they for Mandarin speakers — pronunciation and common errors

Pronunciation

Mandarin lacks the voiced dental fricative /ð/, leading speakers to substitute the alveolar plosive /d/. This causes 'they' /ðeɪ/ to be pronounced as /deɪ/, which is phonemically identical to 'day'.

False friend

他们 (tā men) means “they / them (specifically for groups)” — While 'they' functions as both a plural and a singular neutral pronoun in English, the Mandarin suffix 们 (men) is strictly plural. Learners may avoid using 'they' for individuals, preferring 'he or she' even when the gender is unknown.

Grammar

In Mandarin, third-person pronouns 他 (tā), 她 (tā), and 它 (tā) are phonetically identical. Consequently, learners often experience L1 interference where they use 'he' or 'she' interchangeably in speech when 'they' would be the more natural or accurate choice.

Examples

• They are waiting for the bus outside.
• If a student forgets their umbrella, they can borrow one from the front desk.