发生什么事了？
fāshēng shénme shì le?
The phrase "what happened" in Mandarin is translated as 发生什么事了？ (fāshēng shénme shì le?)
This phrase is a question used to ask about the cause or details of a recent event or situation. While 发生什么事了？ asks for the details of an event, you may also use the much shorter and more common 怎么了？ to ask "what's wrong?" or "what happened?" when you notice someone is upset or a situation seems unusual.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of 发生 (to happen), 什么 (what), 事 (matter/event) and 了 (a particle indicating a change of state or completed action).
Which one should you use?
There are several ways to express this depending on the level of detail and formality required. Use 发生什么事了？ when you are asking for the specific details of an event. In contrast, 怎么了？ is more often used as an expression of concern for a person's well-being or state. For informal situations, you can use 怎么回事？ or 出什么事了？ For more formal contexts, you can use 发生了什么事情？
How does it change in a sentence?
The particle 了 at the end of the phrase 发生什么事了？ is crucial. It indicates that an event has already occurred, making the question about a past or recently completed situation.
How do you pronounce it?
fāshēng shénme shì le?
Did you know?
- In a heated argument, saying 你干什么？ (nǐ gàn shénme?) might be used to mean 'what are you doing/what happened?', but it can sound much more aggressive and accusatory than the neutral 发生什么事了？
- The word 事 is so central to these phrases that it is used in the common idiom 没事, which literally means 'no matter' but is used for everything from 'I am fine' to 'you are welcome'.
- When asking 怎么回事？ (zěnme huí shì?), you are literally asking 'How is this matter/circle?', using the word 回 (huí) to refer to a single instance or turn of an event.
Examples in context
- 刚才发生什么事了？Gāngcái fāshēng shénme shì le?What happened just now?
- 这里发生什么事了？Zhèlǐ fāshēng shénme shì le?What happened here?
- 昨天晚上发生什么事了？Zuótiān wǎnshàng fāshēng shénme shì le?What happened last night?
Example conversation
Haoran sees Jiayi looking upset in the office.
- 浩然 Haoran佳怡，发生什么事了？Jiāyí, fāshēng shénme shì le?Jiayi, what happened?
- 晓雯 Xiaowen我的电脑坏了。Wǒ de diànnǎo huài le.My computer broke.
- 浩然 Haoran别担心，我帮你看看。Bié dānxīn, wǒ bāng nǐ kànkan.Don't worry, I'll take a look for you.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen谢谢你，浩然。Xièxiè nǐ, Hàorán.Thank you, Haoran.
