Lesson 20: Rhetorical questions

Using a question form to emphasize an affirmation or a negation, with 没……吗 and interrogative pronouns.

Hanyu textbook · Hanyu 4 · Lesson 20

你没看见吗？他就在这儿。

Nǐ méi kànjiàn ma? Tā jiù zài zhèr.

Don't you see? He's right here.

Explanation

For facts that are already known or obvious, Chinese often uses rhetorical questions to emphasize an affirmation or a negation, to prove a point or to refute someone.

The meaning of a rhetorical question is the opposite of its form: a negative form emphasizes an affirmation, and an affirmative form emphasizes a negation.

Besides the “不是……吗？” structure you have already learned, rhetorical questions have the following forms: ❶ 没 + verb …吗？ (这件事你没听说过吗？ = 你应该听说过; 你没看见吗？他就在这儿。 = 你应该看得见). ❷ Using interrogative pronouns for a rhetorical question (你不告诉我，我怎么知道呢？ = 我不可能知道; 他哪儿去过美国？ = 他没有去过美国; 好朋友邀请我，我怎么能不去呢。 = 当然要去; 谁说我不去？ = 我当然去; 谁知道她去哪儿了。 = 我不知道).

Structure

1
不是 …… 吗？
A structure you have already learned; the negative form emphasizes an affirmation (example from the textbook's exercises).
- 昨天你不是把它放在桌子上吗？
  Zuótiān nǐ bú shì bǎ tā fàng zài zhuōzi shang ma?
  Didn't you put it on the table yesterday?
2
没动词 …… 吗？
A negative form that emphasizes an affirmation (meaning: you should have known/seen).
- 这件事你没听说过吗？（你应该听说过。）
  Zhè jiàn shì nǐ méi tīngshuōguo ma? (Nǐ yīnggāi tīngshuōguo.)
  Haven't you heard about this? (You should have heard about it.)
- 你没看见吗？他就在这儿。（你应该看得见）
  Nǐ méi kànjiàn ma? Tā jiù zài zhèr. (Nǐ yīnggāi kàn de jiàn)
  Don't you see? He's right here. (You should be able to see him.)
3
用疑问代词反问 (谁 / 怎么 / 哪儿 / 哪里 ……)
Using an interrogative pronoun for a rhetorical question; an affirmative form with a negative meaning.
- 你不告诉我，我怎么知道呢？（我不可能知道。）
  Nǐ bú gàosu wǒ, wǒ zěnme zhīdào ne? (Wǒ bù kěnéng zhīdào.)
  If you don't tell me, how would I know? (There's no way I could know.)
- A：听说他去过美国。 B：他哪儿去过美国？（他没有去过美国。）
  A: Tīngshuō tā qùguo Měiguó. B: Tā nǎr qùguo Měiguó? (Tā méiyǒu qùguo Měiguó.)
  A: I heard he has been to the US. B: When has he ever been to the US? (He has never been to the US.)
- 好朋友邀请我，我怎么能不去呢。（当然要去）
  Hǎo péngyou yāoqǐng wǒ, wǒ zěnme néng bú qù ne. (Dāngrán yào qù)
  A good friend invited me; how could I not go? (Of course I have to go.)
- A：你不是不去吗？ B：谁说我不去？（我当然去。）
  A: Nǐ bú shì bú qù ma? B: Shéi shuō wǒ bú qù? (Wǒ dāngrán qù.)
  A: Aren't you not going? B: Who says I'm not going? (Of course I'm going.)
- A：她去哪儿了？ B：谁知道她去哪儿了。（我不知道。）
  A: Tā qù nǎr le? B: Shéi zhīdào tā qù nǎr le. (Wǒ bù zhīdào.)
  A: Where did she go? B: Who knows where she went. (I don't know.)

Usage notes

The negative form (没……吗) emphasizes an affirmation; the affirmative form (怎么知道呢, 哪儿去过) emphasizes a negation.

Common mistakes

~~你把生词不是要预习预习吗？~~
你不是要把生词预习预习吗？
不是 goes before 把

Practice

27 questions in 3 sets. One at a time, checked instantly, with explanations.

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