Chinese Question Words: How to Ask Anything
The Core Question Words
谁 (shéi) who, 什么 (shénme) what, 哪里 (nǎlǐ) where, 什么时候 (shénme shíhou) when, 为什么 (wèi shénme) why, 怎么 (zěnme) how, 多少 (duōshǎo) how many/much, 几 (jǐ) how many (small number).
Question Patterns
In Chinese, questions are formed three ways. First, the ma (吗) pattern: add 吗 to any statement to make it a yes/no question. Second, the question word pattern: place the question word where the answer goes. Third, the verb-not-verb pattern: 你去不去？(Do you go or not go?).
Practice Examples
你叫什么名字？(What is your name?) 你从哪里来？(Where are you from?) 这个多少钱？(How much is this?) 你为什么学中文？(Why are you learning Chinese?). Practice recognizing these patterns with our Pinyin Quiz.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How are Chinese questions different from English? ▼
Chinese question words stay in the same position where the answer would go, unlike English which moves them to the front. So Where do you go? is literally You go where? (你去哪里?).
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