你疯了吗？
Nǐ fēng le ma?
In Chinese, the phrase "are you mad" is translated as 你疯了吗？ (Nǐ fēng le ma?)
The phrase 你疯了吗？ is used to ask if someone is acting crazy or irrational. It can be used literally to inquire about a person's mental state, or figuratively to express disbelief at someone's irrational behavior or suggestion.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase 你疯了吗？ is composed of 你 (you), 疯 (crazy/mad), 了 (a particle indicating a change of state) and 吗 (a question particle).
Which one should you use?
The colloquial phrase 你神经病啊？ serves as a more aggressive alternative, roughly meaning "Are you a psycho/crazy?"
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Cantonese, the informal way to ask if someone is mad is 你生咗气冇？
How does it change in a sentence?
To change the phrase from a question into a declarative statement meaning "You have gone mad," simply remove the question particle 吗 to get 你疯了.
How do you pronounce it?
Nǐ fēng le ma?
Did you know?
- The character 疯 contains the radical for 'dog' 犭, which historically linked the concept of madness to the behavior of rabid animals.
- If you use the more aggressive 你神经病啊？ (nǐ shén jīng bìng a?), you are literally asking if someone has a 'nerve disease'.
- In many Chinese dialects, including Mandarin, the character 疯 (crazy) can also describe someone who is 'wild' or 'unrestrained' in a positive sense, such as being 'crazy' about a hobby.
Examples in context
- 你疯了吗？Are you mad?This example is useful for seeing the phrase 你疯了吗？ in use.Tatoeba #1020119 by joro, translation #18965 by CK
- 不，我没疯，你疯了吗？Bù, wǒ méi fēng, nǐ fēng le ma?No, I'm not mad, are you mad?
Example conversation
Two friends are arguing about a risky decision.
- 俊杰 Junjie你要这么做？你疯了吗？Nǐ yào zhème zuò? Nǐ fēng le ma?You want to do this? Are you mad?
- 佳怡 Jiayi我只是想试试看。Wǒ zhǐshì xiǎng shìshì kàn.I just want to give it a try.
- 俊杰 Junjie这太危险了！Zhè tài wēixiǎn le!This is too dangerous!
- 佳怡 Jiayi别担心，我会小心的。Bié dānxīn, wǒ huì xiǎoxīn de.Don't worry, I will be careful.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
