Pinyin Pronunciation Chart - Consonants
Pinyin Consonants
After learning vowels, we now move on to the 23 consonants in pinyin. Compared to vowels, pinyin consonants are a lot easier, because most of them have similar (not necessarily the same) pronunciation to those in English. Leat's learn the pronunciation of pinyin consonants with this pinyin chart.
| Consonants | As in English | Sound |
|---|---|---|
| b | boy | |
| p | pay | |
| m | mandarin | |
| f | fair | |
| d | dog | |
| t | teacher | |
| n | name | |
| l | love | |
| g | game | |
| k | kid | |
| h | head | |
| j | -- | |
| q | -- | |
| x | -- | |
| z | zoo | |
| c | hats | |
| s | say | |
| zh | jam | |
| ch | China | |
| sh | shine | |
| r | red | |
| y | yes | |
| w | way |
Tips for Pronouncing Pinyin Consonants
Even though pinyin consonants are similar to those in English, there is slight difference. When pronouncing pinyin consonants, we often put vowels after them, which can help deliver the sound more clearly.
E.g.
For those who are learning pinyin, zh, ch and sh may be difficult. They are similar to j, q and x, but strictly different. zh, ch and sh start with j, q and x sounds respectively but all end with the tongue curling up a little bit.
DonĄ¯t worry if you canĄ¯t get them right the first time. As always, imitating a native Chinese speaker as in the pinyin pronunciation chart is the best way to learn pinyin.
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