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Choosing Mnemonics

Pick the mnemonic story that sticks best for you by clicking its ☆ — there's no wrong choice, and you'll be able to write your own soon. Then press Continue.

shǎng = sh + ang3
used in 上聲|上声[shang3 sheng1]
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shàng = sh + ang4
(bound form) up; upper; above; previous / first (of multiple parts) / to climb; to get onto; to go up / to attend (class or university) / (directional complement) up / (noun suffix) on; above
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How to pronounce 上

MandarinBanana teaches pronunciation with the Marilyn Method: every Pinyin syllable is one initial plus one final, the initial becomes a person, an animal or a deity, and the final becomes a place in your memory palace — with the tone deciding which part of that place the scene happens in. Remember the little story below for each half and the whole syllable comes back with them.

= sh initial

Sh is for Sherlock Holmes.

By Matthias • updated about 1 month ago
+ ang3 final

In the anglepod’s living room.

By Matthias • updated 5 months ago
= sh initial

Sh is for Sherlock Holmes.

By Matthias • updated about 1 month ago
+ ang4 final

In the anglepod’s bathroom.

By Matthias • updated 5 months ago

上 character breakdown

Chinese characters are built out of smaller characters. Each component carries a mnemonic symbol - one concrete object that stands in for it - and a mnemonic story hands those objects to the person and the place that stand for the pronunciation. Learn a component once and every character that reuses it gets easier.

Component Translations
Character component without intrinsic meaning
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= y + Ø1
one / single / a (article) / as soon as / entire; whole; all; throughout / "one" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 1) / also pr. [yao1] for greater clarity when spelling out numbers digit by digit
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gǔn = gu + (e)n3
radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 2)
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shù = shu + Ø4
vertical stroke (in Chinese characters), referred to as 豎筆|竖笔[shu4 bi3]
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èr = Ø + Ø4
two / 2 / (Beijing dialect) stupid
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shàng = sh + ang4
old variant of 上[shang4]
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Characters with 上 as component

= k + a3
to stop / to block / (computing) (coll.) slow / (loanword) card / CL:張|张[zhang1],片[pian4] / truck (from "car") / calorie (abbr. for 卡路里[ka3 lu4 li3]) / cassette
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qiǎ = qi + a3
to block / to be stuck / to be wedged / customs station / a clip / a fastener / a checkpost / Taiwan pr. [ka3]
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zhǐ = zh + Ø3
to stop / to prohibit / until / only
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Words with 上

show 919 more
at once / right away / immediately / on horseback (i.e. by military force)
evening / night / CL:個|个[ge4] / in the evening

Sentences with 上

ǎn
lǎo
sūn
shàng
tiān
 
 
 
 
suǒ
néng

Want to remember 上 for good?

Make it your learning target and MandarinBanana works out the shortest route to it: the two sounds its syllable is built from, then the components of the character itself, one short step at a time. No account needed to start.

shǎng / shàng

2 translations

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