Lesson 5: Getting Acquainted and Asking Basic Information

这那

Learn to use 是, 什么, 谁, 哪, 怎么样 through the topic of pronouns, demonstratives, and question words.

11 words2 grammar points1 dialogues~12 min

Vocabulary11 words

pronoun
  • which one, whereUsed in questions.

Examples

哪一个是你的?

shìde

Which one is yours?

Pronoun
  • thatUsed to point to something far from the speaker or already mentioned.

Examples

那是书。

shìshū

That is a book.

那是谁?

shìshuí?

Who is that?

你们menPronoun
  • you (plural)

Examples

你们好!

menhǎo

Hello, everyone!

shuíPronoun
  • whoused to ask about a person

Examples

他是谁?

shìshuí

Who is he?

谁在说话?

shuízàishuōhuà

Who is talking?

什么shénmePronoun
  • whata common question word, can ask about things or matters

Examples

这是什么?

zhèshìshénme?

What is this?

你吃什么?

chīshénme?

What are you eating?

他们menPronoun
  • they, them

Examples

他们是谁?

menshìshuí

Who are they?

我们menPronoun
  • we, us

Examples

我们是学生。

menshìxuéshēng

We are students.

怎么zěnmeAdverb
  • how; whyAsks about manner or reason.

Examples

你怎么去?

zěnme

How do you get there?

怎么了?

zěnmele

What's wrong?

zhèPronoun
  • thisUsed to refer to a thing or matter close to the speaker.

Examples

这是什么?

zhèshìshénme?

What is this?

这是书。

zhèshìshū

This is a book.

Pronoun
  • itused for objects or animals

Examples

它是猫。

shìmāo

It is a cat.

怎么样zěnmeyàngAdverb
  • how; what aboutasks about a condition or opinion

Examples

你身体怎么样?

shēnzěnmeyàng

How is your health?

天气怎么样?

tiānzěnmeyàng

How's the weather?

Grammar

Introducing yourself or someone else

Đại từ nhân xưng + 是 + Danh từ/Đại từ

The 是 pattern is used to introduce or identify. Personal pronouns (我, 你, 他, 她, 它, 我们, 你们, 他们) go before 是, followed by the noun or pronoun being introduced.

我是学生。

shìxuéshēng

I am a student.

他们是朋友。

menshìpéngyǒu

They are friends.

Asking questions with question words

Từđể hỏi (什么, 谁, 哪, 怎么样) đặt cuối câu hoặc thay thế từ cần hỏi

In HSK 1 Chinese, question words like 什么 (what), 谁 (who), 哪 (which/where), 怎么样 (how) are usually placed in the position of the thing being asked about in the sentence. The question doesn't need reordering; you simply replace the part being asked about with the matching question word.

这是什么?

zhèshìshénme

What is this?

他是谁?

shìshuí

Who is he?

你们怎么样?

menzěnmeyàng

How are you all?

Dialogues

Getting Acquainted and Asking Basic Information

Linh and Nam meet in class for the first time.

Li
Linh

你好!你是谁?

hǎoshìshuí

Hello! Who are you?

Na
Nam

你好!我是Nam。你是什么?

hǎoshìNamshìshénme

Hello! I'm Nam. What are you?

Li
Linh

我是学生。他们是谁?

shìxuéshēngmenshìshuí

I'm a student. Who are they?

Na
Nam

他们是老师和朋友。你是哪国人?

menshìlǎoshīpéngyǒushìguórén

They are teachers and friends. What country are you from?

Li
Linh

我是越南人。你怎么样?

shìyuènánrénzěnmeyàng

I'm Vietnamese. How about you?

Na
Nam

我很好,谢谢!我们是同学。

hěnhǎoxièxièmenshìtóngxué

I'm fine, thank you! We're classmates.