Chinese Polyphones 多音字 (duō yīn zì) are characters that have more than one pronunciation and meaning.
In this lesson you'll learn the meanings of commonly used polyphones and see how to pick the correct pronunciation—every time!
Summary Of These Common Chinese Polyphones From The Video Above
#1. 好："hǎo" or "hào"
❶ good: hǎo (3rd tone)
Examples:
hěn hǎo
很好
very good
tā de zhōng wén hěn hǎo.
他的中文很好。
His Chinese is very good.
hǎo yùn
好运
good luck
zhù nǐ hǎo yùn！
祝你好运！
Wish you good luck!
❷ to like / to be fond of: hào (4th tone)
Examples:
hào chī
好吃
to be fond of eating
wǒ de gǒu hěn hào chī.
我的狗很好吃。
My dog is fond of eating.
If you were to pronounce it as "hǎo chī" with a third tone, the meaning would be "tasty"
wǒ de gǒu hěn hǎo chī.
我的狗很好吃。
My dog is tasty.
hào dòng
好动
active
zhè gè nán hái hěn hào dòng.
这个男孩很好动。
This boy is very active.
#2. 了："le" or "liǎo"
❶ used as a particle: le
Examples:
tā zǒu le.
他走了。
He left.
wǒ mǎi le hěn duō qiǎo kè lì.
我买了很多巧克力。
I bought lots of chocolate.
❷ understand: liǎo
Examples:
liǎo jiě
了解
understand
wǒ liǎo jiě le.
我了解了。
I understand / understood.
nǐ liǎo jiě le ma？
你了解了吗？
Do you understand?
#3. 角：" jiǎo" or "jué"
❶ angle, corner: jiǎo
Examples:
sān jiǎo xíng
三角形
which literally means "three + angle + shape", that's a triangle.
zhōng wén jiǎo
中文角
Chinese corner
nǐ yǒu qù guò zhōng wén jiǎo liàn xí zhōng wén ma？
你有去过中文角练习中文吗？
Have you ever been to a Chinese corner to practice Chinese?
❷ jué: a role (in the movies, theater...)
Examples:
nán zhǔ jué
男主角
leading male role
nǚ zhǔ jué
女主角
leading female role
nǐ jué de zhè bù diàn yǐng de nán zhǔ jué zěn me yàng？
你觉得这部电影的男主角怎么样？
What do you think of the leading male role in this movie?
#4. 空："kōng" or "kòng"
Examples:
❶ empty: kōng
wǒ de qián bāo shì kōng de.
我的钱包是空的。
My wallet is empty.
❶ air, sky: kōng
Examples:
kōng qì
空气
air
kōng qì zhēn hǎo.
空气真好。
The air is so good.
kōng tiáo
空调
air conditioner
kōng tiáo huài le.
空调坏了。
The air conditioner is broken.
❷ kòng: unoccupied, free
Examples:
nà biān yǒu liǎng gè kòng zuò wèi，wǒ men qù nà biān zuò ba.
那边有两个空座位，我们去那边坐吧。
There are two unoccupied seats over there. Let's sit there.
nǐ shén me shí hòu yǒu kòng？
你什么时候有空？
When are you free?
#5. 乐："lè" or "yuè"
❶ lè: joyful, happy
Example:
shēng rì kuài lè！
生日快乐！
Happy birthday!
❷ yuè: music
Examples:
yīn yuè
音乐
music
nǐ xǐ huān tīng shén me yàng de yīn yuè？
你喜欢听什么样的音乐？
What kind of music do you like to listen to?
#6. 看："kàn" or "kān"
❶ kàn: to look, read
Examples:
kàn shū
看书
read books
nǐ xǐ huān kàn shū ma？
你喜欢看书吗？
Do you like to read books?
❷ to look after：kān
Examples:
kān hái zi
看孩子
look after a child
nǐ yào chū lái hē bēi kā fēi ma？
你要出来喝杯咖啡吗？
Would you like to come out for a cup of coffee?
bù xíng，wǒ yào zài jiā kān hái zi.
不行，我要在家看孩子。
No, I need to look after my child at home.
#7. 觉："jiào" or "jué"
❶ jiào: a nap, sleep
Examples:
shuì jiào
睡觉
to go to bed, to sleep
nǐ měi tiān wǎn shàng jǐ diǎn shuì jiào？
你每天晚上几点睡觉？
What time do you go to bed every night?
❷ to feel, to think: jué
Examples:
jué de
觉得
to think
wǒ jué de nǐ yīng gāi zǎo diǎn shuì jiào.
