How to pronounce hai shi (还是) in Chinese

Hear 还是 (hái shi) spoken, see what it means, then record yourself for instant AI feedback on your pronunciation.

还是

hái shi

Characters & meanings

还
háiT2

surname Huan

是
shiT0

to be; correct

Common mistake

Rising + neutral (2-0): climb on hái, then shi rides out light and toneless — a full shì here makes the "or" sound like emphatic 是 ("is").

Tone change in this word

是 reads neutral in 还是, unlike its full falling tone as the verb "to be".

Example sentence

你喝茶还是咖啡？

Nǐ hē chá háishi kāfēi?

Tea or coffee?

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Related sounds

但是dàn shì总是zǒng shì

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