Wǒmen gòngtóng shēnghuó zài tóng yí gè dìqiú jiāyuán shàng,
我们 共同 生活 在 同 一 个 地球 家园 上，
qǐng zūnzhòng àihù wǒmen de měi yí gè “jiārén.”
请 尊重 爱护 我们 的 每 一 个“家人”。
We live in the same world, and we should respect and treasure each “member” of this big family.
—From 李连杰 (Lǐ Liánjié) Jet Li, a Chinese Actor on 19th, Jan. 2011.
A quote from Jet Li, when he saw a picture of people killing a shark in order to eat the shark’s fin. The term “家人 (jiārén) family member” here refers to the shark.
Grammar points–Chinese tones:
The Chinese pinyin for “一” is usually “yī,” but you may have noticed that we pronounce it as “yí” in this quote. Actually, in different situations, the tone for “一” changes.
When we use “一” alone or when “一” is the last word in a phrase or sentence, it is pronounced “yī”. For example: “一 (yī) one,” “统一 (tǒngyī) to unify.”
When “一” is placed before a word which uses the fourth tone, then “一” changes its tone to “yí.” For example: “一片 (yí piàn) a piece.”
Can “一” be pronounced “yǐ” in some special situations?
When “一” is placed before a word which is the second tone, then “一”should be pronounced “yì.” For example: 一年 (yìnián) one year.
I’m very interested in Chinese tones, and I know “一” can be pronounced as “yì.”