我觉得你应该早点睡觉。
I think you should go to bed a bit early.
#8. 和："hé", "hè or "huó"
❶ and, with: hé
Examples:
nǐ hé wǒ dōu xǐ huān zuò fàn.
你和我都喜欢做饭。
You and I both like to cook.
nǐ yào hé wǒ yī qǐ sàn bù ma？
你要和我一起散步吗？
Do you want to go for a walk with me?
❷ to join in: hè
Examples:
hè chàng
和唱
to join in the singing
tā men hè chàng zhe.
他们和唱着。
They are joining the singing
❸ to mix, to blend: huó
Examples:
huó miàn
和面
to knead dough (for bread)
huó miàn jī
和面机
kneading machine
yǒu le huó miàn jī，huó miàn jiù shěng shì le.
有了和面机，和面就省事了。
With the kneading machine, kneading dough is easy.
#9. 行："xíng" or "háng"
❶ xíng: OK
Example:
xíng， wǒ lái zuò.
行，我来做。
OK, I will do it.
❷ xíng: to go, to move
Examples:
bù xíng
步行
to walk
xíng xíng xíng， wǒ men xià gè yuè yī qǐ lǚ xíng.
行行行，我们下个月一起旅行。
OK, we will travel together next month.
❶ háng: a row
Example:
wǒ de zuò wèi shì bā háng D.
我的座位是八行D。
My seat is 8D. (the 8th row, seat D)
❷ háng: profession, business
Examples:
yín háng
银行
bank
xíng， wǒ men míng tiān sān diǎn yín háng jiàn.
行，我们明天三点银行见。
OK, see you at the bank tomorrow at 3 o'clock.
#10. 会："huì" or "kuài"
❶ huì: going to, will
Example:
nǐ huì lái ma?
你会来吗?
Will you come?
❷ huì: can
Example:
wǒ huì kāi chē.
我会开车。
I can drive.
❸ huì: meeting
Example:
míng tiān jǐ diǎn kāi huì？
明天几点开会？
What time is the meeting tomorrow?
❷ kuài: It's related to computing or calculating.
Examples:
kuài jì
会计
accountant
nǐ bǎ fā piào fā gěi kuài jì le ma？
你把发票发给会计了吗？
Have you sent the invoice to the accountant?
#11. 着："zhe", "zháo", "zhuó" or "zhāo"
❶ zhe: the action or the state is ongoing
Examples:
kàn zhe
看着
be looking, be watching
tā kàn zhe dà hǎi.
她看着大海。
She is looking at the sea.
hē zhe
喝着
drinking
wǒ hē zhe kā fēi.
我喝着咖啡。
I'm drinking coffee.
❷ zháo: "to burn" as in "着火 zháo huǒ"
Examples:
zháo huǒ
着火
on fire
fáng zi zháo huǒ le.
房子着火了。
The house is on fire.
❷ zháo: to fall asleep
Examples:
shuì zháo
睡着
fall asleep
tā zhōng yú shuì zháo le.
他终于睡着了。
He finally fell asleep.
❸ zháo: to wear clothing
Example:
tā shēn zhuó yī jiàn bái sè de T xù shān.
他身着一件白色的T恤衫。
He is wearing a white T-shirt.
❸ zhāo: move (noun)
Example:
bié zǒu cuò yī zhāo.
别走错一着。
Don't make a wrong move.
#12. 长："cháng" or "zhǎng"
❶ cháng: long
Examples:
duō cháng
多长
how long
zhè gè shā fā duō cháng？
这个沙发多长？
How long is this sofa?
cháng tóu fa
长头发
long hair
nǐ xǐ huān nǚ hái zi liú cháng tóu fa hái shì duǎn tóu fa？
你喜欢女孩子留长头发还是短头发？
Do you prefer girls with long hair or short hair?
❶ zhǎng: "to grow" or "to increase in value”
Examples:
nǐ mǎi de gǔ piào zhǎng le ma？
你买的股票长了吗？
Has the stock you bought increased in value?
zhǎng dà
长大
grow/ grow up
xī hóng shì， xī hóng shì， nǐ kuài kuài zhǎng dà.
西红柿，西红柿，你快快长大。
Tomatoes, tomatoes, please grow quickly.
❷ zhǎng: refer to a person of more senior status
Examples:
xué zhǎng
学长
senior or older schoolmate
dǒng shì zhǎng
董事长
chairman
dǒng shì zhǎng shì wǒ de xué zhǎng.
董事长是我的学长。
The chairman was my senior schoolmate.
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