Comparing "dating" and "wen"

Both 打听 and 问 are both verbs that mean to ask about. Both can be used in informal and formal settings. A key difference between these two is that 打听 can only be used to ask about general conditions or inquires, whereas 问 can be used in this sense and also used to directly ask the person you are talking to a question.

B1HSK4ASV4567

	打听 (dǎting)	问 (wèn)
Meaning	to ask about	to ask about, to ask, to send regards
Part of Speech	verb	verb
Formality	flexible	flexible

:Yes

To say to ask about both 打听 and 问 can be used.

This is used when asking about general conditions or inquiries, think the English phrase “I would like to ask.”

Common Phrases

• ～一下
• ～～
• ～消息

To directly ask the person you are talking to a question use 问.

Common Phrases

• 问一个问题
• 问你
• 问老师

To say to send my regards to someone or to inquire after someone use 问

Think about the English phrase “say hi to (your family, a friend, etc.) for me”, this is essentially the same meaning.

Common Patterns

• 向……（someone)问候
• 向……（someone)问候