Tone pair 4-2

This page will cover some examples of the 4-2 tone pair, which Sinosplice rates as a "3" 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.

4-2 Tone Pair Diagram

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

Tone Pair 4-2 cropped.png

4-2 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
上学 shàngxué to start school, to go to school
大学 dàxué university
问题 wèntí question; problem, issue
练习 liànxí to practice
去年 qùnián last year

Remember: the word 一直 (yīzhí) has a tone change, which means it is pronounced "yìzhí" (a 4-2 tone pair).

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

4-2 Tone Pair Phrases (B1)

Audio Chinese Pinyin English
去上学 qù shàngxué to go to school
上大学 shàng dàxué to attend university
没付钱 méi fùqián did not pay money
还要练习 hái yào liànxí still need to practice
一直练习 yīzhí liànxí to continuously practice

Remember: the word 一直 (yīzhí) has a tone change, which means it is pronounced "yìzhí" (a 4-2 tone pair).

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

4-2 Tone Pair Combos

Audio Chinese Pinyin English
(coming) 太忙 tài máng too busy
(coming) 太长 tài cháng too long
(coming) 太油 tài yóu too oily
(coming) 真轻 zhēn qīng really light
(coming) 太强 tài qiáng too strong

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

Sources and further reading

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