Yes-no questions with "ma"

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

Basic Usage

Structure

Any statement can be converted into a yes / no question with 吗 (ma). You could think of 吗 (ma) 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)Nǐ xǐhuan kāfēi.You like coffee.

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

• 你 喜欢 咖啡 吗？ (question)Nǐ xǐhuan kāfēi ma?Do you like coffee?

Examples

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

• 你 去 。 (statement)Nǐ qù. You go.
• 你 去 吗 ？ (question)Nǐ qù ma?Are you going?

• 你 喝 茶 。 (statement)Nǐ hē chá.You drink tea.
• 你 喝 茶 吗 ？ (question)Nǐ hē chá ma?Do you drink tea?

• 你 学 中文 。 (statement)Nǐ xué Zhōngwén. You study Chinese.
• 你 学 中文 吗 ？ (question)Nǐ xué Zhōngwén ma? Do you study Chinese?

• 他 是 老师 。 (statement)Tā shì lǎoshī.He is a teacher.
• 他 是 老师 吗 ？ (question)Tā shì lǎoshī ma?Is he a teacher?

• 你 是 学生 。 (statement)Nǐ shì xuéshēng.You are a student.
• 你 是 学生 吗 ？ (question)Nǐ shì xuéshēng ma?Are you a student?

• 你 是 医生 。 (statement)Nǐ shì yīshēng.You are a doctor.
• 你 是 医生 吗 ？ (question)Nǐ shì yīshēng ma?Are you a doctor?

• 那 是 老虎 。 Nà shì lǎohǔ.(statement)That is a tiger.
• 那 是 老虎 吗 ？ Nà shì lǎohǔ ma?(question) Is that a tiger?

• 你 认识 我 。 (statement)Nǐ rènshi wǒ.You know me.
• 你 认识 我 吗 ？ (question)Nǐ rènshi wǒ ma?Do you know me?

• 你 会 做 饭 。 (statement)Nǐ huì zùo fàn.You know how to cook.
• 你 会 做 饭 吗 ？ (question)Nǐ huì zùo fàn ma? Do you know how to cook?

• 你 想 家 。 (statement)Nǐ xiǎng jiā.You miss home.
• 你 想 家 吗 ？ (question)Nǐ xiǎng jiā ma?Do you miss home?

It's important to remember that you do not normally add 吗 (ma) to a sentence that's already a question. For example:

• 你 是 谁 吗？(谁 is a question word)Nǐ shì shéi ma?
• 这 是 不 是 书 吗？(是不是 is a question pattern)Zhè shì bù shì shū ma?

These would be something like "Are you who are you?" and "Is this is a book?" in English--both obviously wrong. Still, if you're not careful, you may find yourself throwing a 吗 (ma) 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 (ma). If a sentence contains verbs of understanding such as "知道 (zhīdao),了解 (liǎojié), 明白 (míngbai), 认识 (rènshi)" etc, then "吗" (ma) can still be added at the end of the question.

This is not a necessary pattern for a beginner to know, but you may also wish to read about advanced yes-no questions with "ma".

See also

• Tag questions with "ma"
• Affirmative-negative questions
• Questions with "ne"

Sources and further reading

Videos

• Yoyo Chinese: Yes-no Questions with 吗

Books

• Chinese: An Essential Grammar, Second Edition (pp. 138-40) →buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed) (pp. 29-30)　→buy
• New Practical Chinese Reader 1 (新实用汉语课本1) (p. 21) →buy
• New Practical Chinese Reader 1 (新实用汉语课本1)(2nd ed) (pp. 23, 250) →buy