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Chinese for Teens · Module 4 of 8
📱 Shared phone

zh ch sh Against z c s

Six consonants split into two families, and getting them apart is the difference between being understood and being asked to repeat yourself.

zh ch sh 👅⬆️ | z c s 👅➡️
Curled tongue up behind the ridge for the first three. Flat tongue behind the teeth for the second three.

🎒 What you need

✋ Do this

  1. Listen to the pair 四 sì and 十 shí ten times before you speak. This is the classic pair Chinese learners confuse.
  2. Curl your tongue tip up towards the roof of your mouth, just behind the ridge, and say shí. Now flatten your tongue behind your teeth and say sì.
  3. Do the same for 中 zhōng against 走 zǒu, and 吃 chī against 次 cì.
  4. Record yourself saying 四十 sìshí — forty. This one word contains both families and is the hardest test.
  5. Play your recording next to the model. If your 四 and your 十 sound identical, curl harder on the second one and record again.
  6. Get eight out of ten right on the mixed listening test before you stop.

💡 Why it works

These two consonant families are the most common cause of a learner being misunderstood, and they cannot be fixed by reading — only by listening and by feeling where your tongue sits. Recording yourself is essential here because the difference is inaudible to you while you are producing it.

🔥 Challenge

Say 四十 to a friend and ask them to write down whether they heard 'sss' or 'shh' first. See if you can control it.

📖 New words

四 sìfour
十 shíten
吃 chīto eat
是 shìto be; yes, it is
中 zhōngmiddle
👅
Tongue Curler

Tap when you have finished this module.