When tones match meaning: a list.
barryb
February 27, 2008, 12:48 AM posted in General DiscussionI can't remember much without mnemonics. In "Hot Soup" John suggested thinking of soups's level surface to remember tang is tone 1. Yes! and the bowl is shaped like a tone 3, which helps with wan3. That got me looking for other happy coincidences and I made a list.
As Nicolas says, mnemonics work better if you build a picture in your mind.
Please add, comment and correct . We can make a list of all kinds of mnemonics somewhere more permanent, if people think it's worth it.
TONE 1 (level, smooth, gliding, on and on....)
汤 - tang1 - soup - imagine flat surface of soup (from John, of course)
班 - ban1 - work, shift - endless monotonous shift, going on forever
真丝 - zhen1 si1 - real silk - smooth flat bed-sheets
风 - feng1 - wind - imagine wind blowing for days over the endless flat prairie
冰 - bing1 - ice - smooth as a skating rink
张 - zhang1 - measure word for flat objects
支 - zhi1 - measure word for cigarettes (a ciggie looks like a 1)
书 - shu1 - book - nice smooth flat pages
桌子 - zhuo1zi - table - smooth flat table-top
飞机 - fei1ji1 - aeroplane - gliding high-up across the sky
出租车 - chu1zu1che1 - taxi - serenely gliding past in the taffic, ignoring you as you try to hail it
香蕉 - xiang1jiao1 - banana - EU considered a law that bananas must be straight (honest!)
刀 - dao1 - knife - looks like a "1"
叉 - cha1 - fork - goes with knife and looks a bit like a "1"
TONE 2 (up....)
床 - chuang2 - bed - imagine bed spring popping UP! (sounds like it, too! Thanks, Bazza!)
鱼 - yu2 - fish - shark's fin sticking UP out of water looks like tone 2
银行 - yin2hang2 - bank - imagine holding UP the bank. If you get caught, you'll hang (sorry, puns again)
忙 - mang2 - busy - imagine work piling UP on the desk, UP to your eyeballs
孩子 - hai2zi - child - children grow UP (too fast)
男 - nan2 - male - think of arrow pointing UP from circle in scientific symbol for male
瓶 - ping2 - bottle - cork popping UP out of champagne bottle
糖 - tang2 - sugar, candy - kid reaches UP for sweets (thanks, Nicolas!)
谈 - tan2 - chat - chat her UP
牛 - niu2 - cow - imagine horns sticking UP (you)
羊 - yang2 - sheep - imagine horns sticking UP (you)
茶 - cha2 - tea - when nice English ladies drink tea from tea-cups their little fingers stick UP (British will recognise this)
船 - chuan2 - ship - sails UP onto the high-seas
TONE 3 (U-shaped, wave-shaped, up and down, swaying, undulating...)
碗 - wan3 - bowl - shaped like tone 3!
等 - deng3 - to wait - pacing up and down as you wait
酒 - jiu3 - wine, alcohol - a drunkard swaying, staggering
果 - guo3 - fruit - swinging in the trees in the breeze
吵 - chao3 - noisy - think of sound waves on an oscilloscope
炒 - chao3 - stir-fry - wildly toss veg around in the pan
饼 - bing3 - pancake - up & down & up & down as you toss it
狗 - gou3 - dog - tail wagging
马 - ma3 - horse - shape of a horse's back
死 - si3 - dead, to die - tone is shape of a grave
烤 - kao3 - roast - big fat pig turning on the spit
脑 - nao3 - brain - imagine running your finger over the over the undulating surface of a brain, up and down over the wet bumps and wrinkles, ugh!
懂 - dong3 - understand - in the wrinkled brain
想 - xiang3 - think - in the wrinkled brain
笔 - bi3 - pen - pen-top moves up and down as you write
写 - xie3 - write - pen-top moves up and down as you write
奶 - nai3 - milk - tone 3 is breast-shaped
whuich also helps with
母 - mu3 - mother
姐姐 - jie3jie - big sister
两 - liang3 - two, a pair
女 - nu3 - female
美 - mei3 - beautiful
喜欢 - xi3huan - to like - tone 3 is shaped like a big grin!
水 - shui3 - water - waves on sea, ripples on stream
海 - hai3 sea, ocean - with waves
老鼠 - lao3shu3 - rat, mouse - caged lab rat/white mouse running in its wheel
腿 - tui3 - legs - backwards & forwards, up & down, running, walking, cycling
走 - zou3 - walk - legs go backwards and forwards
跑 - pao3 - run - legs go backwards and forwards
躺 - tang3 - to lie down - when I lie down, my old bed makes a U curve (thanks, Nicolas!)
