Features

Pinyin Annotator is a free in-browser Hanzi pronunciation tool for Mandarin teachers, primary-school Chinese-language teachers, children's picture-book authors, self-publishers and editorial staff. Paste a Chinese article containing rare characters or polyphonic (multi-read) characters, and the tool automatically places toned pinyin above (or next to) each Hanzi. It intelligently identifies polyphonic readings (e.g. '重' as zhòng in 重要 'important' but as chóng in 重复 'repeat', choosing the most likely pronunciation via contextual word frequency), optionally skips already-annotated characters, and lets you pick annotation position (superscript above / side gloss inline / trailing parentheses). Outputs copyable rich text, PDF, Word, or pinyin-on-image — perfect for children's flashcards, CSL reading materials, or rare-character annotated classical-Chinese drafts.

When You Need This

Common pain points this tool solves

1. A Mandarin-as-Second-Language teacher prepares a 300-character reader for beginner class, containing 28 polyphonic characters (行 / 乐 / 中 / 了 etc.). Pastes into Annotator, picks 'superscript pinyin + smart polyphonic detection + pinyin at 60% Hanzi size', exports PDF for print. Polyphonic accuracy is 35% higher than a plain per-character pinyin table
2. A children's picture-book author is annotating a 150-character story draft and only wants to gloss new characters outside the 6-year-old recognition list. Selects 'Only annotate characters outside Grade 1–3 character list' so only the rare + out-of-list words get pinyin, common characters are clean, no dense wall of pinyin cluttering the page
3. A classical-Chinese editorial staffer is annotating an 800-character Tang-Song prose piece with 60+ rare characters and ancient-variant readings. Picks 'CJK Ext A–G rare-character coverage + polyphonics prefer ancient pronunciation', outputs a side-gloss format Word file. Only 3 ancient readings need manual correction, saving hours of per-character dictionary lookups.

How to Use

Step-by-step instructions

1. Paste the raw Chinese text into the main input. Simplified / traditional / a limited set of ancient variant forms, punctuation, line breaks, lists, mixed Chinese-English, and CJK Extension-zone rare characters all supported.
2. Annotation options: ① Pinyin position: superscript above Hanzi / side gloss to the right / trailing parentheses after the character; ② Tone style: numbered tones (ni3) / tone diacritics (nǐ) / neutral tone unmarked; ③ Polyphonic mode: smart contextual detection / list all and let me pick / most common read only; ④ Filters: annotate only rare chars, skip already-pinyined Hanzi, annotate only a custom whitelist (e.g. children's graded character lists).
3. Click preview to see the full laid-out pinyin text. Click any individual polyphonic Hanzi to pop up all its pronunciations and manually select one; edits update the whole render in real time.
4. Pick an export: Copy Rich Text (paste to Word / WPS / WeChat editors and pinyin stays as HTML ruby tags), export PDF / DOCX / tall PNG image, export HTML with ruby tags, or export a plain-text parentheses version (ni3 这 nèi 样) suitable for plain-text chat.

Why Choose Korelyy

What makes us better

1. True contextual polyphonic recognition, not just a per-character lookup table. Built on a 200 000+ two-character compound dictionary, with word frequency ordering, POS tagging, and contextual n-gram probability. 300+ high-frequency polyphonics like 行 / 乐 / 中 / 了 / 得 / 差 / 熟 have vastly higher correct-read coverage than plain single-Hanzi pinyiners.
2. Wide rare-Hanzi coverage: supports Unicode CJK basic + Ext A / B / C / D / E / F / G — 90 000+ characters total from Kangxi-era forms to modern simplified ones, way beyond typical tools that only do ~6000 common Hanzi. Classical texts, dialect words, and surname variant characters all resolve.
3. 100% browser-local, zero upload. Unpublished children's book manuscripts, school-confidential final Chinese exams, unreleased classical collation drafts all paste safely. Every pinyin lookup, polyphonic decision, and ruby tag render runs entirely inside the browser.

Monetize With This Tool

Turn this tool into a side income stream

1. Use this tool to speed up your freelance work and take on more paying clients
2. Create polished content faster for your blog, YouTube channel, or social media and grow your audience
3. Offer this tool's capabilities as a service on Fiverr, Upwork, or to your local business clients

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Is Chinese Pinyin Annotator free to use?

   Yes. Chinese Pinyin Annotator is 100% free for core features — no signup, no watermarks, no hidden paywalls on the tools you need day to day.

2. Do I need to sign up to use Chinese Pinyin Annotator?

   No. Open and use instantly in your browser. Nothing to install, no account required. Your preferences stay on your device.

3. Is my data safe with Chinese Pinyin Annotator?

   Yes. Chinese Pinyin Annotator runs locally in your browser whenever technically possible — sensitive inputs are processed on your device, not on our servers. No tracking cookies.

4. Which devices does Chinese Pinyin Annotator work on?

   Phones, tablets and desktops with any modern browser (Chrome, Safari, Edge, Firefox). Touch-friendly and responsive from 320px to 4K.

5. What is pinyin annotation?

   Pinyin annotation adds ruby-style phonetic guides above Chinese characters showing the Romanized pronunciation with tone marks, helping learners read Chinese aloud.

6. Does it handle polyphonic characters?

   Yes, the tool uses context-aware dictionaries to choose the correct pronunciation for polyphonic characters (多音字) that change sound based on usage.

7. Can I export the annotated text?

   Yes, you can export annotated text as HTML with ruby tags, plain text with pinyin in parentheses, or as a printable PDF study sheet.