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Chinese Grammar Bank
Chinese Questions Words
Questions, as in any language, are I-NE-VI-TABLE!
It’s best to learn them early on to widen your vocabulary and open a multitude of doors. Asking questions is the best way to broaden your knowledge.
By the end of this page, you’ll be able to ask about time, people, locations and much more…
BRIEF INTRODUCTION
You will learn the Chinese interrogative pronouns very early on in your language journey. Don’t fear! They are just question words, short and easy to remember.
Unlike in English where sentence words go at the beginning of the sentence, when you ask a question in Mandarin, there is no need to change the structure of the sentence.
You simply replace the noun with an interrogative pronoun.
For example, consider this exchange:
- 你在哪儿？nǐ zài nǎ’er – Where are you?
- 我在北京。wǒ zài běijīng – I am in Beijing
The question word 哪儿 (where) simply goes where the location word (in this case, Beijing) goes.
| MEANING | QUESTION WORD |
|---|---|
| Questions about people (Who?) | 谁 shéi |
| Questions about things (What?) | 什么 shénme |
| Questions about specific things (Which?) | 哪 nǎ |
| Questions about time (When?) | 什么时候 shénme shíhòu |
| Questions about places (Where?) | 哪儿 nǎ’er, 哪里 nǎ lǐ |
| Questions about character, process, style (How? How is it?) | 怎么 zěnme，怎么样 zěnme yàng |
| Questions about quantity or number (How much?) | 几 jǐ，多少 duōshǎo |
WHO IN CHINESE | 谁
Who in Chinese – 谁 shéi
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
|---|---|
|
谁是你的女儿?
(shéi shì nǐ de nǚ’ér?) Who is your girlfriend? |
她是我的女儿。
(tā shì wǒ de nǚ’ér) She is my girlfriend |
|
这是谁的书?
(zhè shì shéi de shū?) Whose book is this? |
这是我朋友的书。
(zhè shì wǒ péngyǒu de shū) This is my friend’s book. |
WHAT IN CHINESE | 什么
What in Chinese – 什么 shénme
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
|---|---|
|
这是什么？
(zhè shì shénme?) What’s this? |
这是一本书。
(zhè shì yī běn shū) This is a book. |
|
这些是什么？
(zhèxiē shì shénme?) What are these? |
这些是照片。
(zhèxiē shì zhàopiàn) These are pictures.. |
|
你包里有什么书?
(nǐ bāo li yǒu shé me shū?) What books are in your bag? |
我包里有英语书和汉语书
(wǒ bāo li yǒu yīngyǔ shū hé hànyǔ shū) In my bag there are English books and Chinese books. |
WHICH IN CHINESE | 哪
Which in Chinese – 哪 nǎ
NOTE – Often after 哪 there is a measure word or number.
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
|---|---|
|
哪位是新来的老师？
(nǎ wèi shì xīn lái de lǎoshī?) Which one is the newly arrived teacher? |
这位是新来的老师。
(zhè wèi shì xīn lái de lǎoshī.) That one is the newly arrived teacher. |
|
苹果和香蕉你最喜欢哪个？
(píngguǒ hé xiāngjiāo nǐ zuì xǐhuān nǎge?) Apples and bananas, which is your favourite? |
我最喜欢香蕉。
(wǒ zuì xǐhuān xiāngjiāo.) My favourite is bananas. |
WHEN IN CHINESE | 什么时候
When in Chinese – 什么时候 shénme shíhòu
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
|---|---|
|
你什么时候来的中国？
(nǐ shénme shíhòu lái de zhōngguó?) When do you come to China? |
我今年3月来的中国。
(wǒ jīnnián 3 yuè lái de zhōngguó.) I come to China this March. |
|
你打算什么时候吃饭？
(nǐ dǎsuàn shénme shíhòu chīfàn?) What time do you plan on eating? |
我打算12点吃饭。
(wǒ dǎsuàn 12 diǎn chīfàn.) I plan on eating at twelve. |
WHERE IN CHINESE | 哪儿, 哪里
Where in Chinese – 哪儿 nǎ’er // 哪里 nǎ lǐ
NOTE – “哪儿” is more common in spoken language. It is also more commonly heard in the north, while 哪里 is more often heard in southern China.
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
|---|---|
|
你去哪儿?
