pronouncekit

FINAL

eng: mid back vowel with back nasal

Pinyin eng joins the back vowel of e with a nasal at the soft palate, as in lěng and péng. Keep it apart from en.

eng
Broad IPA
[əŋ ~ ɤŋ]

Mouth & tongue

Enable JavaScript to view the 3D panda. Pronunciation steps remain available below.

Vocal folds: vibrating

TongueTeethUvula

Simplified human pronunciation. The small uvula hangs from the palate; it is not the vocal folds. The wave indicates voicing.

Nasal: the soft palate lowers; air exits the nose

Sound to demonstrate
Tone

High and level, around 55 on the five-level pitch scale.

Voice settings

The mouth starts slightly open. Movement is slowed for observation; the synthetic sound plays once at its original speed. Pause holds the current mouth shape; reset returns to the relaxed position. The panda is a symbolic teaching aid for human pronunciation, not animal anatomy. A simplified teaching model, not a measured or anatomically validated simulation. It shows the soft palate lowering for nasal sounds, but not airflow. Single syllables use eSpeak NG, a synthetic voice on your device. Its pitch range is narrower than natural speech, so use the tone diagrams and word buttons as well. Words and sentences use a voice from your browser or device when one is available. No native recordings are bundled.

Words to practice

Sentence to practice

Listen and compare

Finish the first word with the back of the tongue raised, and the second with the tip on the ridge.

Pinyin here shows dictionary tones. Spoken tones change in some contexts, such as nǐ hǎo; see the lessons on tone changes.

What you are learning

Pinyin eng is often confused with en, and many southern speakers merge them. Learners benefit from keeping them separate.

What your mouth is doing

The tongue sits mid and back with the lips unrounded, then the back of the tongue rises to the soft palate. After b, p, m and f many speakers round slightly.

Compared with English

English sung is a useful cue for the ending and roughly for the vowel. English “eng” in length uses a very different front vowel.

Build the sound, step by step

  1. Say pinyin e.
  2. Lift the back of your tongue and hum.
  3. Say lěng, néng and péngyou.

What to watch for

  • Reading it as the e of length makes the vowel too far forward.
  • Moving the tip to the ridge gives en.

Related lessons

Keep practicing

References & editorial notes

PronounceKit wrote this lesson as practical guidance for English speakers, based on the references below. The comparisons are editorial teaching suggestions. It describes common Mainland Standard Mandarin patterns, not every accent or regional variety, and it has not been independently reviewed by a pronunciation specialist or Mandarin teacher.

Published 5 November 2026