手机 (shǒu jī) — cell phone in Mandarin
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#433 most common word · HSK 2 · CEFR A2
Pinyin colour key: tone 1 (high flat), tone 2 (rising), tone 3 (dipping), tone 4 (falling), neutral.
Tone breakdown
手机 is pronounced shǒu jī. Tap any syllable’s row to hear the whole word.
In a sentence
Wǒ de shǒu jī zài jiā lǐ.
My cell phone is at home.
Hear it, then say it right
Reading pinyin only gets you halfway. ToneDeck plays native audio for 手机 and thousands more words, then scores your pronunciation so your tones land. HSK 1 is free, no install.
Start freeFrequently asked questions
What does 手机 mean?+
手机 (shǒu jī) means "cell phone" in Mandarin Chinese.
How do you pronounce 手机?+
手机 is pronounced shǒu jī. It uses the tone 3 (rising/dipping), then the tone 1 (high flat). Tap the character on this page to hear native audio.
How common is 手机 in Mandarin?+
手机 is the #433 most frequent word in spoken Mandarin, so it is one of the first words worth learning.
Where 手机 fits
Every HSK 2 word with tone-coloured pinyin and audio.
Words at a similar frequency
Master the tones first
What each tone sounds like and why it matters.
Why some tones change in connected speech.
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Browse more on the Mandarin vocabulary hub, or read how to learn Mandarin tones.