Tone pair 3-4

This page will cover some examples of the 3-4 tone pair, which Sinosplice rates as a "5" on a difficulty rating of 1-7 (easiest to hardest).

Practice this tone pair using the words below. Once you can say them reliable in isolation (as just a tone pair), try putting them in longer sentences while keeping the tones accurate.

3-4 Tone Pair Diagram

It helps many learners to see the two tones side by side.

Tone Pair 3-4 cropped.png

One point to note here, though, is that the third tone in this context doesn't actually rise much. It's more important that the third tone be low. Focus on the lowness of the third tone in this pair rather than the rise, and your pronunciation will sound much better. Pay attention to this when you listen to the audio examples on this page.

3-4 Tone Pair Words (A2)

If you're just getting started with tone pairs, these simple two-syllable words and phrases are a good place to start. If these are too easy, you may want to move onto the longer (B1) phrases below.

Audio Chinese Pinyin English
以后 yǐhòu after, later on
早饭 zǎofàn breakfast
晚饭 wǎnfàn dinner
走路 zǒulù to walk
好看 hǎokàn good-looking

Source: AllSet Learning's "Tone Pair" Pronunciation Pack (used with permission)

3-4 Tone Pair Phrases (B1)

Audio Chinese Pinyin English
买早饭 mǎi zǎofàn to buy breakfast
做晚饭 zuò wǎnfàn to make dinner
不好看 bù hǎokàn not attractive
很可爱 hěn kě'ài very cute
想要走路 xiǎng yào zǒulù to want to walk

Source: AllSet Learning's "Tone Pair" Pronunciation Pack (used with permission)

3-4 Tone Pair Combos

Audio Chinese Pinyin English
(coming) 很贵 hěn guì very expensive
(coming) 很快 hěn kuài very fast
(coming) 很慢 hěn màn very slow
(coming) 很热 hěn rè very hot
(coming) 很饿 hěn è very hungry

Source: Sinosplice's Mandarin Chinese Tone Pair Drills (used with permission)

Sources and further reading

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