Lessons 17, 18, 19, 24, 27: Asking with 怎么 and 怎么样

Asking about method (怎么 + verb), asking for an opinion (怎么样), asking about a reason (怎么不/没……) and asking what happened (怎么了).

Hanyu textbook · Hanyu 2 · Lesson 17 · Hanyu 2 · Lesson 18 · Hanyu 2 · Lesson 19 · Hanyu 2 · Lesson 24 · Hanyu 2 · Lesson 27

A：你怎么去公园？ B：我坐车去。

A: Nǐ zěnme qù gōngyuán? B: Wǒ zuò chē qù.

A: How do you get to the park? B: I go by bus.

Explanation

The structure "怎么 + verb" is used to ask about the method or manner of carrying out an action, asking the other person to say "how something is done" (怎么去呢？: how do we go, by what means, by what transport?). The modal particle "呢" at the end of a question softens the tone.

Adding a negative verb after "怎么" asks about a reason (怎么没来, 怎么不喝).

To ask about something that has happened, its course, cause or reason, use "怎么了？".

From the textbook exercises: ask about method with "怎么 + verb" (怎么去, 怎么读, 怎么写, 怎么卖); ask for an opinion, a situation or a suggestion with "怎么样" (这本词典怎么样？你试试这件怎么样？我们骑车去，怎么样？).

Structure

1
怎么动词 (V)
Asks about the method or manner of carrying out an action; adding 呢 at the end softens the tone.
- A：咱们怎么去？ B：骑车去吧。
  A: Zánmen zěnme qù? B: Qí chē qù ba.
  A: How shall we go? B: Let's go by bike.
- A：你怎么去公园？ B：我坐车去。
  A: Nǐ zěnme qù gōngyuán? B: Wǒ zuò chē qù.
  A: How do you get to the park? B: I go by bus.
- A：我们怎么去呢？ B：骑车去吧。
  A: Wǒmen zěnme qù ne? B: Qí chē qù ba.
  A: How shall we go? B: Let's go by bike.
2
Ssubject怎么样？ / ……，怎么样？
Asks for an opinion, a situation or a suggestion (according to the textbook's exercises on choosing 怎么 / 怎么样).
- 这本词典怎么样？
  Zhè běn cídiǎn zěnmeyàng?
  How is this dictionary?
- 你看看这本词典怎么样？
  Nǐ kànkan zhè běn cídiǎn zěnmeyàng?
  How about trying this dictionary?
- 我们骑车去，怎么样？
  Wǒmen qí chē qù, zěnmeyàng?
  Shall we go by bike?
3
怎么不/没动词
Adding a negative verb after "怎么" asks about a reason.
- A：玛丽怎么没来？ B：老师，她今天有点儿不舒服，要去医院，不能来上课。
  A: Mǎlì zěnme méi lái? B: Lǎoshī, tā jīntiān yǒudiǎnr bù shūfu, yào qù yīyuàn, bù néng lái shàngkè.
  A: Why didn't Mary come? B: Teacher, she's not feeling well today and has to go to the hospital, so she can't come to class.
- A：昨天你怎么没去学太极拳？ B：昨天我有事。
  A: Zuótiān nǐ zěnme méi qù xué tàijíquán? B: Zuótiān wǒ yǒu shì.
  A: Why didn't you go to tai chi class yesterday? B: I had something to do yesterday.
- A：你怎么不喝啤酒？ B：我不喜欢喝啤酒。
  A: Nǐ zěnme bù hē píjiǔ? B: Wǒ bù xǐhuan hē píjiǔ.
  A: Why don't you drink beer? B: I don't like drinking beer.
4
Ssubject怎么了？
Asks about something that happened, its course, cause or reason.
- A：你怎么了？ B：我感冒了。
  A: Nǐ zěnme le? B: Wǒ gǎnmào le.
  A: What's wrong with you? B: I've caught a cold.
- A：玛丽怎么了？ B：她肚子疼。
  A: Mǎlì zěnme le? B: Tā dùzi téng.
  A: What's wrong with Mary? B: She has a stomachache.
- A：你的电脑怎么了？ B：不能上网了。
  A: Nǐ de diànnǎo zěnme le? B: Bù néng shàngwǎng le.
  A: What's wrong with your computer? B: It can't connect to the internet anymore.

Usage notes

Different question words get different answers: 去哪儿 → place (我去书店), 什么时候去 → time (我上午去), 怎么去 → means of transport (我骑自行车), 跟谁一起去 → person (我跟我朋友一起去).

Practice

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