Chinese for English speakers Bakery · Lesson 0

negative with 不

Chinese negation with 不 — 你是凯尔吗? (Are you Kyle?) — place 不 before the verb to negate. Foundation grammar for any Chinese learner.

Conversation

  1. Honey Honey

    你好！

    nǐ hǎo

    Hi!

  2. Honey Honey

    你是凯尔吗？

    nǐ shì Kǎiěr ma?

    Are you Kyle?

    Tip: 吗 <ma> = particle to put at the end of a sentence to make a question.

  3. Rocky Rocky

    我不是凯尔，

    wǒ bú shì Kǎiěr,

    No, I'm not Kyle

    Tip: 不 <bù> = non/ not

  4. Rocky Rocky

    我是洛基。

    wǒ shì luò jī

    I am Rocky.

Common questions

Quick answers about this lesson's grammar and vocabulary.

How do you negate verbs in Chinese?

Place 不 (bù) before the verb: 不是 (am/is not), 不吃 (don't eat), 不去 (don't go). The most basic negation in Chinese.

What is 吗 at the end of a sentence?

吗 (ma) turns a statement into a yes/no question. 你是凯尔 (you are Kyle) → 你是凯尔吗? (Are you Kyle?).

How do you greet in Chinese?

你好 (nǐ hǎo) = 'hello' (literally 'you good'). Universal greeting. More formal: 您好 (nín hǎo).

Test yourself

Pick the English translation for each line from this lesson. Wrong answers are pulled from other Chinese lessons.

4 quick questions on what you just heard.

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