Tone change rules

Also known as: tone sandhi and 变调规则 (biàndiào guīzé).

There are certain circumstances under which a Chinese word or character's normal tone will regularly change to a specific different tone. These tone changes (also called tone sandhi) must be learned in order to pronounce Chinese correctly.

There are three main tone change rules that every learner needs to know. These rules are not normally reflected in the tone marks of pinyin; you just have to know them.

Tone Changes for 不 (bù)

When followed by a 4th tone, 不 (bù) changes to 2nd tone (bú).

Tone Changes for 一 (yī)

When followed by a 4th tone, ⼀ (yī) changes to 4th tone (yì).

When followed by any other tone, ⼀ (yī) changes to 2nd tone (yí).

Tone Changes for Multiple Third Tones

When a 3rd tone (e.g. “yě”) is followed by another 3rd tone in a group, the first 3rd tone changes to a 2nd tone (e.g. “yé”).

Why Tone Changes Are Not Written

Normally the tone changes above are not written in the pinyin; you are supposed to just know the rule and apply it if you say the word(s) aloud. The reason for this is that in many cases if the tone change is written, you will be confused as to what the “normal” tone of a character is actually supposed to be. For example, you might wonder, “is this a third tone written as a second tone because it’s followed by a third tone, or is this character always a second tone?” Always writing the original tones solves this problem. But it also means that you really need to know your tone change rules. Learn them well!

Sources and further reading

• Wikipedia: Tone sandhi: Mandarin Chinese