However, when tone 3 comes before another syllable the rise is completely lost (2-1 rather than 2-1-4). This is for practicality, it's not possible to pronounce the full version immediately before another syllable (or if you did it would sound strange). Some people analyse tone 3 as being simply "low", with the dip and rise only appearing when convenient. You can think of Běijīng as being pronounced low-high.
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