(nǐ qù nǎ’er?) Where are you going? |
我去银行。
(wǒ qù yínháng.) I’m going to the bank. |
|
你知道超市在哪里吗？
(nǐ zhīdào chāoshì zài nǎlǐ ma?) Do you know where the supermarket is? |
超市在负一楼。
(chāoshì zài fù yī lóu.) The supermarket is in the basement. |
HOW IN CHINESE | 怎么
How in Chinese – 怎么 zěnme
NOTE – The question ‘How is it? 怎么样? zěnme yàng’ is also often used daily.
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
|---|---|
|
这件衣服怎么样？
(zhè jiàn yīfú zěnme yàng?) How about these clothes? |
挺好看的。
(tǐng hǎokàn de.) Looks pretty good. |
|
怎么样才能说好汉语？
(zěnme yàng cáinéng shuō hǎo hànyǔ?) How can I really speak good Chinese? |
多听多说。
(duō tīng duō shuō.) Listen and speak more. |
HOW MUCH IN CHINESE | 几，多少
How much in Chinese – 几 jǐ，多少 duōshǎo
There are two words for asking “how much” or about numbers in Chinese.
- The word 几 is typically used for smaller numbers, generally numbers likely to be under 10.
- Typically, 多少 is used for numbers anticipated to be over 10.
NOTE – Before 几, you can also add the question word 哪 however you cannot use it before 多少.
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
|---|---|
|
一年有多少天？
(yī nián yǒu duōshǎo tiān?) How many days are there in a year? |
一年有365天。
(yī nián yǒu 365 tiān.) There are 365 days in a year. |
|
你女儿几岁了？
(nǐ nǚ’ér jǐ suìle?) * How old is your daughter? |
我女儿3岁了。
(wǒ nǚ’ér 3 suìle.) My daughter is 3 years old. |
*Note that 几 is used here because the child is assumed to be young, likely around or under 10 years of age.
|
你有几个孩子？
(nǐ yǒu jǐ gè háizi?) How many children do you have? |
我有4个孩子。
(wǒ yǒu 4 gè háizi.) I have four children. |
|
你喜欢哪几个颜色?
(nǐ xǐhuān nǎ jǐ gè yánsè?) * Which colours do you like? |
我喜欢红色，绿色，蓝色。
(wǒ xǐhuān hóngsè, lǜsè, lán sè.) I like red, green, and blue. |
*Note that the use of 哪几 means “which colours” where the same question without the 几, would mean “Which colour do you like?”, implying a singular colour. While 哪 is often used before 几, it cannot be used before 多少。
|
这个星期，你哪几天有空？
(zhège xīngqí, nǐ nǎ jǐ tiān yǒu kòng?) This week, which days are you free? |
我星期二和星期三有空。
(wǒ xīngqí’èr hé xīngqísān yǒu kòng.) I am free on Tuesday and Wednesday. |
|
在这篇文章里，你哪几个词不认识？
(zài zhè piān wénzhāng lǐ, nǐ nǎ jǐ gè cí bù rènshí?) In this article, which of the words don’t you recognize? |
很多我读不认识。
(hěnduō wǒ dú bù rènshí.) I don’t recognize many of the words. |
FAQs
How to say Who in Chinese?
Who in Chinese is 谁 shéi.
How to say What in Chinese?
What in Chinese is 什么 shénme.
How to say When in Chinese?
When in Chinese is 什么时候 shénme shíhòu.
How to say Where in Chinese?
Where in Chinese is 哪儿 nǎ’er or 哪里 nǎ lǐ.
哪儿 nǎ’er is used mainly in the North of Chinese whereas 哪里 nǎ lǐ is used in the South.
What is the structure of a Chinese question?
Unlike in English where sentence words go at the beginning of the sentence, when you ask a question in Mandarin, there is no need to change the structure of the sentence.
You just replace the noun with the interrogative pronoun.
See our full lesson on sentence structures here.
I don’t even know how to make a sentence, can you help?
Of course!
Our first advice would be to start taking classes with a professional teacher.
That way, you get a structured course and can monitor your progress.
If you cannot take classes at the moment, you can learn some basic Chinese grammar to make sentences here and sentence structures here.
Don’t forget to also check our Grammar Bank that we are frequently updating with new grammar points.
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