Chinese (Mandarin)/Lesson 17

Lesson 17: Common heteronyms in Chinese 基础多音字/基礎多音字 You might notice in some character in Chinese, for example, 長, has two pronunciation. Just like English, Chinese also has heteronym. Today, we are going to learn some basic heteronym in Chinese! What are heteronyms? Heteronym is a word which has two different pronunciation with two meaning. In English, for example, the word "tear" can mean liquid from the eyes, but it can also mean to rip. In Chinese, heteronyms are called 多音字(duōyīnzì) or 破音字(pòyīnzì). List of common heteronyms in Chinese Simplified (简) Traditional (繁) Pinyin 1 Meaning 1 Pinyin 2 Meaning 2 长 長 cháng Long zhǎng To grow / Leader 行 行 xíng To walk / Okay háng Row / Profession 得 得 dé To get / obtain děi Must / have to 还 還 hái Still / also huán To return / give back 好 好 hǎo Good / fine hào To like / be fond of 乐 樂 lè Happy / fun yuè Music 觉 覺 jué To feel / sense jiào Sleep 看 看 kàn To look / watch kān To guard / look after 少 少 shǎo Few / less shào Young 便 便 biàn Convenient pián Cheap (as in 便宜) 重 重 zhòng Heavy chóng Repeat / again 发 發 fā To send / develop fà Hair (stylized as 髮) 调 調 tiáo To adjust / mix diào Tone / melody / transfer 切 切 qiē To cut / slice qiè Close to / urgent More than two Pronunciation 著/着 zhe — The Continuous "-ing" zháo — The Successful Result zhuó — To Wear or Apply zhù — To Write or Manifest zhāo — The Move or Trick