Definition
声调 refers specifically to the pitch contour of a Chinese syllable (the four tones in Mandarin), not to sound in general. 声音 (shēng yīn) is the general word for 'sound' or 'voice', while 语气 (yǔ qì) and 口气 (kǒu qì) mean 'tone of voice' in the sense of attitude or mood. 声调 is the technical term for the linguistic tones that distinguish meaning.
noun
tone (the pitch contour of a Chinese syllable)tone of voiceintonation
Measure word · 个
Examples
- 声调，声调。Hànyǔ yǒu sì gè shēng diào, měi gè shēng diào dōu dàibiǎo bùtóng de yìsi.Chinese has four tones, and each tone represents a different meaning.
- 声调。Xué shēng diào de shíhou yídìng yào duō tīng lìzi.When learning the tones, be sure to listen to many examples.
- 声调，。Tā de shēng diào hěn zhǔn, yì tīng jiù zhīdao shì běifāng rén.His tones are very accurate; you can tell he's from the north just by listening.
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