Chinese for English speakers Supermarket · Lesson 0

Questions 2

Chinese verb-not-verb questions — PX296 是不是机器人? (Is PX296 a robot or not?) — alternative to 吗 questions.

Conversation

  1. Yennifer Yennifer

    PX296是不是机器人？

    PX èr jiǔ liù shì bú shì jī qì rén?

    Is PX296 a robot?

    Tip: verb 不 verb = This structure is another way to ask questions. It is literally translatable as "verb not verb". For example "nǐ shì bù shì" literally means "are you aren't you". With this structure, you cannot use 吗 "ma" in the end. <èr> = 2 <jiǔ> = 9 <liù> = 6 机器 <jīqì> = machine, machinery 人 <rén> = person (also used after country name for nationalities) 机器人 <jīqìrén> = machine person, robot

  2. Cassian Cassian

    对，它是机器人，

    duì, tā shì jī qì rén,

    Yes, he is.

    Tip: 它 <tā> = it

  3. Cassian Cassian

    也是我的朋友。

    yě shì wǒ de péng you.

    And he is a friend of mine too.

    Tip: 也 <yě> = also/ too (adverb) 朋友 <péngyou> = friend

  4. Yennifer Yennifer

    是吗？

    shì ma?

    Oh, is he?

    Tip: 是吗 <shìma> = is it?/ Are you?/ really?

Common questions

Quick answers about this lesson's grammar and vocabulary.

Verb-not-verb vs 吗 questions?

Both ask yes/no. 是不是 = 'is or isn't?'. 是吗? = 'is it?'. Verb-not-verb is slightly more emphatic.

Other verb-not-verb examples?

去不去 (go or not), 喜不喜欢 (like or not), 有没有 (have or not), 好不好 (good or not).

What does 对 mean as an answer?

'Right / correct / yes'. 对 = affirmative answer. Often paired with explanation: 对, 他是机器人.

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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