Pinyin Syllable
Chinese characters pronounced nai
Learn common Chinese characters pronounced nai, including 乃 nǎi, 奶 nǎi, 耐 nài, 奈 nài. Compare tones, meanings, traditional forms, words…
How to Pronounce This Syllable
To say nai, lead with the initial n, then flow without a break into the final ai, holding the tone across the whole syllable.
Initial n
Start the syllable on the initial n, then run straight into the final ai — keep them joined instead of sounding out separate English letters.
Final ai
Settle the final ai into a steady mouth shape first, then lay the tone on top.
Study Tip
Start with the most common characters (乃 nǎi, 奶 nǎi, 耐 nài, 奈 nài) and lock in their tones. 4 common characters share the sound nai, so lean on words to tell the rest apart.
Learn by Tone
nai turns up here with 2 different tones; a change of tone usually means a different character, so the groups below are split by tone.
3rd tone
Taking the 3rd tone here: 乃, 奶 (2 in total). Lock this tone in your ear before the meaning.
4th tone
Taking the 4th tone here: 耐, 奈 (2 in total). Lock this tone in your ear before the meaning.
Common Words With This Sound
Seeing nai inside whole words makes it clear which character is meant — here are common ones.
Characters
4 common characters in this group.