爸爸 (bàba) — father in Mandarin

bà​ba
“father”

🔊 Tap to hear it

#1325 most common word · HSK 1 · CEFR A1

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

Tone breakdown

爸爸 is pronounced bàba. Tap any syllable’s row to hear the whole word.

bà
fourth tone (sharp falling, ˋ)
ba
neutral tone (light & unstressed)

In a sentence

wǒ bàba hǎo

My father is good.

Hear it, then say it right

Reading pinyin only gets you halfway. ToneDeck plays native audio for 爸爸 and thousands more words, then scores your pronunciation so your tones land. HSK 1 is free, no install.

Start free

Frequently asked questions

What does 爸爸 mean?+

爸爸 (bàba) means "father" in Mandarin Chinese.

How do you pronounce 爸爸?+

爸爸 is pronounced bàba. It uses the tone 4 (falling). Tap the character on this page to hear native audio.

How common is 爸爸 in Mandarin?+

爸爸 is the #1325 most frequent word in spoken Mandarin, so it is one of the first words worth learning.

Where 爸爸 fits

HSK 1 · CEFR A1
See the full HSK 1 vocabulary list

Every HSK 1 word with tone-coloured pinyin and audio.

Words at a similar frequency

Master the tones first

On iPhone, Android and the web

ToneDeck is on the App Store. The trainer works right now.

Download ToneDeck for iPhone or Android today. One account unlocks Pro on both the app and the web. Prefer the browser? The full tone trainer runs at tonedeck.app right now, no install, free to start.

Sign up free and start training

Browse more on the Mandarin vocabulary hub, or read how to learn Mandarin tones.