four tones; classical tones; Mandarin tones
Meanings
3 senses · 8 examplesnoun
the four tones in classical Chinese: level, rising, departing, and entering
Refers specifically to the tonal system of Middle Chinese and earlier, consisting of 平声 (level), 上声 (rising), 去声 (departing), and 入声 (entering/checked).
The four tones in Middle Chinese include level, rising, departing, and entering.
The 'four tones and eight defects' were important prosodic rules discovered during the Qi and Liang dynasties.
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The ancient four tones underwent tremendous changes when developing into Modern Standard Mandarin.
noun
the four tones in Modern Standard Mandarin: high level, rising, falling-rising, and falling
Refers to the four tones of Putonghua: 阴平 (high level, ˉ), 阳平 (rising, ˊ), 上声 (falling-rising, ˇ), and 去声 (falling, ˋ). Light tone (轻声) is excluded.
The four tones of Putonghua are high level, rising, falling-rising, and falling.
Learning the four tones is the most difficult part for foreigners.
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The four characters mā, má, mǎ, and mà perfectly represent the four tones.
noun
tones; tonal categories of Chinese characters (in general)
A general term referring to the tonal system or tone categories of Chinese characters, applicable across different dialects and historical periods.
Different dialects have different numbers of tones; some have four, while others have six or eight.
Tone differentiation of meaning refers to the phenomenon of using tonal changes to distinguish word meanings.