Increasingly, Chinese students are pursuing their studies abroad in English-speaking countries, such as the USA, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand. Despite the fact that they have studied English as a compulsory subject for a number of years and have passed multiple English proficiency tests, many still find it is difficult to communicate well in spoken English. One of the major obstacles for oral communication is English pronunciation, which hinders many Chinese students' ability to be understood by native speakers or English learners from other language backgrounds. Foreign language (FL) learners' mispronunciations are not random, as a foreign accent produced by learners largely reflects the phonetic features and intonation characteristics of their first language (L1) (Avery & Ehrlich, 1992; Ohata, 2004; Swan & Smith, 1987). This article first examines some of the differences between Chinese and English phonological systems and then summarizes some of the English pronunciation problems for Chinese learners. The article will ideally help TESOL practitioners become aware of the way in which learners' L1 backgrounds may influence their English pronunciation. In particular, it is useful for English teachers with Chinese students in understanding the phonological differences between English and Chinese, as well as the major problematic areas in terms of pronunciation.