Tone pair 1-2

This page will cover some examples of the 1-2 tone pair, which Sinosplice rates as a "5" on a difficulty rating of 1-7 (easiest to hardest).

This one's a little difficult. 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.

1-2 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
play	中国	Yīngguó	China
play	英国	Yīngguó	the United Kingdom
play	经常	jīngcháng	often
play	今年	jīnnián	this year
play	公园	gōngyuán	public park

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

1-2 Tone Pair Phrases (B1)

Audio	Chinese	Pinyin	English
play	回英国	huí Yīngguó	to return to the UK
play	来中国	lái Zhōngguó	to come to China
play	经常来中国	jīngcháng lái Zhōngguó	to often come to China
play	中国和英国	Zhōngguó hé Yīngguó	China and the UK
play	来中国生活	lái Zhōngguó shēnghuó	to come to China to live

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

1-2 Tone Pair Combos

Audio	Chinese	Pinyin	English
play	真油	zhēn yóu	really oily
play	真长	zhēn cháng	really long
play	真红	zhēn hóng	really red
play	真难	zhēn nán	really hard
play	真忙	zhēn máng	really busy

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

Sources and further reading

Videos

• AllSet Learning video on YouTube: Chinese Pronunciation Practice: A2 Tone Pair 1-2
• AllSet Learning video on YouTube: Chinese Pronunciation Practice: B1 Tone Pair 1-2

Websites

• Sinosplice: The Process Of Learning Tones
• Sinosplice: Mandarin Chinese Tone Pair Drills, New Feature: Mandarin Chinese Tone Pair Drills
• Hacking Chinese: Focusing on tone pairs to improve your Mandarin pronunciation
• About.com: How tone pairs can improve your Mandarin pronunciation

B1 pronunciation points