Difference between revisions of "The "r" sound"

(Moved pinyin chart scripts to widget)
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{{#widget: Pinyin chart settings}}
 
{{#widget: Pinyin chart settings}}
<div class="pinyin-table-audio-container"></div>
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{{#widget: Pinyin chart
<div class="table-container"><table class="pinyin-table medium" id="pinyin-table">
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| exclude_col_v
<tr><!--  TABLE HEADERS  -->
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| exclude_row_null
<th class="first-row first-col"></th>
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| exclude_row_bpmf
<th title="Click to expand" class="col-a col-placeholder first-row"><strong>-a-</strong></th>
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| exclude_row_dtnl
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-a" id="-a"><strong>-a</strong></th>
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| exclude_row_jqx
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-a" id="-ai"><strong>-ai</strong></th>
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| exclude_row_zcs
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-a" id="-ao"><strong>-ao</strong></th>
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| exclude_row_gkh
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-a" id="-an"><strong>-an</strong></th>
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}}
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-a" id="-ang"><strong>-ang</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to expand" class="col-e col-placeholder first-row"><strong>-e-</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-e" id="-e"><strong>-e</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-e" id="-ei"><strong>-ei</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-e" id="-en"><strong>-en</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-e" id="-eng"><strong>-eng</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-e" id="-er"><strong>-er</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to expand" class="col-o col-placeholder first-row"><strong>-o-</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-o" id="-o"><strong>-o</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-o" id="-ou"><strong>-ou</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-o" id="-ong"><strong>-ong</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to expand" class="col-i col-placeholder first-row"><strong>-i-</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-i" id="-i"><strong>-i</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-i" id="-i*"><strong>-i*</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-i" id="-ia"><strong>-ia</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-i" id="-iao"><strong>-iao</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-i" id="-ie"><strong>-ie</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-i" id="-iou"><strong>-iou</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-i" id="-ian"><strong>-ian</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-i" id="-iang"><strong>-iang</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-i" id="-in"><strong>-in</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-i" id="-ing"><strong>-ing</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-i" id="-iong"><strong>-iong</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to expand" class="col-u col-placeholder first-row"><strong>-u-</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-u" id="-u"><strong>-u</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-u" id="-ua"><strong>-ua</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-u" id="-uai"><strong>-uai</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-u" id="-uei"><strong>-uei</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-u" id="-uo"><strong>-uo</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-u" id="-uan"><strong>-uan</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-u" id="-uang"><strong>-uang</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-u" id="-uen"><strong>-uen</strong></th>
 
<th title="Click to collapse" class="first-row col-u" id="-ueng"><strong>-ueng</strong></th>
 
<th class="first-row last-col"></th>
 
</tr>
 
 
 
<tr><!--  R- ROW  -->
 
<th class="row-zhchshr first-col" id="r-"><strong>r-</strong></th>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-a col-placeholder"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-a"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-a"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-a" id="rao"><div class="table-pinyin">rao</div><div class="table-link">[[rao]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐɑʊ̯]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄠ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jao</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-a" id="ran"><div class="table-pinyin">ran</div><div class="table-link">[[ran]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐan]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄢ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jan</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-a" id="rang"><div class="table-pinyin">rang</div><div class="table-link">[[rang]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐɑŋ]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄤ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jang</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-e col-placeholder"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-e" id="re"><div class="table-pinyin">re</div><div class="table-link">[[re]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐɯ̯ʌ]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄜ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">je</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-e"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-e" id="ren"><div class="table-pinyin">ren</div><div class="table-link">[[ren]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐən]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄣ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jen</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-e" id="reng"><div class="table-pinyin">reng</div><div class="table-link">[[reng]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐəŋ]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄥ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jeng</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-e"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-o col-placeholder"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-o"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-o" id="rou"><div class="table-pinyin">rou</div><div class="table-link">[[rou]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐɤʊ̯]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄡ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jou</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-o" id="rong"><div class="table-pinyin">rong</div><div class="table-link">[[rong]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐʊŋ]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄨㄥ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jung</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i col-placeholder"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i" id="ri"><div class="table-pinyin">ri</div><div class="table-link">[[ri]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐʅ]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jih</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-i"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-u col-placeholder"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-u" id="ru"><div class="table-pinyin">ru</div><div class="table-link">[[ru]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐu]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄨ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">ju</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-u" id="rua"><div class="table-pinyin">rua</div><div class="table-link">[[rua]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐu̯ɑ]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄨㄚ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jua</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-u"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-u" id="rui"><div class="table-pinyin">rui</div><div class="table-link">[[rui]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐu̯eɪ̯]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄨㄟ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jui</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-u" id="ruo"><div class="table-pinyin">ruo</div><div class="table-link">[[ruo]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐu̯ɔ]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄨㄛ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jo</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-u" id="ruan"><div class="table-pinyin">ruan</div><div class="table-link">[[ruan]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐu̯an]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄨㄢ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">juan</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-u"></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-u" id="run"><div class="table-pinyin">run</div><div class="table-link">[[run]]</div><div class="table-ipa">[ʐu̯ən]</div><div class="table-zhuyin">ㄖㄨㄣ</div><div class="table-wade-giles">jun</div></td>
 
