2: 韵母 - yùnmǔ: i, u, ü

Basic Finals and Common Phrases

Final	Description	Tips
i	Similar to "ee"	Keep tongue high and forward
u	Like "oo"	Round lips
ü	Like German "ü"	Say "ee" and round lips

Note: ü is sometimes written as u with dots (ü) or as 'v' in some texts

Important Rules

• Practice 'e' sound before attempting 'ü'
• ü (with dots) is pronounced like "yu"
• 'u' finals are typically the most challenging for beginners
• Tone Change Rule: When two third tones (ǎ) occur together:
  • The first syllable changes to second tone (á)
  • Only the second syllable keeps the third tone (ǎ)
  • Example: 你好 (nǐ hǎo) is actually pronounced as (ní hǎo)
  • This is called tone sandhi

Individual Characters

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
你	nǐ	you
好	hǎo	good
谢	xiè	thank
我	wǒ	I/me
很	hěn	very
也	yě	also
鱼	yú	fish
韵	yùn	rhyme
母	mǔ	mother

Exercise

Using the individual characters above, can you:

1. Break down these phrases into their individual characters and explain what each character means:

   • 你好
   • 谢谢你
   • 我很好
   • 我也很好
   • 韵母

2. Explain how the tones work in each character of these phrases:

   • nǐ hǎo (pronounced as ní hǎo due to tone change rule)
   • xiè xie nǐ
   • wǒ hěn hǎo
   • wǒ yě hěn hǎo
   • yùn mǔ