<p>The pinyin t is aspirated and d is neither aspirated nor voiced in Modern Standard Chinese.</p>
<p>I could see two main reasons for what you are hearing (not mutually exclusive) :</p>
<p>(A)
No language has exact sounds (phones) that correspond to a given &quot;letter&quot; (phoneme), but rather a range of sounds (phones) are mapped to the same &quot;letter&quot; (phoneme). Essentially, the range of possible sounds are partitioned into different groups.</p>
<p>Now, the partitioning of the sounds varies between languages. That is, the region that is understood as d in Mandarin overlaps with, but does not equal the region in English that is understood as d. So, the natural variation of d in Mandarin can cross over the d/t boundary that your brain has, without crossing the d/t boundary of a native Mandarin speaker's brain. That is, to you they &quot;sound&quot; different, but to a native Mandarin speaker, they &quot;sound&quot; the same.</p>
<p>As an example in the reverse direction, think of nu and nü. These are very different sounds, but both are typically mapped to just nu by a native English speaker.</p>
<p>(B) What you are hearing is actually not strictly Modern Standard Chinese, but one of the probably hundreds of variations that exist naturally in China (think of all the different accents of English; there are even more in China because of topolects). Such variation makes it even more likely that the d/t boundary is crossed for your brain.</p>
<p>I would recommend pronouncing d and t as in Modern Standard Chinese for now as this will be the most clearly understood across China. Also, without having a solid new mapping for Standard Chinese in your brain, it will be very hard to make sure you are not deviating from Standard Chinese more than the local variety does, making you difficult to understand. Then, once you are fluent (or at least close to B2), you could localize your speech to whichever accent you prefer.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-15T14:58:26.963Z
2024-05-15T14:58:26.963Z
2ndQuantized
<p>Seen many questions elsewhere about why you cannot hear the same sound in 大 and 的. Speaking of pronunciation organs, tt's because when you pronouce /da/ the vowel 'a' makes your tounge shrink back a little bit, your mouth opens bigger, so the inside of your mouth expands, the 'a' sound causes 'd' to become thicker. The other way around, pronouncing /de/ your tounge is more relaxed, and beware do not put in too much aspiration it will make a /te/ (i.e. 特 [special]). So in short the vowels does make the consonant sound a bit different! Phonetically it is called regressive assimilation of sound. Click here <a href="https://www.vaia.com/en-us/explanations/english/phonetics/phonetic-assimilation/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">because they explained way better than I did</a>.</p>
<p>Back to the main question, 他 and 大 have the same vowel, so in both cases your tounge put the same position, but the difference is, the consonant in 他 is voiceless and aspirated, while that of 大 is voiced (which means your vocal cords must vibrate in other to make that sound).</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-15T14:49:40.087Z
2024-05-15T14:49:40.087Z
Liao Yong Hao
<p>In Traditional Chinese ,</p>
<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orv5tZAUjYc" rel="nofollow noreferrer">大</a>  , pronounce ㄉㄚˋ<br />
The 「ㄉ」 is pronounce <code>d</code></p>
<p><a href="https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rZ-vvVjcv0s" rel="nofollow noreferrer">他</a>  , pronounce  ㄊㄚ<br />
The 「ㄊ」 is pronounce <code>t</code></p>
<p>You can check it by <a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">here</a></p>
<p><a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%90%AD&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">搭</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E9%81%94&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">達</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%89%93&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">打</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%A4%A7&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">大</a></p>
<p><a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E4%BB%96&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">他</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%A1%94&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">塔</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%B8%8F&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">踏</a></p>
