Difference between revisions of "Expressing "age difference" with "da and xiao""
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| − | If you have siblings, Chinese people will often ask how much older or younger they are by saying: "他（她）比你小几岁" or "他（她）比你大几岁 ". Notice, here you | + | If you have siblings, Chinese people will often ask how much older or younger they are by saying: "他（她）比你小几岁" or "他（她）比你大几岁 ". Notice, here you can't use “年轻” or "老“. |
Revision as of 01:44, 24 May 2018
]]If you have siblings, Chinese people will often ask how much older or younger they are by saying: "他（她）比你小几岁" or "他（她）比你大几岁 ". Notice, here you can't use “年轻” or "老“.
Contents
Structure
A + 比 + B + 大 / 小 + Number + 岁
Note that 岁 is used here, instead of 年, to mean "year old."
Examples
- 我 姐姐 比 我 大 两 岁 。My sister is two years older than me.
- 你 比 你 哥哥 小 几 岁 ？ How much younger are you than your elder brother?
- 他 女朋友 比 他 大 十 岁 。His girlfriend is 10 years older than him.
- 我 老板 很 年轻，只 比 我 大 三 四 岁 。My boss is very young. He is only three or four years older than me.
If you just wonder which is elder or younger, these example sentences will be helpful:
- 你俩 谁 大 ？Who is elder between you two?
- 你 爸爸 和 你 妈妈 谁 大 ？Who is the elder one, your dad or your mom?
- 你们 五 个 人 里 谁 最 小 ？Who is the youngest among the five of you?
But if you're talking about being the same age, use this structure instead.
A + 和 / 跟 + B + 一样 / 差不多 + 大
A few examples:
- 他 女朋友 和 他 女儿 一样 大 。His girlfriend is about the same age with his daughter.
- 我 爸爸 和 妈妈 差不多 大 。My dad is about the same age with my mom.
Multiple Ways of Asking about Age
询问孩子、朋友、老人的年龄的说法，在汉语里也有一定的讲究。譬如，对孩子(10岁以下)、同龄人、较为年长的人，都有专门的问法。对女性，要看年龄。中年女性一般不问。
A few examples:
- 小朋友 ，你 几岁 了 ？Kid, how old are you?
- 大妈 ，您 多大 年纪 了 ？Old lady, how old are you?
- 爷爷 ，您 多大 岁数 了 ？Old man, how old are you?
- 我 是 90 的 ，你 是 哪 年 的 ？I was born in 1990. Which year were you born?
See also
Sources and further reading
Books
