Shareables · HSK 0 · 基 · Foundations
四声与轻声 · The Four Tones and Neutral Tone
The Four Tones and Neutral Tone
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例 · WORKED EXAMPLES
mā vs mà妈 vs 骂mom vs to scoldSame syllable, opposite pitch: high-flat means 'mom', sharp-fall means 'scold'. Tones aren't decoration — they're the word.
māma妈妈momThe second syllable is neutral: short and light, no pitch shape of its own. Very common in everyday words (爸爸, 谢谢, 什么).
tāng · táng · tǎng · tàng汤 · 糖 · 躺 · 烫soup · sugar · to lie down · scalding hotAnother four-way family. Ordering soup and saying 'scalding' instead is a tone mistake — this is why the ear work matters.
Taught in the course as 四声与轻声 · The Four Tones and Neutral Tone.
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