怎么说
zěnme shuō
In Chinese, "how do you say" is expressed as 怎么说 (zěnme shuō).
You can use 怎么说 as a standalone question to ask for a translation, or incorporate it into a larger sentence to ask how a specific word is expressed.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of 怎么 (zěnme), meaning "how" and 说 (shuō), meaning "to say".
How does it change in a sentence?
To specify the target language, use the structure [Object] + 用 (yòng) + [Language] + 怎么说?
How do you pronounce it?
zěnme shuō
Did you know?
- If you are asking a teacher, adding the polite particle 请问 (qǐngwèn) at the beginning of your 怎么说 question is the standard way to show respect and avoid sounding blunt.
- In spoken Chinese, you might hear people use 怎么讲 (zěnme jiǎng) instead of 怎么说 (zěnme shuō). While both mean 'how to say', 讲 often implies a more formal or detailed explanation, like 'how would one explain' or 'how would one lecture'.
- While 说 (shuō) means 'to say', if you wanted to ask how to 'write' a word instead of say it, you would swap it for 写 (xiě), creating the phrase 怎么写 (zěnme xiě).
Examples in context
- 你怎么说……？How do you say…?This example shows how to use 怎么说 to ask "How do you say…?"Tatoeba #3695249 by GlossaMatik, translation #602241 by Eldad
- 怎么说：‘肺’？How do you say 'lung'?This example demonstrates asking for the translation of a specific word using 怎么说.Tatoeba #4761438 by billt_estates, translation #436115 by lukaszpp
- 这个用英语怎么说？How do you say this in English?This example shows how to ask for a translation into a specific language using 怎么说.Tatoeba #8677502 by GlossaMatik, translation #8677520 by alpucca
- 请问怎么说 "hello"？May I ask how to say "hello"?
- 请问这个用中文怎么说 "Thank you"？May I ask how to say "Thank you" in Chinese?
- 这个怎么说？How do you say this?
- 这个用中文怎么说 "I love you"？How do you say "I love you" in Chinese?
- 5 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are studying a foreign language together.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen这个词用中文怎么说？Zhège cí yòng Zhōngwén zěnme shuō?How do you say this word in Chinese?
- 伟 Wei这个词叫‘苹果’。Zhège cí jiào 'píngguǒ'.This word is called 'apple'.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen‘苹果’怎么说？请再说一遍。'Píngguǒ' zěnme shuō? Qǐng zài shuō yī biàn.How do you say 'píngguǒ'? Please say it again.
- 伟 Wei没问题，是 píngguǒ。Méi wèntí, shì píngguǒ.No problem, it is píngguǒ.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
