How to say "what" in Chinese
什么
shénmewhatPart of speech: Pronouns
"what" in Chinese is 什么 — pronounced shénme.
In a sentence
- 我叫村长。你叫什么名字？Wǒ jiào cūnzhǎng. Nǐ jiào shénme míngzì?My name is Village Chief. What's your name?
- 你叫什么名字？Nǐ jiào shénme míngzì?name
- 请问，你叫什么名字？Qǐngwèn, nǐ jiào shénme míngzì?Excuse me, what's your name?
- 你好！你要吃什么？Nǐ hǎo! Nǐ yào chī shénme?Hello! What would you like to eat?
- 你想喝点儿什么？Nǐ xiǎng hē diǎnr shénme?What would you like to drink?
- 你好！你要买什么？Nǐ hǎo! Nǐ yào mǎi shénme?Hello! What would you like to buy?
- 你好！你找什么？Nǐ hǎo! Nǐ zhǎo shénme?Hello! What are you looking for?
Words that share a character
Hear the tones, then say it back
Reading a word is the easy half. In HanQuest you meet 什么 inside a quest — spoken by a villager, then checked against your own voice.
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