下午 (xiàwǔ) — afternoon / PM in Mandarin
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#1042 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
下午 is pronounced xiàwǔ. Tap any syllable’s row to hear the whole word.
In a sentence
Xiàwǔ wǒ qù chāoshì.
In the afternoon I go to the supermarket.
Hear it, then say it right
Reading pinyin only gets you halfway. ToneDeck plays native audio for 下午 and thousands more words, then scores your pronunciation so your tones land. HSK 1 is free, no install.
Start freeFrequently asked questions
What does 下午 mean?+
下午 (xiàwǔ) means "afternoon / PM" in Mandarin Chinese.
How do you pronounce 下午?+
下午 is pronounced xiàwǔ. It uses the tone 4 (falling), then the tone 3 (rising/dipping). Tap the character on this page to hear native audio.
How common is 下午 in Mandarin?+
下午 is the #1042 most frequent word in spoken Mandarin, so it is one of the first words worth learning.
Where 下午 fits
Every HSK 1 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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