Welcome back. In our previous lesson, we established the fundamental structure for using measure words: Demonstrative + Measure Word + Noun. You learned to form phrases like 这本书 (zhè běn shū - this book) and 那个人 (nà ge rén - that person).
Today, we will take the next logical step: integrating these descriptive phrases into complete sentences. Your goal is to combine grammatical structures you've already learned to ask and answer questions of identity. This is where your knowledge begins to compound, allowing you to express more complex ideas. We will focus on mastering the crucial HSK 1 question: 这个人是谁？ (Zhè ge rén shì shéi? - Who is this person?).
Think of the phrases you learned last time as self-contained modules or functions. Today, you'll learn how to call these functions within a larger grammatical program—the basic Chinese sentence structure.
1. From Phrase to Subject
In Chinese, the noun phrase you've learned to build, such as 这 + 个 + 人, functions as a single unit. It can act as the subject of a sentence, just like a simple pronoun such as 我 (wǒ) or 他 (tā).
这个人(zhè ge rén) - This person那本书(nà běn shū) - That book这杯茶(zhè bēi chá) - This cup of tea
Let's look at a guide that explains how these phrases, known as "demonstrative adjectives," are used.
"This, That, These, Those, This One, That One" in Chinese
Please read the section titled "Chinese Demonstrative Adjectives".
Focus on the formula provided: the structure. Pay close attention to the example sentence That person is so strange. This demonstrates how the phrase 那个人 serves as the complete subject of the sentence.
This confirms that the Demonstrative + Measure Word + Noun combination creates a specific noun phrase that we can now use to build more detailed sentences.
2. Constructing the Question: 这个人是谁？
Now, let's assemble our target sentence. Recall from Module 3 the basic A-是-B sentence structure and the question word 谁 (shéi - who). You learned to ask:
- 他是谁？ (Tā shì shéi?) - Who is he?
The grammatical logic for forming our new question is simple substitution. We replace the general pronoun 他 (tā) with our more specific noun phrase 这个人 (zhè ge rén).
- 这个人是谁？ (Zhè ge rén shì shéi?) - Who is this person?
A key feature of Chinese grammar, which simplifies sentence construction, is that question words like 谁 (shéi) remain in the same position as the information they are asking about. The word order of the question mirrors the word order of the answer.
- Question: 这个人是谁？ (Zhè ge rén shì shéi?)
- Answer: 这个人是我的老师。 (Zhè ge rén shì wǒ de lǎoshī.)
The following textbook excerpt provides a formal explanation of this principle.
In this PDF, navigate to "Lesson 2 | Family" and find the "Grammar" section (p. 50-51).
First, read Grammar Point 3, "Question pronouns". Focus on the explanation that in Chinese, the word order remains consistent between statements and questions. The example breaking down 那个女孩子是谁？ is particularly relevant. Next, on page 54, look at "Language Practice A". This section provides a direct, practical example of the structure you're learning: the question and answer pair.
To hear this explained and pronounced, the following video offers a clear breakdown of how to use 谁 (shéi) in questions.
1.4.1 Ask "who" and "which" with 谁, 哪 | HSK 1 Beginner's Chinese Course
This video from Chinese Zero to Hero explains how to form questions with 'who'.
Watch the segment from the explanation of 谁. The key insight here is that Chinese questions are like "fill-in-the-blank" exercises; the question word 谁 simply replaces the answer within a standard sentence structure.
3. Answering Questions and Introducing Variations
Answering these questions is straightforward: you simply replace the question word 谁 with the appropriate noun or noun phrase.
Here are some examples building on structures you already know:
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| 这个人是谁？ (Zhè ge rén shì shéi?) | 这个人是我爸爸。 (Zhè ge rén shì wǒ bàba.) |
| Who is this person? | This person is my dad. |
| 那个人是谁？ (Nà ge rén shì shéi?) | 那个人是李老师。 (Nà ge rén shì Lǐ lǎoshī.) |
| Who is that person? | That person is Teacher Li. |
We can also combine this with other patterns, such as using the possessive particle 的 (de), to ask about ownership.
-
这是谁的书？(Zhè shì shéi de shū?) - Whose book is this?这是我的书。(Zhè shì wǒ de shū.) - This is my book.
-
那杯茶是谁的？(Nà bēi chá shì shéi de?) - Whose cup of tea is that?那杯茶是他的。(Nà bēi chá shì tā de.) - That cup of tea is his.
4. Practice Drill
Let's test your ability to combine these structures. Formulate the Chinese sentence for each of the following prompts.
- Ask: "Who is that person?"
Answer
那个人是谁？ (Nà ge rén shì shéi?)
2. Answer the question "Who is this person?" with "This person is my friend."
Answer
这个人是我的朋友。 (Zhè ge rén shì wǒ de péngyǒu.)3. Combine the following elements into a logical question: `那`, `本`, `书`, `是`, `你`, `的`, `吗`.
Answer
那本书是你的吗？ (Nà běn shū shì nǐ de ma?) - *Is that book yours?*4. Ask: "Is this cup of tea your teacher's?"
Answer
这杯茶是老师的吗？ (Zhè bēi chá shì lǎoshī de ma?)Conclusion
You have successfully integrated several key grammatical components to form more descriptive and useful sentences. This process of combining smaller, known structures into larger, more complex ones is central to becoming fluent in any language.
Key Takeaways:
- The phrase
Demonstrative + Measure Word + Noun(e.g.,这个人) acts as a single noun phrase and can be the subject of a sentence. - To ask "Who is this person?", you substitute the specific phrase
这个人into the basic question structure, resulting in这个人是谁？. - The word order of a Chinese question with a question word like
谁is the same as the word order of its declarative answer.
In our next lesson, we will continue to build on the Measure Word + Noun structure. You will learn to ask "how many" by combining the verb 有 (yǒu) with the question words 几 (jǐ) and 多少 (duōshao), allowing you to inquire about quantities.