Pinyin Syllable
Chinese characters pronounced ni
Learn common Chinese characters pronounced ni, including 你 nǐ, 呢 ne / ní, 尼 ní, 泥 ní / nì, 拟 nǐ. Compare tones, meanings, traditional forms, words…
How to Pronounce This Syllable
For ni, start on n and let it run into i without pausing; keep the mouth moving and hold the tone to the end.
Initial n
Start the syllable on the initial n, then run straight into the final i — keep them joined instead of sounding out separate English letters.
Final i
After zh, ch, sh, r, z, c, s, this i is not the clear “ee” in see.
Study Tip
Start with the most common characters (你 nǐ, 呢 ne / ní, 尼 ní, 泥 ní / nì, 拟 nǐ) and lock in their tones. 7 common characters share the sound ni, so lean on words to tell the rest apart.
Learn by Tone
ni turns up here with 5 different tones; a change of tone usually means a different character, so the groups below are split by tone.
1st tone
Taking the 1st tone here: 妮 (1 in total). Lock this tone in your ear before the meaning.
2nd tone
Taking the 2nd tone here: 尼, 泥 (2 in total). Lock this tone in your ear before the meaning.
3rd tone
Taking the 3rd tone here: 你, 拟 (2 in total). Lock this tone in your ear before the meaning.
4th tone
Taking the 4th tone here: 逆 (1 in total). Lock this tone in your ear before the meaning.
5
Taking the 5 here: 呢 (1 in total). Lock this tone in your ear before the meaning.
Common Words With This Sound
Seeing ni inside whole words makes it clear which character is meant — here are common ones.
Characters
7 common characters in this group.