (轻声, qīngshēng). Examples: ma (吗, question particle), de (的, possessive), le (了, completion marker). The neutral tone is short and light.
Pinyin Initials (声母) — 21 Consonants
There are 21 initials (声母, shēngmǔ) — the consonants that begin a syllable. They are grouped by articulation:
Pinyin Finals (韵母) — Simple + Compound
Finals (韵母, yùnmǔ) are the vowel sounds that follow an initial. There are 36 finals grouped by type.
Complete Pinyin Table (声韵母拼合表)
The table below shows valid combinations of initials (rows) and finals (columns). A dash (—) means that combination does not exist in standard Mandarin.
| a | o | e | i | u | ü | ai | ei | ui | ao | ou | iu | ie | üe | an | en | in | un | ün | ang | eng | ing | ong | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| b | ba | bo | — | bi | bu | — | bai | bei | — | bao | — | — | bie | — | ban | ben | bin | — | — | bang | beng | bing | — |
| p | pa | po | — | pi | pu | — | pai | pei | — | pao | pou | — | pie | — | pan | pen | pin | — | — | pang | peng | ping | — |
| m | ma | mo | — | mi | mu | — | mai | mei | — | mao | mou | — | mie | — | man | men | min | — | — | mang | meng | ming | — |
| f | fa | fo | — | — | fu | — | — | fei | — | — | fou | — | — | — | fan | fen | — | — | — | fang | feng | — | — |
| d | da | — | de | di | du | — | dai | — | dui | dao | dou | diu | die | — | dan | — | — | dun | — | dang | deng | ding | dong |
| t | ta | — | te | ti | tu | — | tai | — | tui | tao | tou | — | tie | — | tan | — | — | tun | — | tang | teng | ting | tong |
| n | na | — | ne | ni | nu | nü | nai | nei | — | nao | nou | niu | nie | nüe | nan | nen | nin | nun | nün | nang | neng | ning | nong |
| l | la | lo | le | li | lu | lü | lai | lei | — | lao | lou | liu | lie | lüe | lan | — | lin | lun | lün | lang | leng | ling | long |
| g | ga | — | ge | — | gu | — | gai | — | gui | gao | gou | — | — | — | gan | gen | — | gun | — | gang | geng | — | gong |
| k | ka | — | ke | — | ku | — | kai | — | kui | kao | kou | — | — | — | kan | ken | — | kun | — | kang | keng | — | kong |
| h | ha | — | he | — | hu | — | hai | hei | hui | hao | hou | — | — | — | han | hen | — | hun | — | hang | heng | — | hong |
| j | — | — | — | ji | ju | — | — | — | — | — | — | jiu | jie | — | — | — | jin | jun | — | — | — | jing | — |
| q | — | — | — | qi | qu | — | — | — | — | — | — | qiu | qie | — | — | — | qin | qun | — | — | — | qing | — |
| x | — | — | — | xi | xu | — | — | — | — | — | — | xiu | xie | — | — | — | xin | xun | — | — | — | — | |
| zh | — | — | — | zhi | zhu | — | — | — | zhui | zhao | zhou | — | — | — | zhan | zhen | — | zhun | — | zhang | zheng | — | zhong |
| ch | — | — | — | chi | chu | — | — | — | chui | chao | chou | — | — | — | chan | chen | — | chun | — | chang | cheng | — | chong |
| sh | — | — | — | shi | shu | — | — | — | shui | shao | shou | — | — | — | shan | shen | — | shun | — | shang | sheng | — | — |
| r | — | — | re | ri | ru | — | — | — | rui | rao | rou | — | — | — | ran | ren | — | run | — | rang | reng | — | rong |
| z | za | — | ze | zi | zu | — | zai | — | zui | zao | zou | — | — | — | zan | zen | — | zun | — | zang | zeng | — | zong |
| c | ca | — | ce | ci | cu | — | cai | — | cui | cao | cou | — | — | — | can | cen | — | cun | — | cang | ceng | — | cong |
| s | sa | — | se | si | su | — | sai | — | sui | sao | sou | — | — | — | san | sen | — | sun | — | sang | seng | — | song |
| y | — | — | — | yi | yu | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | yin | yun | — | — | — | ying | — |
| w | — | wo | — | — | wu | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Common Pronunciation Mistakes
x/q/j vs sh/ch/zh — Palatals vs Retroflexes
x, q, j are palatals: the tongue tip stays DOWN, the middle of the tongue rises toward the hard palate. They ONLY combine with i and ü sounds. sh, ch, zh are retroflexes: the tongue tip curls UP and back. They combine with a, o, e, u sounds. A common mistake: saying 'shiao' instead of 'xiǎo' (小, small), or 'ji' instead of 'zhī' (知, know).
The ü Sound and j/q/x/y Exception
ü is like the French 'u' or German 'ü' — round your lips as if saying 'oo' then say 'ee'. After j, q, x, and y, the umlaut dots are dropped in writing: ju = jü, qu = qü, xu = xü, yu = yü. After n and l, the dots remain: nü (女, woman), lü (旅, travel).
r at the Beginning vs End of a Syllable
At the start of a syllable, r is a retroflex approximant — curl your tongue back slightly: rén (人, person). At the end of a syllable (erhua 儿化), 'r' is added to soften the vowel: nǎr (那儿, there), wánr (玩儿, play). Erhua is common in Beijing dialect.
Practice Your Pinyin with AI Feedback
Reading a chart is just the start. The real breakthrough comes from speaking and getting instant feedback. FlowChinese gives you AI-powered pronunciation scoring on every syllable — so you know exactly which sounds to improve.
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Frequently Asked Questions
The 21 initials (声母) are: b, p, m, f, d, t, n, l, g, k, h, j, q, x, zh, ch, sh, r, z, c, s. The semi-vowels y and w are sometimes added, making 23 total.
The 4 tones are: 1st tone (flat high, ā), 2nd tone (rising, á), 3rd tone (dipping then rising, ǎ), 4th tone (falling sharply, à). There is also a neutral/5th tone (light, unstressed).
On iOS/Android, hold a vowel key to see tone options. On desktop, use input methods like Sogou Pinyin or Google Pinyin IME. You can also copy-paste from tone mark tables.
Most learners master the basics of pinyin in 1-2 weeks. The challenging parts are the tones (4 distinct pitches), retroflex sounds (zh, ch, sh, r), and the ü vowel. Apps like FlowChinese help with AI pronunciation feedback.