<p><a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%BB%B4&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">滴</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%95%B5&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">敵</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E9%82%B8&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">邸</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E9%81%9E&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">遞</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E7%9D%A3&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">督</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%AE%80&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">讀</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E7%AF%A4&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">篤</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%A0%B9&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">蠹</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%A4%9A&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">多</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%BB%B4+%E6%95%B5+%E9%82%B8+%E9%81%9E+%E7%9D%A3+%E8%AE%80+%E7%AF%A4+%E8%A0%B9+%E5%A4%9A&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">ㄉ</a></p>
<p><a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%B8%A2&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">踢</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E9%A1%8C&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">題</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E9%AB%94&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">體</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%B1%9C&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">屜</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%87%B8&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">凸</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%9C%96&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">圖</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%90%90&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">吐</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%8F%9F&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">菟</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%84%AB&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">脫</a>
<a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%B8%A2+%E9%A1%8C+%E9%AB%94+%E5%B1%9C+%E5%87%B8+%E5%9C%96+%E5%90%90+%E8%8F%9F+%E8%84%AB&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">ㄊ</a></p>
<p><a href="https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%BB%B4%E6%95%B5%E9%82%B8%E9%81%9E%E7%9D%A3%E8%AE%80%E7%AF%A4%E8%A0%B9%E5%A4%9A+%E8%B8%A2%E9%A1%8C%E9%AB%94%E5%B1%9C%E5%87%B8%E5%9C%96%E5%90%90%E8%8F%9F%E8%84%AB&amp;sound=1#res" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Press the speaker</a>:<br />
<a href="https://translate.google.com/?sl=zh-TW&amp;tl=en&amp;text=%E4%BB%96%E5%A4%A7&amp;op=translate" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://translate.google.com/?sl=zh-TW&amp;tl=en&amp;text=%E4%BB%96%E5%A4%A7&amp;op=translate</a></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-15T01:41:56.853Z
If you listen to any chinese native teacher teaching in english and hear them say 大 or 的, do you not hear one initial as a T and the other as a D?
user55570
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-15T02:50:44.840Z
@user55570 Just like teaching English!  Will the pronunciation taught by an American teacher or a British teacher be the same?
James
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-15T09:20:35.930Z
I am not disputing that point but what I think is true is that most native teachers who enunciate clearly speak the same. And what is also true is that the D initial should sound the same regardless of the hanzi. Like 大 and 的 initials should sound the same because they both have the same pinyin initial D. But if you listen to many available examples of native teachers speaking it, one sounds like a clear T and the other sounds like D consistently. There are plenty of examples that can be looked but just a few to consider youtu.be/SYfoqSf2eQI and youtu.be/2A6dXLkPu9w
user55570
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-14T08:20:40.573Z
2024-05-16T00:48:16.747Z
2024-05-16T00:48:16.747Z
James
<p>I guess it wasn't the case but -</p>
