<p>Taking the definition of "word" as "an entry in <a href="https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?page=cc-cedict" rel="nofollow noreferrer">CC-CEDICT</a>", the answer to the first question is Yes.</p>

<p>I have a little script (I could share it if there's any interest) that I adapt to go through CC-CEDICT, looking for words that match a few criteria. Here's the output I got for 2-character words starting with the neutral tone:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>nb matches: 8</p>
  
  <p>nb tone patterns: 5</p>
  
  <p>4   5, 5</p>
  
  <p>1   5, 1</p>
  
  <p>1   5, 2</p>
  
  <p>1   5, 3</p>
  
  <p>1   5, 4</p>
  
  <p>5, 1   嗯哼 嗯哼 [en5 heng1] /uh-huh/</p>
  
  <p>5, 2   個頭 个头 [ge5 tou2] /(coll.) (suffix) my ass!/yeah, right!/</p>
  
  <p>5, 3   得很 得很 [de5 hen3] /very (much, good etc)/</p>
  
  <p>5, 4   的話 的话 [de5 hua4] /if (coming after a conditional clause)/</p>
  
  <p>5, 5   出來 出来 [chu5 lai5] /(after a verb, indicates coming out,
  completion of an action, or ability to discern or detect)/</p>
  
  <p>5, 5   著呢 着呢 [zhe5 ne5] /comes at the end of the sentence to indicate
  a strong degree/quite/rather/</p>
  
  <p>5, 5   起來 起来 [qi5 lai5] /(after a verb) indicating the beginning and
  continuation of an action or a state/indicating an upward movement
  (e.g. after 站[zhan4])/bringing things together (e.g. after 收拾[shou1
  shi5])/(after a perception verb, e.g. 看[kan4]) expressing preliminary
  judgment/also pr. [qi3 lai5]/</p>
  
  <p>5, 5   麼麼 么么 [me5 me5] /kissing sound (slang onom.)/</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Note: the output starts with some statistics (number of matches, number of tone patterns) along with the different tone patterns (aka tone contours) ordered by frequency. </p>

<p>There are too many 3-character words containing a neutral tone not at the end for me to put them here - there are 445 of them - but here are the first lines of the output of my search.</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>nb matches: 445</p>
  
  <p>nb tone patterns: 22</p>
  
  <p>49   4, 5, 4</p>
  
  <p>48   1, 5, 4</p>
  
  <p>29   2, 5, 4</p>
  
  <p>27   2, 5, 2</p>
  
  <p>26   3, 5, 4</p>
  
  <p>26   4, 5, 3</p>
  
  <p>25   1, 5, 1</p>
  
  <p>23   2, 5, 1</p>
  
  <p>21   1, 5, 3</p>
  
  <p>21   3, 5, 3</p>
  
  <p>18   1, 5, 2</p>
  
  <p>18   3, 5, 1</p>
  
  <p>18   3, 5, 2</p>
  
  <p>17   4, 5, 2</p>
  
  <p>16   4, 5, 1</p>
  
  <p>14   4, 5, 5</p>
  
  <p>13   1, 5, 5</p>
  
  <p>13   3, 5, 5</p>
  
  <p>11   2, 5, 5</p>
  
  <p>10   2, 5, 3</p>
  
  <p>1   5, 3, 3</p>
  
  <p>1   5, 4, 5</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   吃不消 吃不消 [chi1 bu5 xiao1] /to be unable to tolerate or
  endure/to find sth difficult to manage/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   吃不開 吃不开 [chi1 bu5 kai1] /be unpopular/won't work/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   吃得消 吃得消 [chi1 de5 xiao1] /to be able to endure (exertion,
  fatigue etc)/to be able to afford/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   吃得開 吃得开 [chi1 de5 kai1] /to be popular/to be getting on
  well/much in demand/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   夾肢窩 夹肢窝 [ga1 zhi5 wo1] /armpit/also written 胳肢窩|胳肢窝[ga1 zhi5
  wo1]/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   媽媽桑 妈妈桑 [ma1 ma5 sang1] /mama-san, middle-aged woman who
  runs a brothel, bar etc (loanword from Japanese)/madam/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   尖子生 尖子生 [jian1 zi5 sheng1] /top student/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   書記官 书记官 [shu1 ji5 guan1] /clerk of a law court/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   梔子花 栀子花 [zhi1 zi5 hua1] /cape jasmine (Gardenia
  jasminoides)/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   椰子汁 椰子汁 [ye1 zi5 zhi1] /coconut water/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   椰子貓 椰子猫 [ye1 zi5 mao1] /Asian palm civet (Paradoxurus
  hermaphroditus), also called toddy cat/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   歐巴桑 欧巴桑 [ou1 ba5 sang1] /older female/woman of mature years
  (Japanese loanword)/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   滴答聲 滴答声 [di1 da5 sheng1] /tick (tock)/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   玻璃心 玻璃心 [bo1 li5 xin1] /(slang) overly sensitive/butthurt/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   玻璃杯 玻璃杯 [bo1 li5 bei1] /drinking glass/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   玻璃砂 玻璃砂 [bo1 li5 sha1] /siliceous sand (geology)/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   玻璃鋼 玻璃钢 [bo1 li5 gang1] /glass-reinforced
  plastic/fiberglass/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   生意經 生意经 [sheng1 yi5 jing1] /knack of doing business/business
  sense/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   眵目糊 眵目糊 [chi1 mu5 hu1] /(dialect) gum (in one's eyes)/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   胳肢窩 胳肢窝 [ga1 zhi5 wo1] /armpit/also pr. [ge1 zhi5 wo1]/also
  written 夾肢窩|夹肢窝[ga1 zhi5 wo1]/</p>
  