火 - huo3 - fire - flames flickering
角 - jiao3 - corner - tone 3 is corner shape(ish)
鸟 - niao3 - bird - flapping its wings
苦 - ku3 - bitter - face wrinkles at bitter taste
冷 - leng3 - cold - shivering, jumping up and down to keep warm
雪 - xue3 - snow - ???? all I can think of is the Hydrological Cycle
雨 - yu3 - rain - ???? all I can think of is the Hydrological Cycle
早 - zao3 - early - staggering out of bed
找 - zhao3 - to look for - up & down, backwards & forwards, searching everywhere
老 - lao3 - old - and wrinkled, unsteady on feet
TONE 4 (down....)
肚子 - du4zi - belly - big beer-belly hanging DOWN over belt
胖 - pang4 - fat - rolls of fat hanging DOWN
电 - dian4 - lightning, electric - lightning striking DOWN
动物 - dong4wu4 - animals - our four-legged friends - most have four legs.
烫 - tang4 - hot - soup is so hot that I quickly put DOWN the bowl on the table (thanks, Nicolas!)
刻 - ke4 - quarter (of an hour) - one-fourth
半 - ban4 - half - axe coming DOWN to chop you in half
慢 - man4 - slow - you're in a car with a mad driver, you shout: slow DOWN!
太太 - tai4tai - Mrs, wife - always puts her foot DOWN
钥匙 - yao4shi - key - ???????
最后 - zui hou - the last - 4th tone is the last tone
坐 - zuo4 - sit (DOWN)
坏 - huai4 - broken, not working - computer's DOWN again
弟弟 - di4di - little brother - big brother looks DOWN at him
妹妹 - mei4mei- little sister - the smallest, whole family looks DOWN at her
怕 - pa4 - afraid - police shouting: get DOWN!!!!
睡 - shui4 - sleep - lie DOWN to sleep
信 - xin4 - letter - imagine it dropping DOWN into letter box, onto your doormat
站 - zhan4 - bus-stop, station, a halt - bus slows DOWN to stop
住 - zhu4 (zai) - live (at) - put DOWN roots
病 - bing4 - illness - you go DOWN with an illness, it lays you low, linked to li - pill4; 药 - yao4 - medicine; pian4 - tablet - imagine the nasty feeling as you swallow and they scrape DOWN your throat.
忘 - wang4 - to forget - you put something DOWN and forget it (I always do)
对 - dui4 - yes, correct - nod your head
MULTIPLE
厕所 - ce4suo3 - toilet - you press the handle and the water comes down the pipe and round the U-bend
周末 - zhou1mo4 - weekend - party on party on party on party on... fall over!
城市 - cheng2shi4 - city - rise and fall of Rome
自行车 - zi4xing2che1 - bicycle - setting off, you push the peddle down, the peddle comes up again and off you glide
白米饭 - bai2mi3fan4 - boiled rice - you lift it to your mouth, you chew, you swallow
I don't know if my mnemonics are much help to other people. (Mnemonic puns weren't, even though I've learned over 100 words with that technique.) Some are a little (!) far-fetched. Maybe my brain's just odd. Even if nobody's interested, posting them helps me remember, and if the thread just dies, no problem.
helenaoutloud
February 27, 2008, 01:24 AMHey! This is pretty neat! Thanks ^_^
brokenwindow
March 01, 2008, 02:47 PMThank you soo much. I don't forget the tones that often, but still, you mnemonics are really inventive and helpful. Don't worry about them being far-fetched, ever tried to find mnemonics for hanzi that differ only by one radical ;-) ?
bazza
March 01, 2008, 07:01 PMExcellent idea.
