🇨🇳 CHINESE · HSK 1

Chinese – Batch 08

年 · 月 · 分 · 时 · 今 · Reading · Listening · Writing

What is Pinyin? Pinyin is the official romanisation system for Mandarin Chinese. Every syllable has a tone — the same syllable said in a different tone is a completely different word. There are four tones plus a neutral tone:
1st (ā) — high & level | 2nd (á) — rising, like a question | 3rd (ǎ) — dip then rise | 4th (à) — sharp fall | Neutral (a) — light, unstressed
In exercises you may type tone marks (rén) or tone numbers (ren2) — both are accepted.

📋 Pinyin Quick Reference

Characters in this batch — type either form in exercises:

nian2 → nián

yue4 → yuè

fen1 → fēn

shi2 → shí

jin1 → jīn

🔊 Hear all 5 tones — same syllable "nian", five different meanings:

niān Tone 1 — level 拈 · to pick up with fingers

nián Tone 2 — rising ★ 年 · year

niǎn Tone 3 — dip-rise 撵 · to drive away

niàn Tone 4 — falling 念 · to read aloud / to miss

jinnian Neutral — unstressed 今年 · this year

★ = used in this batch | Neutral: 年 is unstressed after 今 in the compound 今年.

Tone	Number	Mark (a)	Mark (e)	Mark (i)	Mark (u)
1st — high level	1	ā	ē	ī	ū
2nd — rising	2	á	é	í	ú
3rd — dip-rise	3	ǎ	ě	ǐ	ǔ
4th — falling	4	à	è	ì	ù
Neutral	5 or 0	a	e	i	u

💡 On most keyboards, tone marks are hard to type — use the number form (nian2, shi2) in exercises. Both are always accepted.

Progress: 0 / 4 exercises completed

A — Flashcard Practice

Click the card to reveal pinyin, meaning, and stroke count. Use the audio button to hear the pronunciation.

年

HSK 1

Tap to flip

1 / 9

B — Listen & Identify

Press the speaker button to hear a character pronounced. Choose the correct character from the four options.

C — Meaning Match

Look at the character. Choose the correct English meaning.

D — Reading in Context

Pinyin is shown for each sentence — type the missing pinyin in the blank. Press the audio button to hear the sentence, then repeat aloud.

🔊 Tip: Press Hear sentence, listen carefully, then say the full sentence out loud. Type the missing pinyin (tone mark or number form).

E — Stroke Count

How many strokes does each character take to write? Type the number. Tip: close your eyes and trace each character in your head — count how many times your pen lifts off the paper. Each unbroken line = one stroke.

年 nián — year

年 contains the idea of 'harvest' — originally depicted a person carrying grain. A year was one harvest cycle. 新年 (xīn nián, New Year) is one of the most important Chinese celebrations. 年年有余 (nián nián yǒu yú) = 'may every year bring abundance' — a classic New Year blessing.

Tone 2 (阳平 yángpíng) — rising tone, like asking "Really?".

今年jīn niánthis year
明年míng niánnext year
新年xīn niánNew Year

Jīn nián tiānqì hěn hǎo.

今年天气很好。

This year's weather is very good.

Xīn nián kuài lè!

新年快乐！

Happy New Year!

月 yuè — month / moon

月 is both 'moon' and 'month' — the lunar calendar divides time by moon cycles. The character resembles a crescent moon with two horizontal lines inside. 明 (bright) = 日 (sun) + 月 (moon) — sun and moon together = bright. 月亮 (yuè liang) = moon, 月份 (yuè fèn) = month.

Tone 4 (去声 qùshēng) — sharp falling, like a firm statement.

月亮yuè liangmoon
月份yuè fènmonth
年月nián yuètime / years and months

Yī nián yǒu shí'èr gè yuè.

一年有十二个月。

A year has twelve months.

Yuè liang hěn piào liang.

月亮很漂亮。

The moon is beautiful.

分 fēn — minute / part

分 = 八 (divide) on top + 刀 (knife) below — a knife dividing something into parts. Means both 'minute' (60 per hour) and 'divide/part'. 百分之 (bǎi fēn zhī) = percent (lit. 'of one hundred parts'). 分钟 (fēn zhōng) = minute.

Tone 1 (阴平 yīnpíng) — high and level, like a sustained musical note.

分钟fēn zhōngminute
时分shí fēnhours and minutes
百分bǎi fēnpercent

Děng wǒ wǔ fēn zhōng.

等我五分钟。

Wait five minutes for me.

Xiànzài shì sān diǎn shí fēn.

现在是三点十分。

It is now 3:10.

时 shí — hour / time

时 = 日 (sun) + 寸 (inch/small measure) — the sun measured in tiny increments = time. Simplified from 時. Appears in 时间 (time), 小时 (hour), 有时 (sometimes), 时候 (moment/when). ⚠️ Note: 时 (time/hour) and 十 (ten) are both read shí, Tone 2 — context distinguishes them.

Tone 2 (阳平 yángpíng) — rising tone.

时间shí jiāntime
小时xiǎo shíhour
时分shí fēnhours and minutes

Xiànzài jǐ shí le?

现在几时了？

What time is it now?

Wǒ méiyǒu shí jiān.

我没有时间。

I don't have time.

今 jīn — now / today

今 looks like a person (人-like top) standing above a flat base emphasizing 'NOW, at this moment.' Combines with 天 → 今天 (today) and 年 → 今年 (this year). 今晚 (jīn wǎn) = tonight. Learning these three is essential for daily Mandarin.

Tone 1 (阴平 yīnpíng) — high and level.

今天jīn tiāntoday
今年jīn niánthis year
今晚jīn wǎntonight

Jīn tiān tiānqì hěn hǎo.

今天天气很好。

Today's weather is very good.

Jīn wǎn nǐ yǒu kòng ma?

今晚你有空吗？

Are you free tonight?

Tone System

Tone	Mark	Number	Chinese	Description	Batch example
1st	ā	1	阴平	High, flat, held steady	fēn (分), jīn (今)
2nd	á	2	阳平	Rising — like "Really?"	nián (年), shí (时)
3rd	ǎ	3	上声	Dip then rise — lowest tone	—
4th	à	4	去声	Sharp falling — like "No!"	yuè (月)
Neutral	a	5 / 0	轻声	Short, unstressed	—

Stroke Order Principles

Top → Bottom
Left → Right
Horizontal before vertical (when crossing)
Left-falling before right-falling
Centre before sides (vertical axis)
Outside before inside (enclosures)
Close the bottom last
Minor strokes last (dots / small sweeps)

Batch 08 Summary — Time I (时间 I)

Char	Pinyin	Meaning	Strokes	HSK
年	nián	year	6	HSK 1
月	yuè	month / moon	4	HSK 1
分	fēn	minute / part	4	HSK 1
时	shí	hour / time	7	HSK 1
今	jīn	now / today	4	HSK 1

Pinyin Typing Guide

All exercises accept tone marks (nián, shí) or tone numbers (nian2, shi2). Tone numbers are always easier — just type the syllable followed by 1, 2, 3, or 4. Both forms are equally correct.

🔊 Audio pronunciation powered by the Web Speech API (built into your browser, no external service).
For a comprehensive pinyin reference, visit Yabla Chinese Pinyin Chart.
Stroke order practice: Skritter · Character lookup: MDBG Dictionary.