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Introduction

Introduction
Reasons to Learn
Usage worldwide

Spelling Rules

Pinyin Basics
Fake Initials
Treatment of ü
Vowel Shortening 
Tone Mark Rules

Pronunciation

Pronunciation Guide
Alphabet and Sounds

Applications of Pinyin

Dictionary Lookup
Computer Input

Pinyin Charts

Traditional Chart 

Modernized Charts:
Syllables Without Glides
Syllables With Glide i
Syllables With Glide u
Syllables With Glide ü

Fake Initials

In the traditional view, Chinese words are composed of initials and finals. All syllables have a final, but some have no initial. Forms such as {wai}, {yue}, or {yi} arise when a syllable with no initial begins with the sound /u/, /ü/, or /i/, respectively. In this case, the /u/ sound is written as {w}, the /ü/ sound is written as {yu}, and the /i/ sound is written as {y} in order to make these syllables prettier and easier to read. In practice, these initial vowels often start with a bit of a glide sound, so you often can hear a very slight /w/ or /y/ before them anyway.

When u- becomes w-

Syllables starting with the sound /u/ are written with a {w} replacing the /u/ or added to the /u/ to make {wu}.

Actual Sound	Pinyin Form
u- becomes w-
ua	wa
uo	wo
uai	wai
uei	wei
uan	wan
uen	wen
uang	wang
ueng	weng
u- adds w- to make wu-
u	wu

When ü- becomes yu-

Syllables starting with the sound /ü/ are written with {yu} replacing the /ü/.

Actual Sound	Pinyin Form
ü- becomes yu-
ün	yun
üe	yue
ü	yu
üan	yuan

When i- becomes y-

Syllables starting with /i/ are written with a {y} replacing the /i/ or added to the {i} to produce {yi}.

Actual Sound	Pinyin Form
i- becomes y-
ia	ya
iao	yao
ie	ye
iu {iou}	you
ian	yan
iang	yang
iong	yong
i- adds y to become yi-
i	yi
in	yin
ing	ying