Lesson 2: Learning the all important inclination and declination in tone - the four sounds

Hello again

This post is all about reinforcing the fact that the four sounds must be mastered before Mandarin can be fully understood.

The slight difference in the tone of the word can lead to a completely different meaning.

For Mandarin there are four sounds and are found on top of all vowels.

Examples:

1st sound is leveled 

2nd sound is inclined

3rd sound (ATTENTION) is in decline and then incline - this is the most challenging sound for non-Mandarin speakers to master. 

Fourth sound is declined. 

Allow this video to give you an insight- 

Follow the pronunciation and repeat as many times as you need until you feel comfortable

For practice, pronounce all the vowels in these four sounds. Repeat until you feel comfortable, especially with the 3rd Sound.