  <p>1, 5, 1   芝麻包 芝麻包 [zhi1 ma5 bao1] /sesame bun/</p>
</blockquote>

<p>As for the second question about the neutral tone being lexical or sandhi, I think the answer is "lexical". I'm not aware of any sandhi rule governing the neutral tone.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2018-02-25T00:22:22.930Z
2018-02-26T09:19:33.287Z
2018-02-26T09:19:33.287Z
goPlayerJuggler
<p>Can a neutral/fifth tone appear in a word syllable other than the last one?</p>
<p>If so, as a lexical tone, a sandhi tone or both? Adding a few examples would be helpful.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-12-19T02:56:09.793Z
Why not. A very common one: 怎么样 the 么 is neutral. In 怎么了 we get two neutral tones 么 and 了!  I don't believe here they are lexical or sandhi, more likely just for overall aesthetics.
Mou某
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-12-19T08:53:02.743Z
@user3306356 What about appearing in the first syllable position? any example?
GJC
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-12-19T10:17:02.010Z
Some single syllable “words” 吗，呢，啊 are neutral toned - if you consider them actual words to begin with.
Mou某
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-12-19T10:55:09.137Z
@user3306356 obviously I don't
GJC
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-12-19T11:10:28.060Z
Then no, there aren’t really any words that begin with a neutral tone.
Mou某
<tones><phonology>
Can a neutral tone appear on a non-final syllable?
# Can a neutral tone appear on a non-final syllable?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2017-12-18)

Can a neutral/fifth tone appear in a word syllable other than the last one?

If so, as a lexical tone, a sandhi tone or both? Adding a few examples would be helpful.

**Tags:** tones, phonology

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Why not. A very common one: 怎么样 the 么 is neutral. In 怎么了 we get two neutral tones 么 and 了!  I don't believe here they are lexical or sandhi, more likely just for overall aesthetics.  
> **username_0**: @user3306356 What about appearing in the first syllable position? any example?  
> **username_1**: Some single syllable “words” 吗，呢，啊 are neutral toned - if you consider them actual words to begin with.  
> **username_0**: @user3306356 obviously I don't  
> **username_1**: Then no, there aren’t really any words that begin with a neutral tone.  

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2018-02-25. Score: 3 | Accepted answer

Taking the definition of "word" as "an entry in [CC-CEDICT](https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?page=cc-cedict)", the answer to the first question is Yes.

I have a little script (I could share it if there's any interest) that I adapt to go through CC-CEDICT, looking for words that match a few criteria. Here's the output I got for 2-character words starting with the neutral tone:

> nb matches: 8
>
> nb tone patterns: 5
>
> 4 5, 5
>
> 1 5, 1
>
> 1 5, 2
>
> 1 5, 3
>
> 1 5, 4
>
> 5, 1 嗯哼 嗯哼 [en5 heng1] /uh-huh/
>
> 5, 2 個頭 个头 [ge5 tou2] /(coll.) (suffix) my ass!/yeah, right!/
>
> 5, 3 得很 得很 [de5 hen3] /very (much, good etc)/
>
> 5, 4 的話 的话 [de5 hua4] /if (coming after a conditional clause)/
>
> 5, 5 出來 出来 [chu5 lai5] /(after a verb, indicates coming out,
> completion of an action, or ability to discern or detect)/
>
> 5, 5 著呢 着呢 [zhe5 ne5] /comes at the end of the sentence to indicate
> a strong degree/quite/rather/
>
> 5, 5 起來 起来 [qi5 lai5] /(after a verb) indicating the beginning and
> continuation of an action or a state/indicating an upward movement
> (e.g. after 站[zhan4])/bringing things together (e.g. after 收拾[shou1
> shi5])/(after a perception verb, e.g. 看[kan4]) expressing preliminary
> judgment/also pr. [qi3 lai5]/
>
> 5, 5 麼麼 么么 [me5 me5] /kissing sound (slang onom.)/

Note: the output starts with some statistics (number of matches, number of tone patterns) along with the different tone patterns (aka tone contours) ordered by frequency.

