How to say “I am hungry” in Chinese
Pinyin colour key: tone 1 (high flat), tone 2 (rising), tone 3 (dipping), tone 4 (falling), neutral.
Word by word
Tone tip
了 (le) here signals a new state - 'I've become hungry'. Swap 饿 for 渴 (kě) to say 我渴了, 'I'm thirsty'.
In a sentence
我饿了，我们去吃饭吧。
Wǒ è le, wǒmen qù chīfàn ba.
I'm hungry, let's go and eat.
Hear it and say it right
Reading pinyin only gets you halfway. ToneDeck plays native audio and scores your pronunciation so your tones land. HSK 1 is free, no install.
Start freeFrequently asked questions
How do you say "I am hungry" in Chinese?+
"I am hungry" in Mandarin Chinese is 我饿了, pronounced wǒ è le. 了 (le) here signals a new state - 'I've become hungry'. Swap 饿 for 渴 (kě) to say 我渴了, 'I'm thirsty'.
What does 我饿了 mean literally?+
我饿了 breaks down as 我 (wǒ) = I, 饿 (è) = hungry, 了 (le) = (change of state). Together it means "I am hungry".
How do I get the tones right in wǒ è le?+
了 (le) here signals a new state - 'I've become hungry'. Swap 饿 for 渴 (kě) to say 我渴了, 'I'm thirsty'.
More phrases like this
Master the tones behind it
What each tone sounds like and why it matters.
Why some tones change in connected speech.
Coming to iOS & Android
The mobile app is on the way. The trainer works right now.
ToneDeck for iPhone and Android is launching soon, and your progress syncs across every device. Meanwhile the full tone trainer runs in your browser today — no install, free to start.
See all the phrases on the how to say things in Chinese index, or read how to learn Mandarin tones.