Kilo Lingo
Part of Chapter 4

2 min read

Test yourself (22 questions)

Mandarin Question Words: the Answer's Seat

English builds a question by demolition: it grabs the wh-word, drags it to the front, and rearranges what is left ('You want WHAT?' becomes 'WHAT do you want?'). Mandarin does none of that. A Mandarin question is the statement, untouched, with a question word parked in the seat where the answer will sit. Learn the statement and the question comes free.

  • 他是我朋友。(Tā shì wǒ péngyou.) - He is my friend.
  • 他是谁？(Tā shì shéi?) - Who is he?

谁 (shéi) sits exactly where 我朋友 (wǒ péngyou) sat. That one principle covers the whole family.

The set

  • (shénme) - what. 你想吃什么？(Nǐ xiǎng chī shénme?) - What do you want to eat? The answer, 东西 (dōngxi, something) or anything else, will occupy the same slot.
  • (shéi) - who. 这些东西是谁的？(Zhèxiē dōngxi shì shéi de?) - Whose are these things? Also pronounced shuí in careful speech; shéi is what you will hear.
  • (nǎ) - which. Behaves like 这 (zhè) and 那 (nà): it needs a measure word before a noun. 哪个人？(Nǎge rén?) - Which person? Never bare 哪人 (nǎ rén).
  • (nǎr) - where. The place-word: 你的朋友在哪儿？(Nǐ de péngyou zài nǎr?) - Where is your friend? Southern speakers say 哪里 (nǎlǐ); same word, same slot.
  • (zěnme) - how. Sits before the verb: 这个东西怎么用？(Zhège dōngxi zěnme yòng?) - How do you use this thing?
  • (wèishénme) - why. Literally 'for what'. 你为什么不去？(Nǐ wèishénme bú qù?) - Why aren't you going? The answer starts with 因为 (yīnwèi, because).
  • (jǐ) and (duōshao) - how many, how much. The pair that deserves its own section.

几 (jǐ) vs 多少 (duōshao)

Both ask about quantity; they split the territory by size and by grammar.

几 (jǐ) expects a smallish answer, usually under ten, and it MUST take a measure word, exactly as a number would: 你有几个孩子？(Nǐ yǒu jǐ ge háizi?) - How many children do you have? 你去几天？(Nǐ qù jǐ tiān?) - How many days are you going for?

多少 (duōshao) is size-agnostic and attaches straight to the noun, no measure word required: 这里有多少人？(Zhèlǐ yǒu duōshao rén?) - How many people are here? And the question you will ask most in your first week in China: 这个多少钱？(Zhège duōshao qián?) - How much is this? A price is always 多少钱 (duōshao qián), never 几钱 (jǐ qián).

The quick test: if you would be surprised by an answer over ten, and a measure word fits, use 几 (jǐ). Otherwise 多少 (duōshao) is never wrong.

No 吗 (ma), and no fronting

Two errors to head off. First, a question word already makes the sentence a question, so 吗 (ma) stays off the end: 你想吃什么？(Nǐ xiǎng chī shénme?), not 你想吃什么吗 (nǐ xiǎng chī shénme ma). Second, resist the English reflex to front the question word: 什么你想吃 (shénme nǐ xiǎng chī) is not Mandarin. Say the statement, swap in the question word, stop. The question word sits in the answer's seat, and the answer will sit right back down in it.

Practise: test yourself

Pick the right one

0/8

Here is the ANSWER someone gave. Pick the question word that must have asked it: 什么 (shénme, what), 谁 (shéi, who), 哪儿 (nǎr, where), 怎么 (zěnme, how), 为什么 (wèishénme, why).

  1. Answer: 他是我朋友。(Tā shì wǒ péngyou. He is my friend.) Question: 他是？(Tā shì ___?)

    Answer: tā shì wǒ péng yǒu 。(Tā shì wǒ péngyou. He is my friend.) Question: tā shì ___？(Tā shì ___?)