<p>According to <a href="https://www.zdic.net/hans/%E5%A4%A7" rel="nofollow noreferrer">汉典</a>, &quot;大&quot;, while it is typically pronounced as &quot;dà&quot; or &quot;dài&quot;, does have a pronunciation of &quot;<strong>tài</strong>&quot;, the same as &quot;太&quot; and &quot;泰&quot; in ancient times/uses.</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>大 [ㄊㄞˋ tài] &lt;形&gt; - 至高無上的</strong>。清·江沅《說文釋例·卷上·釋字例·大》：「古兄作『大』，不作『太』、『泰』。《易》之『大極』，《春秋》之『大子』、『大上』，《尚書》之『大誓』、『大王王季』，《史》、《漢》之『大上皇』、『大后』，後人皆讀為太。或徑改本書，作『太』及『泰』。」
通「太」、「泰」。</li>
</ul>
<p>So, depending on the context of speaking, confusion may result if no clarification is made.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-15T15:18:27.160Z
2024-05-15T15:33:52.753Z
2024-05-15T15:33:52.753Z
r13
<p>Chinese d, b, and g aren't as voiced as their English counterparts (and much less voiced then their counterparts in Romance languages). Conversely, Chinese t, p, and k are more aspirated than English t, p and k.</p>
<p>To visualise their difference, you could imagine placing them all on a continuum from more voiced to more aspirated (I'll add an easy, non-IPA shorthand within brackets to hint at their different degrees of voicing):</p>
<p>↑voiced &amp; unaspirated</p>
<ul>
<li>English D (&quot;d&quot;)</li>
<li>Chinese D (&quot;dt&quot;)</li>
<li>English T (&quot;t&quot;)</li>
<li>Chinese T (&quot;tt&quot;)</li>
</ul>
<p>↓ unvoiced &amp; aspirated</p>
<p>You can apply the same logic to B vs P and K vs G.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-15T01:44:30.320Z
If you listen to any chinese native teacher and hear them say 大 or 的, do you not hear one initial as a T and the other as a D?
Like for example from here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYfoqSf2eQI and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A6dXLkPu9w
user55570
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-15T13:28:52.737Z
You may sometimes hear 的 or other words pronounced with a voiced D, but that's just an allophone, often resulting from juxtaposition with a particular final (or from the lack of one). It's really the D in 大 you want to aim at, which is similar to a French/Spanish/Italian T as well as to the T in the English word "stop" (as opposed to the T in the English word "top"). Can you hear the unaspirated T in "stop" (vs "top")? Can you hear it in the French word "tout" (vs English "two")? That's the canonical D in STANDARD Mandarin. Voiced Ds, however, are heard too sometimes, and are understandable.
Sanchuan
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-14T11:32:53.973Z
2024-05-14T11:32:53.973Z
Sanchuan
<p>If you cannot speak the two sounds differently, then you cannot tell the difference of the two sounds when listening to other people speak them. On the other hand, if you speak the two sounds clearly then you would know that the other people may be not correct.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-15T09:24:10.247Z
I think you speak wisdom. But one question if I may - when you listen to a chinese friend speak 大 and 的, do you hear the same D initial in both cases?
user55570
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-17T00:47:06.080Z
If someone really can't distinguish between these two sounds, it's best to go to the hospital to have their hearing checked.
James
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-15T01:51:43.897Z
2024-05-15T01:51:43.897Z
PdotWang
<p>I am mainly wondering as to what causes me to hear the initial of 他 and 大 when spoken by a native chinese speaker as a clear T.</p>
<p>However, if a native speaker speaks 的 and 特, I clearly hear the initials as D and T respectively.</p>
<p>Now, I know about T being aspirated and D as not. And I am an english speaker for purposes of background, and that may just very well account for it.</p>
<p>I was previously told by a chinese native to just say the D as a clear D in 大 but it leaves me a bit disastified because it is not close to what it is I hear that natives speak.</p>
<p>Am I alone in this situation or can other english speakers relate? Or can native chinese who know English also relate?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-14T21:07:12.520Z
maybe a duplication of this one: https://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/55400/hearing-the-difference-between-%e4%bb%96-vs-%e5%a4%a7/55405#55405
Archeosudoerus
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-15T13:30:34.410Z
Looks like it, yes.
Sanchuan
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-05-16T06:52:34.417Z
Even the same user...
James
<mandarin>
As an english speaker why do i hear the same initial T sound for 他 and 大?
# As an english speaker why do i hear the same initial T sound for 他 and 大?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2024-05-14)

