Second tone Mandarin words (má)

Tone 2 · Rising · 阳平 yángpíng

má

“hemp / numb” — the second tone on the syllable ma. Tap to hear it.

The second tone is rising. The second tone rises from the middle of your range up towards the top, the way your voice climbs at the end of a question in English. Think of an incredulous 'Me?'. The key is a clear, continuous climb - it should clearly end higher than it started.

Below are the 216 single-syllable Mandarin words that carry the second tone in our deck, ordered most-common-first. Each shows tone-coloured pinyin and its meaning — tap the character to hear it, and follow the link to a full word page where one exists.

Pinyin colour key: tone 1 (high flat), tone 2 (rising), tone 3 (dipping), tone 4 (falling), neutral.

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All 216 second-tone words

not; to not have; there is no

Long thin item (classifier)

strong; powerful; better

layer; floor; classifier for layers

máng

Busy

luó

gauze; to collect; to sift

office; bureau; situation; round

liú

to leave (a message etc)

lín

Forest

qíng

feeling; emotion; situation

chuán

Ship

píng

flat

fáng

Room

shí

ten

hé

river

cháo

toward; facing; dynasty

tí

question; problem; title

péi

to accompany

tíng

Stop

huá

China

zhí

Straight

píng

to rely on; on the basis of

jué

Absolutely

qiáng

wall

ní

Buddhist nun; used in transliteration

jí

Urgent

lián

Join

chá

tea

wéi

to maintain; dimension

lán

blue

qiáo

bridge

táo

to escape

qí

Odd

hé

What

jué

Decide

qí

to ride

yín

silver

rán

so; correct; like that

qiáo

to look at

pí

Skin

shí

Stone

láng

wolf

fú

Blessing

táng

sugar

jí

Lucky

lán

Orchid

yóu

Tour

zhá

to deep-fry

cún

to exist

shé

snake

téng

hurts; sore

zá

to smash

léi

Thunder

yé

final particle expressing enthusiasm; classical question particle

shí

Knowledge

wén

to hear

zéi

thief

dú

Independent

fú

Clothes

shén

what (only in 什么)

lái

goosefoot (plant)

qióng

poor

yán

salt

chéng

to ride; to take (transportation)

yuán

circle

yán

Strict

Fó

Buddha

kuáng

Mad

xié

shoe

shé

to snap

jué

Feel

qiáo

tall; surname Qiao

báo

thin

chéng

to bear; to undertake; to receive

tián

sweet

fú

width

méi

classifier for coins, medals, rings, and missiles

fán

Bother

bó

líng

Spirit

fú

not (literary)

fú

to support with the hand

dí

jié

Outstanding

zán

lún

human relations; order; logic

yíng

Welcome

huái

Bosom

tái

to lift

tóng

copper

xián

to dislike

zé

Responsibility

mó

membrane

xié

Evil

pá

to steal; to crawl; to braise

xián

bow string

lí

pear

nóng

concentrated

róu

to knead

héng

horizontal

yáo

to shake

áo

to endure; to stew slowly

cháng

to taste; to try

wán

ball

xié

Oblique

má

Hemp

shí

to pick up

qíng

clear

xián

salty

féng

to meet by chance

zé

Choose

chuí

hammer

káng

to carry on one's shoulder

hú

pot

chéng

orange tree

lán

to block sb's path

líng

bell

táo

peach

chán

gluttonous

cóng

cluster

níng

to pinch

nuó

to shift

pén

basin

xié

Threaten

xié

Harmonious

lín

to sprinkle

qué

lame

xiá

rose-tinted sky or clouds at sunrise or sunset

béng

need not; please don't

qú

used in 砗磲 (giant clam)

yú

Frequently asked questions

What is the second tone in Mandarin?+

The second tone (阳平 yángpíng) is rising, pitch 35 (mid rising). The second tone rises from the middle of your range up towards the top, the way your voice climbs at the end of a question in English. Think of an incredulous 'Me?'. The key is a clear, continuous climb - it should clearly end higher than it started.

What are some second-tone words in Chinese?+

This page lists 216 single-syllable second-tone words ranked by frequency. The most common include hé (和, and; with), rén (人, person), nián (年, year), lái (来, to come).

How do I practise the second tone?+

Hear it, then say it. Tap any word above to play native audio for the second tone, then repeat it. ToneDeck scores your pronunciation so you know when the contour is right.

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