<td class="row-zhchshr col-u"></td>
 
<th class="row-zhchshr last-col" id="r-"><strong>r-</strong></th>
 
</tr>
 
</table></div>
 
 
 
 
{{#widget: Pinyin chart scripts}}
 
{{#widget: Pinyin chart scripts}}
  

Revision as of 02:03, 10 June 2015

Have you every noticed that the "r" sound is different in many foreign languages? English, Spanish, Russian, French, Japanese, German... the "r" sound is different in every one. Well, guess what? It's also different in Mandarin Chinese. Pinyin "r-" does not make the same sound as "r" in English. In fact, the Mandarin Chinese "r-" sound does not exist in English, so you're going to have to train yourself to make the sound.

Pinyin's "r" Sound

Like the ch-, sh-, and zh- sounds of last section, Mandarin Chinese's r- sound is also retroflex. That means the tip of your tongue should be pointed up toward the roof of your mouth, and also be rather far back in your mouth. That makes it quite different from the typical American "r" sound, which is pronounced by raising the middle of the tongue in the back of the mouth.

This may seem strange, but the Mandarin r- sound really is very similar to the ch-, sh-, and zh- sounds.

  • r- is pronounced by making the "French j" sound like in the words "leisure" and "pleasure". While making that sound, slowly pull the tip of your tongue further into the back of your mouth. The sound will start to sound less "buzzy" and more like an "r" sound. That's the Mandarin r- sound.
  • ri is an odd syllable because it almost feels like you're not making a vowel sound at all, or if you are, you're doing it kind of at the same time as the "r" sound. This sound rhymes with the zhi, chi, shi sounds of last section, and there's certainly no "ee" sound in it.

There is actually a range of acceptable "buzziness" for the r- sound in Chinese. You can't actually make the sound in the words "leisure" and "pleasure"; that's too "buzzy." But you don't have to pull your tongue so far back that the buzziness fades entirely.

Pinyin Chart Fragment

This is just a part of the full pinyin chart, limited to the sounds we've covered so far.

Tone: 1 2 3 4 1234 [Show more Settings]

Tone: 1 2 3 4 1234 [Show more Settings]

-a -ai -ao -an -ang -e -ei -en -eng -er -o -ou -ong -i -i* -ia -iao -ie -iou -ian -iang -in -ing -iong -u -ua -uai -uei -uo -uan -uang -uen -ueng
zh-
zha
zhai
zhao
zhan
zhang
zhe
zhei
zhen
zheng
zhou
zhong
zhi
zhu
zhua
zhuai
zhui
zhuo
zhuan
zhuang
zhun
zh-
ch-
cha
chai
chao
chan
chang
che
chen
cheng
chou
chong
chi
chu
chua
chuai
chui
chuo
chuan
chuang
chun
ch-
sh-
sha
shai
shao
shan
shang
she
shei
shen
sheng
shou
shi
shu
shua
shuai
shui
shuo
shuan
shuang
shun
sh-
r-
rao
ran
rang
re
ren
reng
rou
rong
ri
ru
rua
rui
ruo
ruan
run
r-
-a -ai -ao -an -ang -e -ei -en -eng -er -o -ou -ong -i -i* -ia -iao -ie -iou -ian -iang -in -ing -iong -u -ua -uai -uei -uo -uan -uang -uen -ueng

Next up: the "ü" vowel (you're almost finished!).

Sources and further reading