How do Chinese question sentences work?
In English, questions often change word order. For example, “You want to go” becomes “Do you want to go?”
In Chinese, questions usually do not need this kind of inversion. The word order often stays close to a normal sentence.
For beginners, remember this first:
- Chinese usually does not use English-style inversion.
- You can ask questions with question words, choices, A-not-A patterns, or question particles.
There are four useful beginner question types:
| Type | Chinese name | Basic idea |
|---|---|---|
| Question-word questions | 特指問 ♬ | ask with words like who, what, where, how |
| Choice questions | 選擇問 ♬ | ask someone to choose between options |
| A-not-A questions | 反覆問 ♬ | repeat a verb or adjective with 不 |
| Yes-no questions | 是非問 ♬ | ask a yes-no question, often with 嗎 |
1. 特指問: question-word questions
特指問 are questions with question words, such as “what,” “who,” “where,” “when,” and “how.”
In Chinese, the question word usually stays in the place where the answer would appear.
| Question word | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 什麼 ♬ | shénme | what |
| 誰 ♬ | shéi | who |
| 哪裡 ♬ | nǎlǐ | where |
| 怎麼 ♬ | zěnme | how |
| 幾點 ♬ | jǐ diǎn | what time |
2. Question word stays in the answer position
In English, the question word often moves to the front. In Chinese, it usually stays in the answer position.
| Answer | Question |
|---|---|
| 我們走路去。 ♬ wǒmen zǒulù qù We go by walking. |
我們怎麼去？ ♬ wǒmen zěnme qù How do we go? |
| 我們九點去。 ♬ wǒmen jiǔ diǎn qù We go at nine. |
我們幾點去？ ♬ wǒmen jǐ diǎn qù What time do we go? |
Notice that「怎麼」and「幾點」do not need to move to the beginning of the sentence.
3. More examples of question-word questions
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 誰在那裡？ ♬ | shéi zài nàlǐ | Who is there? |
| 你要吃什麼？ ♬ | nǐ yào chī shénme | What do you want to eat? |
| 你在哪裡？ ♬ | nǐ zài nǎlǐ | Where are you? |
| 你怎麼知道？ ♬ | nǐ zěnme zhīdào | How do you know? |
For more question words, see the related lesson “Chinese Question Words.”
4. 選擇問: choice questions with 還是
選擇問 are choice questions. They ask the listener to choose between two or more options.
The most common beginner word for “or” in a question is「還是 háishì」.
| Pattern | Meaning |
|---|---|
| A + 還是 + B？ | A or B? |
| Verb + A，還是 + B？ | Do you want A or B? |
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 你要喝水，還是可樂？ ♬ | nǐ yào hē shuǐ, háishì kělè | Do you want to drink water or cola? |
| 你去，還是我去？ ♬ | nǐ qù, háishì wǒ qù | Are you going, or am I going? |
| 我們今天去，還是明天去？ ♬ | wǒmen jīntiān qù, háishì míngtiān qù | Are we going today or tomorrow? |
You may also hear「呢 ne」after the options, such as「你去呢，還是我去呢？」This sounds more conversational, but it is optional.
5. How to answer choice questions
You can answer a choice question by saying the option directly or by using a full sentence.
| Question | Short answer | Full answer |
|---|---|---|
| 你要喝水，還是可樂？ ♬ | 水。 ♬ | 我要喝水。 ♬ |
| 你去，還是我去？ ♬ | 我去。 ♬ | 我去就好。 ♬ |
6. 反覆問: A-not-A questions
反覆問 are questions that repeat a verb or adjective with「不」in the middle.
This pattern is often called an A-not-A question.
| Pattern | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Verb + 不 + Verb？ | Do you verb or not? |
| Adjective + 不 + Adjective？ | Is it adjective or not? |
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 你去不去？ ♬ | nǐ qù bú qù | Are you going or not? |
| 你要不要喝水？ ♬ | nǐ yào bú yào hē shuǐ | Do you want to drink water? |
| 這本書是不是你的？ ♬ | zhè běn shū shì bú shì nǐ de | Is this book yours? |
| 游泳池裡人多不多？ ♬ | yóuyǒngchí lǐ rén duō bù duō | Are there many people in the swimming pool? |
「不」is usually pronounced「bú」before a fourth-tone syllable. For example,「去不去」is pronounced「qù bú qù」.
7. How to answer A-not-A questions
To answer an A-not-A question, you can repeat the positive word or use「不 + word」for the negative answer.
| Question | Positive answer | Negative answer |
|---|---|---|
| 你去不去？ ♬ | 去。 ♬ | 不去。 ♬ |
| 你要不要喝水？ ♬ | 要。 ♬ | 不要。 ♬ |
| 這本書是不是你的？ ♬ | 是。 ♬ | 不是。 ♬ |
8. 好不好: OK?
「好不好」is a very common A-not-A question. It can mean “OK?”, “Is that okay?”, or “How about it?”
