Asking questions is necessary for any language study, and Chinese is no exception. This article will introduce some particles and structures that are commonly used to help you correctly learn how to ask questions in Chinese.
There are several forms of interrogative sentences in Chinese, let us learn them one by one.
General interrogative sentence
This is a case where a question is simply made by adding a question particle, such as “吗” or “呢” at the end of a statement sentence.
Here are some examples：
Header | statement sentence | interrogative sentence |
|---|---|---|
Chinese Characters | 他是老师。 | 他是老师吗？ |
Chinese Pinyin | Tā shì lǎo shī | Tā shì lǎo shī ma？ |
Meanings | He is a teacher | Is he a teacher? |
Chinese Characters | 今天是星期一。 | 今天是星期一吗？ |
Chinese Pinyin | Jīn tiān shì xīng qī yī | Jīn tiān shì xīng qī yī ma? |
Meanings | Today is Monday | Is it Monday today? |
Chinese Characters | 我在做… | 你在做什么呢？ |
Chinese Pinyin | Wǒ zài zuò … | Nǐ zài zuò shén me ne? |
Meanings | I am doing… | What are you doing? |
Interrogative sentences that use specific interrogative words
Specific interrogation includes an interrogative pronoun such as:
who -谁（shuí）
what-什么（shén me）
where-哪儿（ nǎ'er）
how -怎么样（zěn me yang）
The commonly used modal particles in the end of the sentence is 呢 or 啊. The reply should be the exact answer of the question.
Interrogative object | Interrogative pronoun | Meanings | Examples | Chinese Pinyin | Meaning of the sentences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
person | 谁 | Who | 他是谁？ | tā shì shuí? | Who is him? |
time | 什么时候 | When | 你什么时候来中国的？ | nǐ shén me shí hou lái zhōng guó de? | When did you come to China? |
何时 | 你何时考虑过我？ | nǐ hé shí kǎo lǜ guò wǒ? | When did you consider me? | ||
object | 什么 | What | 你想吃什么？ | nǐ xiǎng chī shén me? | What do you want to eat? |
哪 | Which | 你想吃哪一个？ | nǐ xiǎng chī nǎ yī gè？ | Which one do you want to eat? | |
place | 哪里 | Where | 哪里能买到汉语词典？ | nǎ lǐ néng mǎi dào hàn yǔ cí diǎn? | Where can I buy a Chinese dictionary? |
哪儿 | 你家乡在哪儿？ | nǐ jiā xiāng zài nǎ'er? | Where is your hometown? | ||
什么地方 | 这是什么地方？ | zhè shì shén me dì fang？ | Where is this? | ||
quantity/ number | 多少 | How much/How many | 这件衣服多少钱？ | zhè jiàn yī fu duō shǎo qián? | How much is this shirt？ |
几 | 现在几点了？ | Xiàn zài jǐ diǎn le? | What time is it now? | ||
你要几个苹果？ | Nǐ yào jǐ gè píng guǒ？ | How many apples do you want? | |||
method | 怎么 | How | 这道题怎么做？ | Zhè dào tí zěn me zuò? | How can I solve this question? |
怎么样 | How about | 中国菜怎么样？ | Zhōng guó cài zěn me yàng？ | How about Chinese food? | |
reason | 为什么 | Why | 他为什么没来？ | Tā wèi shén me méi lái? | Why didn’t he come? |
怎么 | 你怎么不告诉我？ | Nǐ zěn me bù gào sù wǒ | Why don’t you tell me? |
“A-不-A” construction
Another construction for a question is the “A-不-A” format, made up of both the affirmative and negative answer. “A” could be a verb or an adjective. The response should be one or the other. This construction is used to confirm something that people are not very sure about and the examples are as follows:
Chinese Characters | Chinese Pinyin | Meanings |
|---|---|---|
你是不是医生？ | Nǐ shì bú shì yī shēng? | Are you a doctor or not? |
小明吃不吃香蕉？ | Xiǎo míng chī bù chī xiāng jiāo? | Does Xiao Ming eat bananas or not? |
妈妈看不看电视？ | Mā ma kàn bú kàn diàn shì? | Does mom watch TV or not? |
你忙不忙？ | Nǐ máng bù máng? | Are you busy or not? |
“（是）…..还是…..” construction
“（是）… 还是… ”is used to form a question while giving people two or more choices, and the respondent needs to choose one. Sometimes the first “是” can be omitted.
Chinese Characters | Chinese Pinyin | Meanings |
|---|---|---|
你（是）喝茶还是咖啡？ | Nǐ (shì) hē chá hái shì hē kā fēi? | Do you drink tea or coffee? |
你假期（是）去实习还是旅行？ | Nǐ jià qī (shì) qù shí xí hái shì lǚ xíng？ | Are you going to do internship or go sightseeing during the holiday? |
他是美国人还是英国人？ | Tā shì mě guó rén hái shì yīng guó rén? | Is he American or British? |
A Few Extras
Here are the examples.
Chinese Characters | Chinese Pinyin | Meanings |
|---|---|---|
我们下个月一起去北京，好吗？ | wǒ men xià gè yuè yī qǐ qù běi jīng, hǎo ma? | Shall we go to Beijing together next month? |
我想借一下你的字典，可以吗？ | Wǒ xiǎng jiè yī xià nǐ de zì diǎn, kě yǐ ma? | Can I borrow your dictionary? |
我可不可以尝一尝？ | Wǒ kě bù kě yǐ cháng yī cháng？ | Can I taste it? |
来我家玩吧，好不好？ | lái wǒ jiā wán ba, hǎo bù hǎo? | Come to my house and play, shall you? |
Mini – test
Try to turn the following sentences into a general interrogative sentence.
他在看书。
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今天很冷。
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大卫去年去了中国。
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Try to translate these sentences into Chinese, and pay special attention to the interrogative pronoun.
Who are you?
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When did he start to learn Chinese?
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Which movie do you want to watch?
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Where did you grow up?
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How to make the cake?
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How about taking a break?
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Why do you want to learn Chinese?
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Try to write the following sentences in Chinese.
Are you hungry or not?
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Are you a student or not?
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Does she want to go abroad or not?
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Do you want to eat Chinese food or western food?
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Is his mom a nurse or a teacher?
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Do you like cat or dog?
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Keep Practicing…
When you ask some questions, why not try to express them in Chinese? Whether you’ve struggled with Chinese interrogative sentences or found it pretty easy, practicing it in Chinese daily will help you get to grips with these expressions.So, the more you speak, the more perfect your Chinese will be! If you know any native Chinese-speakers, try and practice what you’ve learned with them.
Good luck and have fun!
