喂 should be 2nd tone; is 4th
skishore opened this issue · comments
Both appear in various references, but the 2nd tone is supposed to be more polite.
Hi @skishore,
喂 has multiple meanings, most common being say "Hey!" and "to feed", and in both of those cases, wèi (4th tone) is the only correct pronunciation. In these two cases, it has nothing to do with politeness. Can't use 2nd tone at all.
喂 is also used for saying "Hello" in answering a phone call, and probably because it is often pronounced like a question, as in "Hello?", with a rising intonation, sounding just like the 2nd tone, and like you say, sounding more polite. Note that however it is not universal: some Chinese netizens observed that younger people tend to use 2nd tone, older people tend to use the 4th tone when answering the phone. It also depends on locality too, probably influenced by their respective local dialect.
References:
- https://www.moedict.tw/%E5%96%82 (喂 in dictionary)
- https://www.zhihu.com/question/24125228 既然「喂」本来读去声，为什么在接电话的时候有人会发成阳平呢？
- http://www.sohu.com/a/238641751_355511 新中年男子判定标准：接电话的“喂”是二声还是四声…… 你是第几声？
(Aside: We use the rising tone, universally regardless of age, in pronouncing 喂 in Cantonese when answering the phone.)
Hope this helps!