In some cases, characters aren’t pronounced with their "native" tones (the tones assigned to them). Here are three cases wher tones experience shifts.
Category: Pronunciation
The Tones of Mandarin Chinese
ToneMarkDescription1stHigh and level.2ndStarts medium in tone, then rises to the top.3rdStarts low, dips to the bottom, then rises toward the top.
Mandarin Chinese Initials and Finals
aeiongiaionguanbabeidadeidongzhazhongzhuanrongruanjiajionggageigongguan
Making Chinese "Roman"
SystemRomanizationNOTE
To give you a more thorough comparison, in the Pronunciation Appendix, I’ve put together pages wher you can compare these systems side by side, part of the "appendix" to this pronunication overview.
An Introduction to Mandarin Chinese Pronunciation
Before we get to the building blocks of pronunciation, here are a few words of advice: To learn proper Mandarin