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 我們去游泳，好不好？ ♬ | wǒmen qù yóuyǒng, hǎo bù hǎo | Let’s go swimming, OK? |
| 你幫我一下，好不好？ ♬ | nǐ bāng wǒ yíxià, hǎo bù hǎo | Help me for a moment, OK? |
「好不好」is often used to make a suggestion or request sound softer.
9. 是非問: yes-no questions with 嗎
是非問 are yes-no questions. A very common way to make this kind of question is to add「嗎 ma」at the end of a statement.
| Statement | Question |
|---|---|
| 你想去。 ♬ nǐ xiǎng qù You want to go. |
你想去嗎？ ♬ nǐ xiǎng qù ma Do you want to go? |
| 你餓了。 ♬ nǐ è le You are hungry now. |
你餓了嗎？ ♬ nǐ è le ma Are you hungry? |
「嗎」does not have a strong meaning by itself. It marks the sentence as a yes-no question.
10. How to answer 嗎 questions
In Chinese, answering「嗎」questions does not always use a simple “yes” or “no.” A natural answer often repeats the key verb or adjective.
| Question | Positive answer | Negative answer |
|---|---|---|
| 你想去嗎？ ♬ | 想。 ♬ | 不想。 ♬ |
| 你餓了嗎？ ♬ | 餓了。 ♬ | 不餓。 ♬ |
| 這是你的嗎？ ♬ | 是。 ♬ | 不是。 ♬ |
You may also hear「嗯」for “yeah,”「對」for “right,” and「不對」for “not right.” However, beginners should first learn to answer with the key verb or adjective.
11. 嗎 and A-not-A usually do not appear together
Do not usually use「嗎」together with an A-not-A question.
| Do not say | Say this | English |
|---|---|---|
| 你去不去嗎？ | 你去不去？ ♬ | Are you going or not? |
| 你想不想去嗎？ | 你想不想去？ ♬ | Do you want to go? |
Use either the A-not-A pattern or「嗎」, but do not mix them in simple beginner sentences.
12. 嗎 / 啊 / 吧
Besides「嗎」, you may also hear「啊」and「吧」at the end of questions. They have different feelings.
| Particle | Feeling | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 嗎 ♬ | neutral yes-no question | 你想去嗎？ ♬ |
| 啊 ♬ | casual, emotional, or soft | 你要去哪裡啊？ ♬ |
| 吧 ♬ | guessing, suggesting, or seeking agreement | 我們走吧？ ♬ |
For beginners, learn「嗎」first. It is the clearest yes-no question marker.
13. Four question types together
| Type | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Question-word question | Use a question word in the answer position. | 我們怎麼去？ ♬ |
| Choice question | A 還是 B？ | 你要水，還是可樂？ ♬ |
| A-not-A question | Verb / adjective + 不 + verb / adjective？ | 你去不去？ ♬ |
| Yes-no question | Statement + 嗎？ | 你想去嗎？ ♬ |
Quick review
| Question type | Use it when... | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 特指問 | you ask for specific information | 你要吃什麼？ ♬ |
| 選擇問 | you ask someone to choose | 你要喝水，還是可樂？ ♬ |
| 反覆問 | you ask with an A-not-A pattern | 你要不要喝水？ ♬ |
| 是非問 | you ask a yes-no question | 你想去嗎？ ♬ |
| Answering questions | repeat the key verb or adjective | 想。/ 不想。 ♬ |
| Common mistake | do not mix A-not-A with 嗎 | 你去不去？ ♬ |
Useful vocabulary
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 問題 ♬ | wèntí | question; problem |
| 問句 ♬ | wènjù | question sentence |
| 特指問 ♬ | tèzhǐ wèn | question-word question |
| 選擇問 ♬ | xuǎnzé wèn | choice question |
| 反覆問 ♬ | fǎnfù wèn | A-not-A question |
| 是非問 ♬ | shìfēi wèn | yes-no question |
| 什麼 ♬ | shénme | what |
| 誰 ♬ | shéi | who |
| 哪裡 ♬ | nǎlǐ | where |
| 怎麼 ♬ | zěnme | how |
| 幾點 ♬ | jǐ diǎn | what time |
| 還是 ♬ | háishì | or, in questions |
| 呢 ♬ | ne | particle used in some questions |
| 嗎 ♬ | ma | yes-no question particle |
| 啊 ♬ | a | casual sentence-final particle |
| 吧 ♬ | ba | suggestion or agreement particle |
| 想 ♬ | xiǎng | to want; to think |
| 要 ♬ | yào | to want; will; need |
| 去 ♬ | qù | to go |
| 走路 ♬ | zǒulù | to walk |
| 喝水 ♬ | hē shuǐ | to drink water |
| 可樂 ♬ | kělè | cola |
| 游泳 ♬ | yóuyǒng | to swim |
| 游泳池 ♬ | yóuyǒngchí | swimming pool |
| 餓了 ♬ | è le | hungry now |
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