Pinyin Lesson 8

Retroflex Finals

• There is only one retroflex final “er” in Pinyin.• When pronouncing “er”, first pronounce “e ” (like ‘ir’ in

‘dirty’), then raise and retract the tongue backwards.

ér儿

（ son ）

ěr耳

（ ear ）

èr二

（ two ）

nǚér女儿

（ daughter ）

èrshí二十

（ twenty ）

Suffixation of the Nonsyllabic “r”

• When the retroflex vowel “er” follows another syllable, the final of the syllable becomes a retroflex final. This is referred to as the suffixation of the nonsyllabic “r”.

• In Pinyin, “r” is placed after the primary syllable. E.g. “huār” is pronounced by pronouncing “huā” and retracting the tongue towards the back of the mouth.

huā er花 儿

（ flower ）

huà er 画儿

（ painting ）

miàn tiáo er 面 条 儿（ noodle ）