Chinese Grammar:HOW DO YOU MAKE A QUESTION SENTENCE IN CHINESE

In English, there are two question types, Yes/No (general questions) and Wh-questions (special questions). In Chinese, it’s the same. But the difference is that question sentences in Chinese are much simpler than those in English. In English, words order should be adjusted when a statement is changed into a question sentence. In Chinese, QUESTION SENTENCES HAVE THE SAME ORDER WITH STATEMENTS.

The Following are some question words for each element in a Chinese sentence:

 

When changing a statement into a question sentence, you should keep the original sentence order and only replace the part you want to ask about with a question word. For example:

Statement : 我今天去饭店吃晚饭。Wǒ jīntiān qù fàndiàn chī wǎnfàn.  I am going to a restaurant to have dinner.

Question:  

  1. 什么时候去饭店吃晚饭?Nǐ shénme shíhou qù fàndiàn chī wǎnfàn? 

—- When do you go to the restaurant to have dinner?

  • 你今天去哪儿吃晚饭? Nǐ jīntiān qù nǎr chī wǎnfàn?

—- Where do you go for dinner?

  • 你今天去饭店吃什么? Nǐ jīntiān qù fàndiàn chī shénme ?

 —- What are you going to eat in the restaurant?

Exercise:

Please translate the following sentences into Chinese.

  1. Where do you go swimming tomorrow?
  2. When are you going to swim?
  3. What do you want to buy in that shop?
  4. Who do you want to meet tonight?
  5. How long are you going to stay here?
  6. How do you go to the park?
  7. Where is the nearest bus stop?
  8. When does the Bank of China open in the mornings?

This is Becky’s Chinese lesson, you’re welcome to share my materials to your friends. 

Becky Huang

Hey, my name is Becky. I'm a Chinese teacher certified by the Confucius Institute with 14 years of teaching experience. I wrote all these exercises based on the New HSK Standard (2021).