Tag questions with "ma"

Revision as of 02:57, 7 January 2015 by Yucui (talk | contribs) (→‎Examples)

As well as yes / no questions, you can also form tag questions with 吗 (ma). Tag questions are quick questions that are tagged on the end of a sentence to ask for confirmation. In English, this is often done with "right?", or by adding the negative form of the verb phrase, e.g. "isn't it?"

The easiest way to do this in Chinese is to add some kind of confirmation word and 吗 (ma) on the end of the sentence.

Basic Pattern

A you can see below, the pattern typically involves words like 好 (hǎo), 对 (duì), 是 (shì), or 可以 (kěyǐ), followed by 吗 (ma).

……, 好 / 对 / 是 / 可以 + 吗?

By placing these on the end of a sentence, you can soften a suggestion or request confirmation.

Examples

  • 我们 喝 茶 , 好 吗Wǒmen hē chá, hǎo ma? Let's drink some tea, OK?
  • 我们 去 咖啡 店 , 好 吗Wǒmen qù kāfēi diàn, hǎo ma? Let's go to the cafe, OK?
  • 你 喜欢 他 , 是 吗Nǐ xǐhuan tā, shì ma? You like him, don't you?
  • 去 吃 中国 菜 , 好 吗Qù chī Zhōngguó cài, hǎo ma? We are going to go to eat Chinese food, OK?
  • 他 是 你 哥哥 , 对 吗Tā shì nǐ gēge, duì ma?He is your older brother, right?
  • 她 不 知道 , 对 吗Tā bù zhīdao, duì ma?She doesn't know, right?
  • 这样 做 , 对 吗Zhèyàng zuò, duì ma?Like this, right?
  • 你 没有 来 过 , 是 吗Nǐ méiyǒu lái guò, shì ma?You haven't been here, right?
  • 给 我们 米饭 , 可以 吗Gěi wǒmen mǐfàn, kěyǐ ma?Give us some rice, OK?
  • 妈妈 , 我 要 吃 巧克力 , 可以 吗Māma, wǒ yào chī qiǎokèlì, kěyǐ ma?Mom, I want to eat chocolate, may I?

See also

Sources and Further Reading