  2. Answer: 我在找我的钱。(Wǒ zài zhǎo wǒ de qián. I am looking for my money.) Question: 你在找？(Nǐ zài zhǎo ___?)

    Answer: wǒ zài zhǎo wǒ de qián 。(Wǒ zài zhǎo wǒ de qián. I am looking for my money.) Question: nǐ zài zhǎo ___？(Nǐ zài zhǎo ___?)

  3. Answer: 我的朋友在这里。(Wǒ de péngyou zài zhèlǐ. My friend is here.) Question: 你的朋友在？(Nǐ de péngyou zài ___?)

    Answer: wǒ de péng yǒu zài zhè lǐ 。(Wǒ de péngyou zài zhèlǐ. My friend is here.) Question: nǐ de péng yǒu zài ___？(Nǐ de péngyou zài ___?)

  4. Answer: 因为我没有钱。(Yīnwèi wǒ méiyǒu qián. Because I have no money.) Question: 你不去？(Nǐ ___ bú qù?)

    Answer: yīn wèi wǒ méi yǒu qián 。(Yīnwèi wǒ méiyǒu qián. Because I have no money.) Question: nǐ ___ bú qù ？(Nǐ ___ bú qù?)

  5. Answer: 这样做。(Zhèyàng zuò. Do it like this.) Question: 这个东西做？(Zhège dōngxi ___ zuò?)

    Answer: zhè yàng zuò 。(Zhèyàng zuò. Do it like this.) Question: zhè ge dōng xī ___ zuò ？(Zhège dōngxi ___ zuò?)

  6. Answer: 这些东西是我先生的。(Zhèxiē dōngxi shì wǒ xiānsheng de. These things are my husband's.) Question: 这些东西是的？(Zhèxiē dōngxi shì ___ de?)

    Answer: zhè xiē dōng xī shì wǒ xiān shēng de 。(Zhèxiē dōngxi shì wǒ xiānsheng de. These things are my husband's.) Question: zhè xiē dōng xī shì ___ de ？(Zhèxiē dōngxi shì ___ de?)

  7. Answer: 我想吃东西。(Wǒ xiǎng chī dōngxi. I want to eat something.) Question: 你想吃？(Nǐ xiǎng chī ___?)

    Answer: wǒ xiǎng chī dōng xī 。(Wǒ xiǎng chī dōngxi. I want to eat something.) Question: nǐ xiǎng chī ___？(Nǐ xiǎng chī ___?)

  8. Answer: 他们在那个地方工作。(Tāmen zài nàge dìfang gōngzuò. They work at that place.) Question: 他们在工作？(Tāmen zài ___ gōngzuò?)

    Answer: tā men zài nà ge dì fāng gōng zuò 。(Tāmen zài nàge dìfang gōngzuò. They work at that place.) Question: tā men zài ___ gōng zuò ？(Tāmen zài ___ gōngzuò?)

Pick the right one

0/6

几 (jǐ) or 多少 (duōshao)? 几 expects a small answer and must take a measure word; 多少 handles any amount and sits straight before the noun - and a price is always 多少钱 (duōshao qián).

  1. 你有个孩子？(Nǐ yǒu ___ ge háizi? How many children - the measure word 个 is there, and the answer will be small.)

    nǐ yǒu ___ gè hái zi ？(Nǐ yǒu ___ ge háizi? How many children - the measure word gè is there, and the answer will be small.)

  2. 这个钱？(Zhège ___ qián? How much is this one - a price question.)

    zhè ge ___ qián ？(Zhège ___ qián? How much is this one - a price question.)

  3. 你去天？(Nǐ qù ___ tiān? How many days - a short trip, small number.)

    nǐ qù ___ tiān ？(Nǐ qù ___ tiān? How many days - a short trip, small number.)

  4. 这里有人？(Zhèlǐ yǒu ___ rén? How many people - a big crowd, question word straight before the noun.)

    zhè lǐ yǒu ___ rén ？(Zhèlǐ yǒu ___ rén? How many people - a big crowd, question word straight before the noun.)

