Placement of question words

Structure

Examples

• 这是什么？
  Zhè shì shén me?
  What is this?
• 你喜欢吃什么菜？
  Nǐ xǐ huan chī shén me cài?
  What kind of food do you like?
• 你用什么手机？
  Nǐ yòng shén me shǒu jī?
  What kind of cell phone do you use?
• 你在看什么书？
  Nǐ zài kàn shén me shū?
  What kind of book are you reading?
• 他开什么车？
  Tā kāi shén me chē?
  What kind of car does he drive?

Words that use this

• 什么shén mewhat?; something; anything
• 家jiāhome; family; (polite) my (sister, uncle etc); classifier for families or businesses; refers to the philosophical schools of pre-Han China; noun suffix for a specialist in some activity, such as a musician or revolutionary, corresponding to English -ist, -er, -ary or -ian
• 开车kāi chēto drive a car
• 明天míng tiāntomorrow
• 哪儿nǎ rwhere?; wherever; anywhere; somewhere; (used in rhetorical questions) how can ...?; how could ...?
• 哪里nǎ lǐwhere?; somewhere; anywhere; wherever; nowhere (negative answer to question); humble expression denying compliment; also written 哪里
• 上网shàng wǎngto go online; to connect to the Internet; (of a document etc) to be uploaded to the Internet; (tennis, volleyball etc) to move in close to the net
• 谁shéi/shuíwho; also pr. [shuí]
• 为什么wèi shén mewhy?; for what reason?
• 我wǒI; me; my
• 洗手间xǐ shǒu jiāntoilet; lavatory; washroom
• 小说xiǎo shuōnovel; fiction
• 因为yīn wèibecause; owing to; on account of
• 怎么zěn mehow?; what?; why?
• 周末zhōu mòweekend
• 哪个nǎ gewhich; who
• 这个zhè ge(pronoun) this; (adjective) this
• 公园gōng yuánpark (for public recreation)
• 宝马bǎo mǎBMW car