barryb
March 02, 2008, 06:38 PMThanks for the kind words. It was John's idea. I've just noticed that I spelt bike pedal as peddle. Freudian slip? I probably feel a bit guilty about pushing my thoughts, I feel like a peddlar. Never mind, here are some more: TONE 1 (level, smooth, gliding, on and on....): 烟 - yan1 - cigarette - looks like a 1 烟囱 - yan1cong1 - chimney - looks like a 1 先 - xian1 - first - (happy coincidence!) 灯 - deng1 - lamp,light - think of a flourescent strip burning your eyes like a horizontal tone1 on the ceiling 开灯，关灯 - kai1deng1,guan1deng1 - turn light on, off - a light turning on & off won First Prize in Turner Arts Competition for contemporary art in London. B***ocks! 帮 - bang1 - to help - 1st aid TONE 2 (up....): 盐 - yan2 - salt - too much salt & UP goes your blood pressure 油 - you2 - oil - too much oil & UP goes your weight TONE 3 (U-shaped, wave-shaped, up and down, swaying, undulating...): 嘴 - zui3 - mouth - tone3 is like a smiling mouth 椅子 - yi3zi - chair - runners on rocking chair are tone3s, imagine the chair rocking up & down 指 - zhi3 - finger - imagine a curled gnarled finger beckoning from a doorway. Should you go? Is it safe? 午 - wu3 - noon - tone 3 is like a hammock, you lie down in your hammock for a midday nap 脚 - jiao3 - foot - backwards & forwards, up & down, running, walking, cycling (cf above tui3 - leg) TONE 4 (down....); 树 - shu4 - tree - lumberjack shouts "TIMBER!" as a huge tree crashes DOWN 裤子 - ku4zi - trousers/pants - imagine your pants falling down in public, or being caught with pants DOWN. You never forget severe embarrassment. 累 - lei4 - tired - you fall DOWN exhausted 蛋 - dan4 - egg - when the hen lays the egg, it drops DOWN out of hen onto ground. Will it break? MULTIPLE: 礼物 - li3wu4 - present - Santa swoops from one house to the next on his sleigh & drops presents down the chimney. Li3wu4, li3wu4, li3wu4... 礼貌 - li3mao4 - polite - Walter Raleigh greeting the queen: florish of the hand, then a bow 方便 - fang1bian4 - convenient - desparate, you skid across the wet floor of the public convenience & sit (sic.) down on the bowl. Just in time! 跳舞 - tiao4wu3 - dance - get DOWN on the dance floor and bop 房间 - fang2jian1 - room - you finally reach the hotel after a tiring journey. What do you do? Go UP to your room & lie flat-out on the bed, like a human tone1 神经病 - shen2jing1bing4 - crazy - remember Evel Knievel? Crazy motorbike stunts and jumps!! He shoots UP the ramp, glides over 10 buses, crashes DOWN to earth. Insane!
rich
March 02, 2008, 11:28 PMnice. I used to do things like this too when I started learning. Wish I could remember them... let me think...
barryb
March 11, 2008, 02:04 AMTONE 1 (level, smooth, gliding, on and on....): 垃圾 - la1ji1 - litter, trash - blowing out of a skip/bin/trashcan straight into your face 扔 - reng1 - to throw - 90 mile an hour baseball flying straight from pitcher's hand to your face 亲 - qin1 - to kiss - a kiss so ecstatic your feet don't touch the ground, you're floating horizontally, like a big tone 1 (thanks, Chagall, your pictures make me happy) 哭 - ku1 - to cry - stretched out sobbing on the bed, prostrate with grief TONE 2 (up....): 前 - qian2 - front - a front: keeping UP appearances TONE 3 (U-shaped, wave-shaped, up and down, swaying, undulating...): 鬼 - gui3 - ghost - kids playing ghosts: wavering "woo woo" ghostie noises, sheet flapping etc. 橄榄 - gan3lan3 - olive - two tone3s, like an olive chopped in half 扫 - sao3 - to sweep - tone3 shape is like motion of sweeping TONE 4 (down....): 就是 - jiu4shi4 - precisely - it's pinned DOWN precisely 看电视 - kan4dian4shi4 - to watch TV - flop DOWN exhausted in front of the telly and slob out MULTIPLE: 香港 - xiang1gang3 - Hong Kong - there's the level pier, there's the choppy water in the harbour 比赛 - bi3sai4 - competition, race - School Sports Day: you jog along, then you fall over exhausted 情人节 - qing2ren2jie2 - Valentine's Day - you never learn, every year you get your hopes UP,UP,UP, time after time after time. 约会 - yue1hui4 - (romantic) date - it all goes so smoothly, then you let her DOWN 决定 - jue2ding4 - to decide - decide by tossing a coin: it goes UP, then DOWN ("ding" sounds like a coin landing) 无所谓 - wu2suo3wei4 - doesn't matter - it's a lazy Sunday: get up, walk around, go back to bed. And it doesn't matter... zzzz 干净 - gan1jing4 - clean - like in the ads, to get your grimy kitchen sparkling clean: one swipe over the kitchen worktop/counter(?US) with the magic cloth and throw it in the bin/trashcan, that's all it takes
acongftu
March 11, 2008, 04:03 AMthankyou very much!!
annk
February 27, 2008, 12:57 AMI love it! Thanks. Tones are definitely the hardest for me and I could never find a way to remember them. Oh, I'm fine studying alone at home, but as soon as the teacher asks a question they fly away! Maybe these images will help the tones stick!