There are too many 3-character words containing a neutral tone not at the end for me to put them here - there are 445 of them - but here are the first lines of the output of my search.

> nb matches: 445
>
> nb tone patterns: 22
>
> 49 4, 5, 4
>
> 48 1, 5, 4
>
> 29 2, 5, 4
>
> 27 2, 5, 2
>
> 26 3, 5, 4
>
> 26 4, 5, 3
>
> 25 1, 5, 1
>
> 23 2, 5, 1
>
> 21 1, 5, 3
>
> 21 3, 5, 3
>
> 18 1, 5, 2
>
> 18 3, 5, 1
>
> 18 3, 5, 2
>
> 17 4, 5, 2
>
> 16 4, 5, 1
>
> 14 4, 5, 5
>
> 13 1, 5, 5
>
> 13 3, 5, 5
>
> 11 2, 5, 5
>
> 10 2, 5, 3
>
> 1 5, 3, 3
>
> 1 5, 4, 5
>
> 1, 5, 1 吃不消 吃不消 [chi1 bu5 xiao1] /to be unable to tolerate or
> endure/to find sth difficult to manage/
>
> 1, 5, 1 吃不開 吃不开 [chi1 bu5 kai1] /be unpopular/won't work/
>
> 1, 5, 1 吃得消 吃得消 [chi1 de5 xiao1] /to be able to endure (exertion,
> fatigue etc)/to be able to afford/
>
> 1, 5, 1 吃得開 吃得开 [chi1 de5 kai1] /to be popular/to be getting on
> well/much in demand/
>
> 1, 5, 1 夾肢窩 夹肢窝 [ga1 zhi5 wo1] /armpit/also written 胳肢窩|胳肢窝[ga1 zhi5
> wo1]/
>
> 1, 5, 1 媽媽桑 妈妈桑 [ma1 ma5 sang1] /mama-san, middle-aged woman who
> runs a brothel, bar etc (loanword from Japanese)/madam/
>
> 1, 5, 1 尖子生 尖子生 [jian1 zi5 sheng1] /top student/
>
> 1, 5, 1 書記官 书记官 [shu1 ji5 guan1] /clerk of a law court/
>
> 1, 5, 1 梔子花 栀子花 [zhi1 zi5 hua1] /cape jasmine (Gardenia
> jasminoides)/
>
> 1, 5, 1 椰子汁 椰子汁 [ye1 zi5 zhi1] /coconut water/
>
> 1, 5, 1 椰子貓 椰子猫 [ye1 zi5 mao1] /Asian palm civet (Paradoxurus
> hermaphroditus), also called toddy cat/
>
> 1, 5, 1 歐巴桑 欧巴桑 [ou1 ba5 sang1] /older female/woman of mature years
> (Japanese loanword)/
>
> 1, 5, 1 滴答聲 滴答声 [di1 da5 sheng1] /tick (tock)/
>
> 1, 5, 1 玻璃心 玻璃心 [bo1 li5 xin1] /(slang) overly sensitive/butthurt/
>
> 1, 5, 1 玻璃杯 玻璃杯 [bo1 li5 bei1] /drinking glass/
>
> 1, 5, 1 玻璃砂 玻璃砂 [bo1 li5 sha1] /siliceous sand (geology)/
>
> 1, 5, 1 玻璃鋼 玻璃钢 [bo1 li5 gang1] /glass-reinforced
> plastic/fiberglass/
>
> 1, 5, 1 生意經 生意经 [sheng1 yi5 jing1] /knack of doing business/business
> sense/
>
> 1, 5, 1 眵目糊 眵目糊 [chi1 mu5 hu1] /(dialect) gum (in one's eyes)/
>
> 1, 5, 1 胳肢窩 胳肢窝 [ga1 zhi5 wo1] /armpit/also pr. [ge1 zhi5 wo1]/also
> written 夾肢窩|夹肢窝[ga1 zhi5 wo1]/
>
> 1, 5, 1 芝麻包 芝麻包 [zhi1 ma5 bao1] /sesame bun/

As for the second question about the neutral tone being lexical or sandhi, I think the answer is "lexical". I'm not aware of any sandhi rule governing the neutral tone.


---

