这是什么？
zhè shì shénme?
The English phrase "what is it?" is translated into Mandarin as 这是什么？ (zhè shì shénme?)
这是什么？ is a question used to ask for the identity or name of an object.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase consists of 什么 (shénme), which means "what".
How does it change in a sentence?
You can adjust the phrase depending on what you are pointing to or how many items there are. To ask "What is that?" instead of "What is this?", replace 这 (this) with 那 (that) to get 那是什么？ To ask "What are these?" in the plural, use 这些 (these) instead of 这 (this) to get 这些是什么？
How do you pronounce it?
zhè shì shénme?
Did you know?
- While English uses 'it' for both animals and objects, in Mandarin, you must decide if you are asking about a person or an object, as using 这是什么? for a person would be considered very rude.
- If you use the phrase 这是什么? with an upward inflection at the end, it might sound like you are challenging someone's choice or expressing disbelief rather than asking a genuine question.
- While 什么 asks 'what', adding a simple 呢 (ne) to the end creates a softer tone that can turn the question into a curious prompt like 'And what is this one?', which is common in social settings.
Examples in context
- 请问这是什么？Excuse me, what is this?
- 我不太了解，可以请您告诉我这是什么吗？I am not very familiar with this, could you please tell me what it is?
- 这是什么东西？What is this thing?
- 这个是啥？What is this?
Example conversation
In a kitchen, Xiaowen points to a mysterious fruit on the counter.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen俊杰，这是什么？Jùnjié, zhè shì shénme?Junjie, what is this?
- 俊杰 Junjie这是一颗芒果。Zhè shì yī kē mángguǒ.This is a mango.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen看起来很好吃。Kàn qǐlái hěn hǎochī.It looks delicious.
- 俊杰 Junjie你想吃吗？Nǐ xiǎng chī ma?Do you want to eat it?
