失败 (shī bài) — to be defeated in Mandarin
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#853 most common word · HSK 4 · CEFR B2
Pinyin colour key: tone 1 (high flat), tone 2 (rising), tone 3 (dipping), tone 4 (falling), neutral.
Tone breakdown
失败 is pronounced shī bài. Tap any syllable’s row to hear the whole word.
In a sentence
tā dì yī cì shī bài le.
He failed for the first time.
Hear it, then say it right
Reading pinyin only gets you halfway. ToneDeck plays native audio for 失败 and thousands more words, then scores your pronunciation so your tones land. HSK 1 is free, no install.
Start freeFrequently asked questions
What does 失败 mean?+
失败 (shī bài) means "to be defeated" in Mandarin Chinese.
How do you pronounce 失败?+
失败 is pronounced shī bài. It uses the tone 1 (high flat), then the tone 4 (falling). Tap the character on this page to hear native audio.
How common is 失败 in Mandarin?+
失败 is the #853 most frequent word in spoken Mandarin, so it is one of the first words worth learning.
Where 失败 fits
Every HSK 4 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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