Paste English text, press Listen, and hear it read in a Chinese accent. The tool runs in the browser and saves the audio as an MP3.
Single words and paragraphs both work. Words are useful for checking one sound; paragraphs show what happens to the rhythm across a whole sentence.
Shorter passages give a cleaner result. A paragraph at a time is the practical unit.
Mandarin builds syllables far more simply than English does. Nearly every feature of the accent comes from English asking for shapes Mandarin does not use.
Word endings simplify. Mandarin syllables mostly end in a vowel, N or NG. English finishes words on a dozen other sounds, so those endings soften, shorten or go missing. The final sounds in “cats”, “asked” and “helped” are the ones under most pressure.
Consonant stacks get broken up. When English piles consonants together, either one drops out or a short vowel slides in to separate them. “Spring” can land closer to “supring”, and “texts” can lose most of its ending.
TH shifts to S, Z, T or D. Mandarin does not carry either TH sound as a native one, so the nearest available sound stands in.
Rhythm comes out evener. English stretches stressed syllables and swallows the rest. Mandarin gives syllables closer to equal weight, which flattens the rise and fall of a sentence and is the part listeners notice without being able to name it.
L and R move closer together. The two do not divide the same way in Mandarin as in English, and words that contrast them sit at the edge of the accent.
Vowel length carries less weight. English separates some word pairs mainly by how long the vowel is held. Mandarin does not use length that way, so those pairs move nearer each other.
Give the text something to act on. A sentence built from short, open words has no clusters and no hard endings, and it will come back sounding close to neutral.
Longer sentences show the rhythm better than single words, because the even syllable weight only becomes audible once there are several syllables in a row.
Download gives you an MP3 that plays anywhere, with no conversion step.
For a set of lines, generate them one at a time and name the files as you go. Short clips are easier to retime than one long recording.
A synthetic voice, not a regional guide and not a translation tool. Mandarin and Cantonese speakers do not share an accent in English, and this voice is built on Mandarin.
For translation rather than reading aloud, use the English to Chinese translator.
Is it free?
Yes, with no account.
Can I download the audio?
Yes, as an MP3.
Is this Mandarin or Cantonese?
The voice is built on Mandarin. Cantonese-accented English differs in its endings and its rhythm.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes, in the browser.
Why does a short phrase sound almost neutral?
The rhythm is a large part of this accent and it needs several syllables to become audible. Try a full sentence.