  5. 你有个问题？(Nǐ yǒu ___ ge wèntí? How many questions - measure word 个, small expected count.)

    nǐ yǒu ___ gè wèn tí ？(Nǐ yǒu ___ ge wèntí? How many questions - measure word gè , small expected count.)

  6. 他们有钱？(Tāmen yǒu ___ qián? How much money - any amount at all.)

    tā men yǒu ___ qián ？(Tāmen yǒu ___ qián? How much money - any amount at all.)

Pick the right one

0/8

Fill the gap in each question. The question word goes exactly where the answer will go - tap the one that asks for the missing piece.

  1. 个人是你先生？(___ge rén shì nǐ xiānsheng? Which one of these people is your husband?)

    ___ gè rén shì nǐ xiān shēng ？(___ge rén shì nǐ xiānsheng? Which one of these people is your husband?)

  2. 你想吃？(Nǐ xiǎng chī ___? What do you want to eat?)

    nǐ xiǎng chī ___？(Nǐ xiǎng chī ___? What do you want to eat?)

  3. 他是？(Tā shì ___? Who is he?)

    tā shì ___？(Tā shì ___? Who is he?)

  4. 你的孩子在？(Nǐ de háizi zài ___? Where is your child?)

    nǐ de hái zi zài ___？(Nǐ de háizi zài ___? Where is your child?)

  5. 你不吃？(Nǐ ___ bù chī? Why aren't you eating?)

    nǐ ___ bù chī ？(Nǐ ___ bù chī? Why aren't you eating?)

  6. 这个东西用？(Zhège dōngxi ___ yòng? How does this thing work - how do you use it?)

    zhè ge dōng xī ___ yòng ？(Zhège dōngxi ___ yòng? How does this thing work - how do you use it?)

  7. 你有个朋友？(Nǐ yǒu ___ ge péngyou? How many friends - small number, measure word 个.)

    nǐ yǒu ___ gè péng yǒu ？(Nǐ yǒu ___ ge péngyou? How many friends - small number, measure word gè .)

  8. 这个钱？(Zhège ___ qián? How much is this?)

    zhè ge ___ qián ？(Zhège ___ qián? How much is this?)

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Frequently asked questions

Does Mandarin move the question word to the front like English does?
No. English fronts its wh-words ('WHAT do you want?'); Mandarin leaves the sentence in statement order and drops the question word into the slot where the answer will sit. 你想吃什么？(nǐ xiǎng chī shénme?, what do you want to eat?) has 什么 exactly where the food will be in the answer: 我想吃东西 (wǒ xiǎng chī dōngxi, I want to eat something). If you can say the answer, you already know the word order of the question.
What is the difference between 几 (jǐ) and 多少 (duōshao)?
Both ask 'how many', but 几 (jǐ) expects a smallish answer (usually under ten) and MUST be followed by a measure word: 几个孩子 (jǐ ge háizi, how many children). 多少 (duōshao) works for any size and attaches straight to the noun with no measure word needed: 多少人 (duōshao rén, how many people), 多少钱 (duōshao qián, how much money). Asking a price is always 多少钱, never 几钱.
Do I add 吗 (ma) to a question with 什么 (shénme) or 谁 (shéi)?
No. 吗 (ma) turns a statement into a yes-no question, and a sentence with a question word in it is already a question. 你想吃什么吗 is wrong for 'what do you want to eat?'; the correct form is 你想吃什么？(nǐ xiǎng chī shénme?). One question marker per sentence.
What is the difference between 哪 (nǎ) and 哪儿 (nǎr)?
哪 (nǎ) means 'which' and behaves like 这 (zhè) and 那 (nà): it needs a measure word before a noun, so 'which person' is 哪个人 (nǎge rén). 哪儿 (nǎr) - or the fuller 哪里 (nǎlǐ), which southern speakers prefer - means 'where' and stands on its own in the place slot: 你的朋友在哪儿？(nǐ de péngyou zài nǎr?, where is your friend?).