"j," "q," or "x" in Mandarin is always followed immediately by either "i" or "ü" (in unit 6).
When "j," "q," or "x" is followed by "i," the shape of the lips are flat, not rounded. That is, the corners of the mouth should be pulled back.
For example, when "j" is followed by "i," the pronunciation of "ji" can be considered similar to the pronunciation of gee is English; however, the shape of the lips should be flat, not rounded.
Although "j, q, x" are basically considered sounds pronounced without lip rounding, when they are followed by "ü," the shape of the lips will be rounded. This is because "ü" itself is pronounced with the lips being rounded. For unit 6 for the pronunciation of "ü."
jī, jí, jǐ, jì.
Although "j, q, x" are basically considered sounds pronounced without lip rounding, when they are followed by "ü," the shape of the lips will be rounded. This is because "ü" itself is pronounced with the lips being rounded. For unit 6 for the pronunciation of "ü."
The difference between "q" and "j" lies in whether there is air coming out of the mouth. No air comes out of the mouth when "j" is pronounced, but there should be air coming out of the mouth when "q" is pronounced.
Therefore, the pronunciation of "qi" can be considered similar to the pronunciation of English word cheese (minus the s sound), except that there is no lip rounding when "qi" is pronounced.
qī, qí, qǐ, qì.
When "x" is pronounced, there is some space between the tongue and the roof of the mouth, and air is pushed out of the mouth from this space.
Therefore, the pronunciation of "xi" can be considered similar to the pronunciation of English word she, except that there is no lip rounding when "xi" is pronounced.
xī, xí, xǐ, xì.
"e" in the compound final "ie" is pronounced differently from when "e" is pronounced as a stand-alone vowel (a simple final). See unit 1 for the pronunciation of "e."
When "e" in "ie" is pronounced, the position of the tongue is not as close to the roof of the mouth as when "e" is a simple vowel.
For example, "ie" is considered similar to English word yes (minus the s sound).
yē, yé, yě, yè
When "ie" is not following an initial, it is written as "ye."
"iao" is a combination of "i" and "ao." See unit 1 for the pronunciation of "ao."
yāo, yáo, yǎo, yào
When "iao" is not following an initial, it is written as "yao."
"in" in Mandarin is not the same as in in English since "i" in Mandarin is closer to ee in bee.
For example, "bin" in Mandarin is closer to bean in English than it is to bin in English.
bīn, bín, bǐn, bìn
When "in" is not following an initial, it is written as "yin."
yīn, yín, yǐn, yìn
"ing" is the combination of "i" and "ng."
When "ing" is not following an initial, it is written as "ying."
yīng, yíng, yǐng, yìng
