Difference between revisions of "Yes-no questions with "ma""
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The question particle 吗 (ma) is a very simple way to form questions in Chinese. By placing 吗 on the end of a statement, you convert it into a yes/no question. Surprisingly enough, these are questions that could be answered with ''yes'' or ''no'' in English. They're also known as ''polar questions'' or ''binary questions''.
 
The question particle 吗 (ma) is a very simple way to form questions in Chinese. By placing 吗 on the end of a statement, you convert it into a yes/no question. Surprisingly enough, these are questions that could be answered with ''yes'' or ''no'' in English. They're also known as ''polar questions'' or ''binary questions''.
  
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== Basic Pattern ==
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== Basic Usage ==
  
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Any statement can be converted into a yes / no question with 吗. For example:
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=== Structure ===
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Any statement can be converted into a yes / no question with 吗. You could think of 吗 as being like a question mark you say out loud. So the basic structure is :
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<div class="liju">
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statement sentence + 吗 ？
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</div>
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For example:
  
 
<div class="liju">
 
<div class="liju">
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</div>
 
</div>
  
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You could think of 吗 as being like a question mark you say out loud. More examples of statements and their yes/no question forms:
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=== Examples ===
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More examples of statements and their yes/no question forms:
  
 
<div class="liju">
 
<div class="liju">
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== More Advanced Usage ==
 
== More Advanced Usage ==
  
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However, this doesn't mean that a sentence ''can't ever'' have a question word and 吗. For example:
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However, this doesn't mean that a sentence ''can't ever'' have a question word and 吗. 如果句中有“知道、了解、明白、认识”等动词，那么”吗“可以跟疑问词一起出现。For example:
  
 
<div class="liju">
 
<div class="liju">
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This is OK because the original sentence "你知道这是什么东西" is a statement even though it contains the question word 什么. It's the same in English. "You know ''what'' this is" can be converted into the question "''Do'' you know ''what'' this is?"
 
This is OK because the original sentence "你知道这是什么东西" is a statement even though it contains the question word 什么. It's the same in English. "You know ''what'' this is" can be converted into the question "''Do'' you know ''what'' this is?"
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Here are more examples:
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<div class="liju">
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* 你 明白 这 是 什么 意思 <em>吗</em>？<span class="trans"></span>
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* 你 知道 他 是 谁 <em>吗</em>？<span class="trans"></span>
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* 你 知道 怎么 学 中文<em>吗</em>？<span class="trans"></span>
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* 你 明白 老师 在 说 什么<em>吗</em>？<span class="trans"></span>
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* 你 认识 这 是 哪 种 文 字<em>吗</em>？<span class="trans"></span>
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</div>
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==See also==
 
==See also==
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{{Used for|Asking questions}}
 
{{Used for|Asking questions}}
 
{{Used for|Requesting}}
 
{{Used for|Requesting}}
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{{Basic Grammar|吗|A1|...吗?|他 是 老师 <em>吗</em> ?|grammar point|ASGQ2AZA}}
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{{Basic Grammar|吗|A1|...吗?|你 是 老师 <em>吗</em> ?|grammar point|ASGQ2AZA}}
 
{{Similar|Tag questions with ma}}
 
{{Similar|Tag questions with ma}}
 
{{Similar|Positive negative questions}}
 
{{Similar|Positive negative questions}}

Revision as of 06:02, 10 September 2013

The question particle 吗 (ma) is a very simple way to form questions in Chinese. By placing 吗 on the end of a statement, you convert it into a yes/no question. Surprisingly enough, these are questions that could be answered with yes or no in English. They're also known as polar questions or binary questions.

Basic Usage

Structure

Any statement can be converted into a yes / no question with 吗. You could think of 吗 as being like a question mark you say out loud. So the basic structure is :

statement sentence + 吗 ？

For example:

  • 你 喜欢 咖啡。 (statement) You like coffee.

"You like coffee" can easily be converted into "Do you like coffee?" by adding 吗:

  • 你 喜欢 咖啡 吗？ (question) Do you like coffee?

Examples

More examples of statements and their yes/no question forms:

  • 你 是 白痴。 (statement) You are an idiot.
  • 你 是 白痴 吗？ (question) Are you an idiot?
  • 那 是 老虎。 (statement) That is a tiger.
  • 那 是 老虎 吗？ (question) Is that a tiger?
  • 他 是 老师。 (statement) He is a teacher.
  • 他 是 老师 吗？ (question) Is he a teacher?

It's important to remember that you can not add 吗 to a sentence that's already a question. For example:

  • 你 是 谁 吗？(谁 is a question word) Are you who?
  • 这 是 不 是 书 吗？(是不是 is a question pattern) Is this a book, is?

These would be something like "Do you who are you?" and "Does is this a book?" in English - obviously wrong. Still if you're not careful, you may find yourself throwing a 吗 onto the end of a question that doesn't need it. Many learners make this mistake, so don't worry if it happens every once in a while, just catch it and remember it the next time.

More Advanced Usage

However, this doesn't mean that a sentence can't ever have a question word and 吗. 如果句中有“知道、了解、明白、认识”等动词，那么”吗“可以跟疑问词一起出现。For example:

  • 你 知道 这 是 什么 东西 吗？Do you know what this thing is?

This is OK because the original sentence "你知道这是什么东西" is a statement even though it contains the question word 什么. It's the same in English. "You know what this is" can be converted into the question "Do you know what this is?"

Here are more examples:

  • 你 明白 这 是 什么 意思 吗？
  • 你 知道 他 是 谁 吗？
  • 你 知道 怎么 学 中文吗？
  • 你 明白 老师 在 说 什么吗？
  • 你 认识 这 是 哪 种 文 字吗？


See also

Sources and further reading

Videos

Books

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