I am mainly wondering as to what causes me to hear the initial of 他 and 大 when spoken by a native chinese speaker as a clear T.

However, if a native speaker speaks 的 and 特, I clearly hear the initials as D and T respectively.

Now, I know about T being aspirated and D as not. And I am an english speaker for purposes of background, and that may just very well account for it.

I was previously told by a chinese native to just say the D as a clear D in 大 but it leaves me a bit disastified because it is not close to what it is I hear that natives speak.

Am I alone in this situation or can other english speakers relate? Or can native chinese who know English also relate?

**Tags:** mandarin

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: maybe a duplication of this one: https://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/55400/hearing-the-difference-between-%e4%bb%96-vs-%e5%a4%a7/55405#55405  
> **username_2**: Looks like it, yes.  
> **username_3**: Even the same user...  

---

## 6 answers

### Answer by username_4 on 2024-05-15. Score: 3

The pinyin t is aspirated and d is neither aspirated nor voiced in Modern Standard Chinese.

I could see two main reasons for what you are hearing (not mutually exclusive) :

(A)
No language has exact sounds (phones) that correspond to a given "letter" (phoneme), but rather a range of sounds (phones) are mapped to the same "letter" (phoneme). Essentially, the range of possible sounds are partitioned into different groups.

Now, the partitioning of the sounds varies between languages. That is, the region that is understood as d in Mandarin overlaps with, but does not equal the region in English that is understood as d. So, the natural variation of d in Mandarin can cross over the d/t boundary that your brain has, without crossing the d/t boundary of a native Mandarin speaker's brain. That is, to you they "sound" different, but to a native Mandarin speaker, they "sound" the same.

As an example in the reverse direction, think of nu and nü. These are very different sounds, but both are typically mapped to just nu by a native English speaker.

(B) What you are hearing is actually not strictly Modern Standard Chinese, but one of the probably hundreds of variations that exist naturally in China (think of all the different accents of English; there are even more in China because of topolects). Such variation makes it even more likely that the d/t boundary is crossed for your brain.

I would recommend pronouncing d and t as in Modern Standard Chinese for now as this will be the most clearly understood across China. Also, without having a solid new mapping for Standard Chinese in your brain, it will be very hard to make sure you are not deviating from Standard Chinese more than the local variety does, making you difficult to understand. Then, once you are fluent (or at least close to B2), you could localize your speech to whichever accent you prefer.


---

### Answer by username_5 on 2024-05-15. Score: 1

Seen many questions elsewhere about why you cannot hear the same sound in 大 and 的. Speaking of pronunciation organs, tt's because when you pronouce /da/ the vowel 'a' makes your tounge shrink back a little bit, your mouth opens bigger, so the inside of your mouth expands, the 'a' sound causes 'd' to become thicker. The other way around, pronouncing /de/ your tounge is more relaxed, and beware do not put in too much aspiration it will make a /te/ (i.e. 特 [special]). So in short the vowels does make the consonant sound a bit different! Phonetically it is called regressive assimilation of sound. Click here [because they explained way better than I did](https://www.vaia.com/en-us/explanations/english/phonetics/phonetic-assimilation/).

Back to the main question, 他 and 大 have the same vowel, so in both cases your tounge put the same position, but the difference is, the consonant in 他 is voiceless and aspirated, while that of 大 is voiced (which means your vocal cords must vibrate in other to make that sound).


---

### Answer by username_3 on 2024-05-14. Score: 1

In Traditional Chinese ,

[大](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orv5tZAUjYc) , pronounce ㄉㄚˋ  
The 「ㄉ」 is pronounce `d`

[他](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rZ-vvVjcv0s) , pronounce ㄊㄚ  
The 「ㄊ」 is pronounce `t`

You can check it by [here](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/)

[搭](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%90%AD&sound=1#res)
[達](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E9%81%94&sound=1#res)
[打](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%89%93&sound=1#res)
[大](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%A4%A7&sound=1#res)

[他](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E4%BB%96&sound=1#res)
[塔](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%A1%94&sound=1#res)
[踏](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%B8%8F&sound=1#res)

[滴](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%BB%B4&sound=1#res)
[敵](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%95%B5&sound=1#res)
[邸](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E9%82%B8&sound=1#res)
[遞](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E9%81%9E&sound=1#res)
[督](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E7%9D%A3&sound=1#res)
[讀](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%AE%80&sound=1#res)
[篤](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E7%AF%A4&sound=1#res)
[蠹](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%A0%B9&sound=1#res)
[多](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%A4%9A&sound=1#res)
[ㄉ](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%BB%B4+%E6%95%B5+%E9%82%B8+%E9%81%9E+%E7%9D%A3+%E8%AE%80+%E7%AF%A4+%E8%A0%B9+%E5%A4%9A&sound=1#res)

[踢](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%B8%A2&sound=1#res)
[題](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E9%A1%8C&sound=1#res)
[體](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E9%AB%94&sound=1#res)
[屜](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%B1%9C&sound=1#res)
[凸](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%87%B8&sound=1#res)
[圖](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%9C%96&sound=1#res)
[吐](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E5%90%90&sound=1#res)
[菟](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%8F%9F&sound=1#res)
[脫](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%84%AB&sound=1#res)
[ㄊ](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E8%B8%A2+%E9%A1%8C+%E9%AB%94+%E5%B1%9C+%E5%87%B8+%E5%9C%96+%E5%90%90+%E8%8F%9F+%E8%84%AB&sound=1#res)

