你属什么？
nǐ shǔ shénme?
To ask "what is your zodiac?" in Chinese, use 你属什么？ (nǐ shǔ shénme?)
This phrase is used specifically to ask which animal represents a person's birth year in the Chinese zodiac, rather than asking about Western astrological signs.
What does it mean word for word?
The verb 属 (shǔ) literally means to belong to a certain category or, in this context, to fall under the sign of a specific zodiac animal.
Which one should you use?
While 你属什么？ is the standard way to ask, other variations exist. 请问，你的生肖是什么？ and 请问，您是属于哪一个生肖？ are formal versions, while 你的属相是什么？ and 你是哪个生肖的？ are informal ways to ask the same question.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase 你属什么？ follows a standard Subject + Verb + Question Word structure.
How do you pronounce it?
nǐ shǔ shénme?
When do people say it?
When someone asks this, a natural way to answer is by using the structure 我属 [zodiac animal] (I belong to the [animal]), such as 我属龙.
Did you know?
- Although there are 12 animals, the cat is famously missing from the list of answers to 你属什么？, leading to a common folk tale about the rat tricking the cat during the Great Race.
- In Chinese culture, asking 你属什么？ is often a subtle way to determine a person's age without asking for a birth date directly.
- The concept of 'clashing' means that if two people answer 你属什么？ with certain signs, such as the rat and the horse, they may be viewed as fundamentally incompatible.
Examples in context
- 你是哪年出生的？你属什么？Nǐ shì nǎ nián chūshēng de? Nǐ shǔ shénme?What year were you born? What is your zodiac?
- 每个人都问我：你属什么？Měi gèrén dōu wèn wǒ: Nǐ shǔ shénme?Everyone asks me: what is your zodiac?
Example conversation
Two friends are chatting about their birthdays during lunch.
- 浩然 Haoran晓雯，你属什么？Xiǎowén, nǐ shǔ shénme?Xiaowen, what is your zodiac?
- 晓雯 Xiaowen我属兔，你呢？Wǒ shǔ tù, nǐ ne?My zodiac is the rabbit, how about you?
- 浩然 Haoran我属龙。Wǒ shǔ lóng.I am a dragon.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen那真的很棒！Nà zhēn de hěn bàng!That is really great!
