Difference between revisions of "Rhetorical questions with "nandao""
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<li class="x"><em>难道</em> 我 应该 给 你 多少 钱 ？<span class="pinyin"><em>Nándào</em> wǒ yīnggāi gěi nǐ duōshao qián?</span><span class="expl">Not a 吗 question</span><span class="trans">How much money should I give you?</span></li>
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<li class="x"><em>难道</em> 我 应该 给 你 多少 钱 ？<span class="expl">Not a 吗 question</span><span class="pinyin"><em>Nándào</em> wǒ yīnggāi gěi nǐ duōshao qián?</span><span class="trans">How much money should I give you?</span></li>
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<li class="x"><em>难道</em>他们 还 要 等 多长 时间 ？<span class="pinyin"><em>Nándào</em> tāmen hái yào děng duōcháng shíjiān?</span><span class="expl">Not a 吗 question</span><span class="trans">How long do they still have to wait?</span></li>
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<li class="x"><em>难道</em>他们 还 要 等 多长 时间 ？<span class="expl">Not a 吗 question</span><span class="pinyin"><em>Nándào</em> tāmen hái yào děng duōcháng shíjiān?</span><span class="trans">How long do they still have to wait?</span></li>
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<li class="x"><em>难道</em>你 还 想 在 这 种 公司 工作 多少 年 ？<span class="pinyin"><em>Nándào</em> nǐ hái xiǎng zài zhè zhǒng gōngsī gōngzuò duōshao nián?</span><span class="expl">Not a 吗 question</span><span class="trans">How many more years do you want to work for this kind of  company?</span></li>
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<li class="x"><em>难道</em>你 还 想 在 这 种 公司 工作 多少 年 ？<span class="expl">Not a 吗 question</span><span class="pinyin"><em>Nándào</em> nǐ hái xiǎng zài zhè zhǒng gōngsī gōngzuò duōshao nián?</span><span class="trans">How many more years do you want to work for this kind of  company?</span></li>
 
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Revision as of 09:24, 10 November 2020

Rhetorical questions use the form of a question to emphasize a point, thus do not require an answer. A typical English rhetorical question might be: "you're not saying you actually believe him, are you?" or "just how stupid are you?" In Chinese, 难道 (nándào) is used as a marker to form this kind of question. Since we don't "mark" our rhetorical questions like this in English, this can take some getting used to in Chinese.

Structure

难道 + [Rhetorical Question] + 吗？

Examples

  • 难道 你 真的 相信 他 吗？ Nándào nǐ zhēn de xiāngxìn tā ma?You don't actually believe him, do you?
  • 难道 你 是 我 妈 吗？ Nándào nǐ shì wǒ mā ma?What are you, my mother or something?
  • 今天 是 我 的 生日，难道 你 不 知道 吗？ Jīntiān shì wǒ de shēngrì, nándào nǐ bù zhīdào ma?Today's my birthday; you're telling me you didn't know?
  • 难道 你 今天 没 去 上班 吗？Nándào nǐ jīntiān méi qù shàngbān ma?Did you not go to work today?
  • 你 这么 冷静，难道 不 知道 发生 了 什么 吗？ Nǐ zhème lěngjìng, nándào bù zhīdào fāshēngle shénme ma?You are so calm. Do you not know what happened?
  • 你 父母 这么 关心 你， 难道 你 一点 都 感觉 不到 吗？Nǐ fùmǔ zhème guānxīn nǐ, nándào nǐ yīdiǎn dōu gǎnjué bù dào ma?Your parents care so much about you. Don't tell me that you don't feel it at all?
  • 他 这么 帅，又 这么 有钱，难道 你 不 想 嫁 给 他 吗？Tā zhème shuài, yòu zhème yǒu qián, nándào nǐ bù xiǎng jià gěi tā ma?He's so handsome and rich! Are you telling me that you don't want to marry him?

Note that 难道 can only be used for rhetorical questions which could be answered with yes or no, and generally end with 吗.

  • 难道 我 应该 给 你 多少 钱 ？Not a 吗 questionNándào wǒ yīnggāi gěi nǐ duōshao qián?How much money should I give you?
  • 难道他们 还 要 等 多长 时间 ？Not a 吗 questionNándào tāmen hái yào děng duōcháng shíjiān?How long do they still have to wait?
  • 难道你 还 想 在 这 种 公司 工作 多少 年 ？Not a 吗 questionNándào nǐ hái xiǎng zài zhè zhǒng gōngsī gōngzuò duōshao nián?How many more years do you want to work for this kind of company?

See Also

Sources and further reading

Books

Websites

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