Adjectives with "name" and "zheme"

In English, the words "that" and "so" are often used to increase the extent of an adjective (ex. "he is so tall" or "this food is so good"). In Chinese, 那么 (nàme) and 这么 (zhème) serve the same function.

Structure

All you have to do to use this grammar structure is put the 那么 or 这么 in front of the adjective.

Subj. + 那么 / 这么 + Adj.

Examples

You could think of 这么 as "this" or "so," and 那么 as "that" or "so."

• 他 说得 这么 快 ，你们 听 得 懂 吗 ？Tā shuōde zhème kuài, nǐmen tīng de dǒng ma?He speaks so fast. Can you understand?
• 我 没 想到 这个 考试 这么 难 。Wǒ méi xiǎng dào zhège kǎoshì zhème nán.I didn't expect this exam would be this difficult.
• 雨 这么 大，明天 再 去 吧 。Yǔ zhème dà, míngtiān zài qù ba.It's raining so heavily. How about we go tomorrow?
• 你 那么 聪明 ，一定 能 猜到 。Nǐ nàme cōngming, yīdìng néng cāi dào.You're so smart. You can definitely guess it.
• 老板 那么 忙 ，肯定 没 时间 。Lǎobǎn nàme máng, kěndìng méi shíjiān.The boss is so busy. He definitely won't have time for this.
• 今天 怎么 这么 冷 ？Jīntiān zěnme zhème lěng?Why is it so cold today?
• 你 怎么 这么 没 礼貌 ？Nǐ zěnme zhème méi lǐmào?How can you be this impolite?
• 这个 外国人 怎么 会 了解 那么 多 中国 历史 ？Zhège wàiguórén zěnme huì liǎojiě nàme duō Zhōngguó lìshǐ?How could this foreigner know that much about Chinese history?
• 中国 人口 这么 多 ，当然 会 有 很 多 社会 问题 。Zhōngguó rénkǒu zhème duō, dāngrán huì yǒu hěn duō shèhuì wèntí.China has such a big population. Of course there will be many social problems.
• 科技 那么 发达 ，什么 都 是 有 可能 的 。Kējì nàme fādá, shénme dōu shì yǒu kěnéng de.Science and technology is so developed. Nothing is impossible.

When to use which one

You might be thinking that since 这 ("this") and 那 ("that") have totally different meanings, how could they be used in an essentially interchangeable way? Well, there are some differences. 这么 is used when the thing you are talking about is close by (either in space or in time), when you would say "this" or 这个. On the other hand, if the object is far away (or in the past), you would use 那么.

See also

• The "zui" superlative
• Expressing "excessively" with "tai"

Sources and further reading

Books

• Short-term Spoken Chinese: Elementary (汉语口语速成基础篇) (pp. 15) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 2 (3rd ed) (pp. 71 - 2) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy
• New Practical Chinese Reader 4 (新实用汉语课本4) (pp. 103) Anything Goes (无所不谈) →buy