How the System Fits Together
Every Mandarin syllable is an initial (the opening consonant) plus a final (the vowel part) plus a tone. There are 21 initials, around 36 finals, and five tones including the neutral one.
The 21 Initials
The two pairs that decide comprehensibility
Learners are usually understood despite most errors, but two contrasts cause real confusion:
The Finals
The -i that is not a vowel
After zh, ch, sh, r, z, c and s, the written i is not pronounced like "ee". It is a buzzed sound with no vowel: 吃 chī, 思 sī. Treating it as "ee" is the most common pinyin reading error.
Spelling Rules Worth Knowing
Tone Sandhi: Where Tones Change
Written pinyin keeps the original tones; only the spoken form changes. Learn the changed pronunciation with audio and let the spelling stay standard.
How to Drill It
FAQ
How many pinyin sounds are there?
Twenty-one initials and around thirty-six finals, but they do not combine freely: only about 400 distinct syllables exist without tones, and roughly 1,300 with tones. That small inventory is why Mandarin is learnable in months.
Do I need to learn pinyin before characters?
Yes. Pinyin is the pronunciation system and the input method you will use for the rest of your Chinese study. Attempting characters first usually produces tone errors that take longer to fix than they would have taken to avoid.
Why is 不 sometimes bú and sometimes bù?
Tone sandhi. Before a fourth tone, 不 changes from fourth to second: bú shì, bú yào. In isolation or before other tones it stays bù. The spelling in dictionaries keeps bù because the change is a pronunciation rule.
Is the neutral tone a fifth tone?
It is a reduced, unstressed syllable rather than a fifth melody. Its pitch depends on the preceding tone, which is why it is best learned by imitating whole words such as 妈妈, 谢谢 and 朋友.
Next Steps
With pinyin secure, start the HSK 1 plan and learn to write with Chinese stroke order. Character patterns are covered in Chinese radicals.