All words ›Tai chi
CultureHow to pronounce “Tai chi” (taiji)
太极tài jí
Literally: supreme ultimate.
“tie CHEE” — the ch is actually a j
tye-JEE — modern pinyin spells it taiji, and that j is the giveaway
The shape of the word
Tap any syllable to hear it. The curve above each one is the tone you are aiming for.
Syllable by syllable
| Syllable | Tone | Practise it |
|---|---|---|
| 太 tài | Fourth tone — sharp fall | tai — open drill → |
| 极 jí | Second tone — rising | ji — open drill → |
The “chi” spelling is Wade-Giles, where ch stood for today’s j. The same system gave us Peking and Tsingtao.
Questions people ask
How do you pronounce Tai chi?
Tai chi is 太极, tài jí — tye-JEE — modern pinyin spells it taiji, and that j is the giveaway. Literally it means supreme ultimate.
What is the most common mistake with Tai chi?
“tie CHEE” — the ch is actually a j
Is there anything else worth knowing about Tai chi?
The “chi” spelling is Wade-Giles, where ch stood for today’s j. The same system gave us Peking and Tsingtao.
More words people mispronounce
Reading a respelling is not the same as producing the tones. The free 2-minute check listens to you and shows which syllables land wrong.