咋样
zǎyàng
'sup' in Chinese is translated as 咋样 (zǎyàng).
咋样 is a highly colloquial and informal way to ask how someone is or how a situation is going. While it can be used as a greeting similar to 'what's up', it is also frequently used to ask for an opinion or a status update on a specific matter (e.g., 'How is the work going?').
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
咋样 is an informal expression. Nǐ zěnme yàng? – 你怎么样？ is an informal way to ask how someone is doing among friends and peers. Wèi – 喂 is often used when answering a phone call or to casually initiate conversation with someone you know well.
How does it change in a sentence?
In a sentence, 咋样 can function as a predicate or an adverbial to ask about the state of something or someone.
How do you pronounce it?
zǎyàng
Did you know?
- In some contexts, 咋样 is used as a challenge or a provocation, similar to saying 'What are you going to do about it?' or 'How does that feel?', depending on the tone.
- While 咋样 asks how something is, Chinese speakers often answer a greeting like this by stating a specific recent action, such as 'I just ate', rather than just saying 'I am fine'.
- The word 咋 is characteristic of Northern Chinese dialects, specifically from the regions around Beijing and the Northwest, making 咋样 sound distinctly regional to speakers from Southern China.
Examples in context
- Méi shénme, zhǐ shì chī wǎnfàn – 没什么，只是吃晚饭。Nothing much, just having dinner.
- 最近咋样？zuì jìn zǎ yàng?'Sup? How have you been lately?
- 你今天咋样？nǐ jīn tiān zǎ yàng?How's it going today?
Example conversation
Two friends run into each other at a coffee shop.
- 雨婷 Yuting嘿，浩然，最近咋样？hēi, hào rán, zuì jìn zǎ yàng?Hey, Haoran, 'sup?
- 浩然 Haoran还行，挺好的。hái xíng, tǐng hǎo de.I'm good, pretty well.
- 雨婷 Yuting那就好。nà jiù hǎo.That's good to hear.
- 浩然 Haoran你呢？nǐ ne?What about you?
