你还记得我吗？
nǐ hái jìde wǒ ma?
In Chinese, "do you remember me?" is expressed as 你还记得我吗？ (nǐ hái jìde wǒ ma?)
A question used to ask someone if they recognize you from a previous meeting.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The informal way to say 'Do you still remember me?' is 你还记得我吗？ The formal way to say 'Do you still remember me?' is 请问您还记得我吗？ Replacing 你 (nǐ) with 您 (nín) makes the question more respectful, which is appropriate when asking an elder or a superior if they remember you.
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb 记得 (jìde) is used for the state of remembering or having a memory, whereas 记住 (jìzhù) refers to the act of committing something to memory. The particle 吗 (ma) at the end of the sentence transforms the statement 'You remember me' into the question 'Do you remember me?'
How do you pronounce it?
nǐ hái jìde wǒ ma?
Did you know?
- The character 您 (nín) used in the formal version is a combined form of the word for 'you' 你 (nǐ) and the character for 'heart' 心 (xīn). It literally places the other person's 'heart' beneath the 'you' to show respect.
- In high-context social settings, asking 你还记得我吗？ can be seen as slightly confrontational or embarrassing if the answer is no. To save 'face', the other person might pretend to remember even if they have completely forgotten.
- In some social contexts, instead of asking if someone remembers them, a speaker might say 好久不见 (hǎojiǔ bùjiàn), which means 'long time no see'. This shifts the focus from the other person's memory to the duration of the absence.
Examples in context
- 你还记得我吗？Nǐ hái jìde wǒ ma?Do you remember me?
- 不好意思，你还记得我吗？Bù hǎoyìsi, nǐ hái jìde wǒ ma?Sorry, do you remember me?
- 这么多年了，你还记得我吗？Zhème duō nián le, nǐ hái jìde wǒ ma?After so many years, do you remember me?
Example conversation
Zhiqiang meets Xiaowen unexpectedly at a coffee shop.
- 志强 Zhiqiang晓雯，你好，你还记得我吗？Xiǎowén, nǐ hǎo, nǐ hái jìde wǒ ma?Hello Xiaowen, do you remember me?
- 晓雯 Xiaowen志强？你是志强吗？Zhìqiáng? Nǐ shì Zhìqiáng ma?Zhiqiang? Is it you, Zhiqiang?
- 志强 Zhiqiang对，是我。Duì, shì wǒ.Yes, it's me.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen太巧了，好久不见！Tài qiǎo le, hǎojiǔ bùjiàn!What a coincidence, long time no see!
