那是谁？
nà shì shéi?
The English phrase "who is that?" is translated into Chinese as 那是谁？ (nà shì shéi?)
The phrase is a question used to ask for the identity of a person who is not the speaker or the listener.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase breaks down into three parts: 那 means "that", 是 means "is/am/are" and 谁 means "who".
How does it change in a sentence?
In Chinese, the word order for the question 那是谁？ follows the same order as the statement "That is who?"
How do you pronounce it?
nà shì shéi?
Did you know?
- In very formal or written Chinese, 谁 is sometimes replaced by 何人 to ask 'who is that person'. This sounds archaic to modern ears, similar to saying 'who goeth there' in English.
- If you point at a person and use a very blunt tone with 那是谁？, it can come across as suspicious or even rude. Adding a particle like 呢 at the end, making it 那是谁呢？, can soften the question and make it sound more curious than accusatory.
- If you are asking about someone in a very polite or respectful way, such as a person of high status, you might replace 谁 with the more formal 哪位. This changes the tone from a blunt identity question to a respectful inquiry.
Examples in context
- 那是谁？Nà shì shéi?Who is that?
- 门口的那是谁？Ménkǒu de nà shì shéi?Who is that person at the door?
- 在那儿工作的，那是谁？Zài nà'er gōngzuò de, nà shì shéi?The one working over there, who is that?
Example conversation
Haoran and Jiayi are walking in the park and see a stranger.
- 浩然 Haoran佳怡，那是谁？Jiāyí, nà shì shéi?Jiayi, who is that?
- 佳怡 Jiayi那是我们的新老师。Nà shì wǒmen de xīn lǎoshī.That is our new teacher.
- 浩然 Haoran他看起来很友好。Tā kàn qǐlái hěn yǒuhǎo.He looks very friendly.
- 佳怡 Jiayi是的，他是个好人。Shì de, tā shì gè hǎorén.Yes, he is a good person.