[Press the speaker](https://crptransfer.moe.gov.tw/index.jsp?SN=%E6%BB%B4%E6%95%B5%E9%82%B8%E9%81%9E%E7%9D%A3%E8%AE%80%E7%AF%A4%E8%A0%B9%E5%A4%9A+%E8%B8%A2%E9%A1%8C%E9%AB%94%E5%B1%9C%E5%87%B8%E5%9C%96%E5%90%90%E8%8F%9F%E8%84%AB&sound=1#res):  
<https://translate.google.com/?sl=zh-TW&tl=en&text=%E4%BB%96%E5%A4%A7&op=translate>

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: If you listen to any chinese native teacher teaching in english and hear them say 大 or 的, do you not hear one initial as a T and the other as a D?  
> **username_3**: @username_0 Just like teaching English!  Will the pronunciation taught by an American teacher or a British teacher be the same?  
> **username_0**: I am not disputing that point but what I think is true is that most native teachers who enunciate clearly speak the same. And what is also true is that the D initial should sound the same regardless of the hanzi. Like 大 and 的 initials should sound the same because they both have the same pinyin initial D. But if you listen to many available examples of native teachers speaking it, one sounds like a clear T and the other sounds like D consistently. There are plenty of examples that can be looked but just a few to consider youtu.be/SYfoqSf2eQI and youtu.be/2A6dXLkPu9w  

---

### Answer by username_6 on 2024-05-15. Score: 1

I guess it wasn't the case but -

According to [汉典](https://www.zdic.net/hans/%E5%A4%A7), "大", while it is typically pronounced as "dà" or "dài", does have a pronunciation of "**tài**", the same as "太" and "泰" in ancient times/uses.

* **大 [ㄊㄞˋ tài] <形> - 至高無上的**。清·江沅《說文釋例·卷上·釋字例·大》：「古兄作『大』，不作『太』、『泰』。《易》之『大極』，《春秋》之『大子』、『大上』，《尚書》之『大誓』、『大王王季』，《史》、《漢》之『大上皇』、『大后』，後人皆讀為太。或徑改本書，作『太』及『泰』。」
  通「太」、「泰」。

So, depending on the context of speaking, confusion may result if no clarification is made.


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### Answer by username_2 on 2024-05-14. Score: 0

Chinese d, b, and g aren't as voiced as their English counterparts (and much less voiced then their counterparts in Romance languages). Conversely, Chinese t, p, and k are more aspirated than English t, p and k.

To visualise their difference, you could imagine placing them all on a continuum from more voiced to more aspirated (I'll add an easy, non-IPA shorthand within brackets to hint at their different degrees of voicing):

↑voiced & unaspirated

* English D ("d")
* Chinese D ("dt")
* English T ("t")
* Chinese T ("tt")

↓ unvoiced & aspirated

You can apply the same logic to B vs P and K vs G.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: If you listen to any chinese native teacher and hear them say 大 or 的, do you not hear one initial as a T and the other as a D? Like for example from here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYfoqSf2eQI and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A6dXLkPu9w  
> **username_2**: You may sometimes hear 的 or other words pronounced with a voiced D, but that's just an allophone, often resulting from juxtaposition with a particular final (or from the lack of one). It's really the D in 大 you want to aim at, which is similar to a French/Spanish/Italian T as well as to the T in the English word "stop" (as opposed to the T in the English word "top"). Can you hear the unaspirated T in "stop" (vs "top")? Can you hear it in the French word "tout" (vs English "two")? That's the canonical D in STANDARD Mandarin. Voiced Ds, however, are heard too sometimes, and are understandable.  

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### Answer by username_7 on 2024-05-15. Score: 0

If you cannot speak the two sounds differently, then you cannot tell the difference of the two sounds when listening to other people speak them. On the other hand, if you speak the two sounds clearly then you would know that the other people may be not correct.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: I think you speak wisdom. But one question if I may - when you listen to a chinese friend speak 大 and 的, do you hear the same D initial in both cases?  
> **username_3**: If someone really can't distinguish between these two sounds, it's best to go to the hospital to have their hearing checked.  

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