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March 24, 2026
吗(嗎)ma(ma5)
吗 (mǎ) is a question particle used at the end of a sentence to indicate a yes-no question. It transforms a statement into a query, prompting the listener for confirmation or denial. This particle is commonly used in everyday conversation to elicit responses.
Strokes6Radical口Frequency#15DifficultyEasy
Cultural Note
Using 吗 is an essential part of conversational Chinese, reflecting the importance of interaction and clarity in communication. It highlights the Chinese preference for direct questioning in social contexts.
Memory Tip
Imagine a person asking a question while holding a big question mark (吗) like a banner. The shape of the character resembles a person with arms raised in inquiry, symbolizing the act of asking. Remember that 'mǎ' sounds like 'ma,' which is a common way to address a mother, hinting at how we often seek approval or answers from those close to us.
Meanings of 吗
ma(ma5)
primary
1(question particle for "yes-no" questions)
2final interrogative particle
Exercise 1 of 2
Listen & Choose the Meaning
Choose the correct answer:
About 吗
吗Simplified
嗎Traditional
6Strokes
口Radical
语气词yǔqìcímodal particle (mod.part.)Part of Speech
#15Frequency Rank
HSK 2.0L1HSK 3.0L1ElementaryTOCFLL1HSKKL1CEFRA1
Podcast: 吗
Podcast: 吗
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AI Study Notes for 吗
Memory Mnemonic
Imagine a person asking a question while holding a big question mark (吗) like a banner. The shape of the character resembles a person with arms raised in inquiry, symbolizing the act of asking. Remember that 'mǎ' sounds like 'ma,' which is a common way to address a mother, hinting at how we often seek approval or answers from those close to us.
Usage Notes
Learners often forget to use 吗 when forming questions, leading to statements instead. For example, saying '你好吗' (Are you good?) is correct, while '你好' (You good) is not a question. This character is informal and is used in daily conversations rather than in formal writing.
HSK Study Tips
As an HSK Level 1 word, 吗 connects to basic sentence structures. Students should practice forming questions using this particle with other vocabulary learned at this level, such as '你' (you) and '好' (good) to reinforce its usage.
Cultural Note
Using 吗 is an essential part of conversational Chinese, reflecting the importance of interaction and clarity in communication. It highlights the Chinese preference for direct questioning in social contexts.
Common Mistakes
A frequent mistake is omitting 吗 entirely when asking a question. For example, saying '你好吗' is correct, but saying '你好' without 吗 is a statement, not a question. Additionally, some learners mistakenly place 吗 in the middle of a sentence, which is incorrect.
AI-enhanced 2026-03-24
Pronunciation of 吗
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Grammar Patterns of 吗
吗 functions as a grammatical particle — it carries no standalone meaning but signals a grammatical relationship. Particles attach to specific positions in the sentence (clause-final 吗/吧/呢, post-verbal 了/过/着, post-noun 的) and rarely move. It carries 3 related meanings, each with its own usage notes below. The example sentences below show it in action, with practice buttons (Listen, Practice Writing, Practice Speaking) on every line.
Politically speaking, do you think that these moves have been effective?
12
你百分之百肯定是你的邻居吗？
nǐ bǎi fēn zhī bǎi kěn dìng shì nǐ de lín jū ma？
Are you a hundred per cent sure it's your neighbour?
13
你不觉得她有点太附庸风雅了吗？
nǐ bù jué dé tā yǒu diǎn tài fù yōng fēng yǎ le ma？
Didn't you find her a little bit too arty?
14
你认为当前对罪犯的判决足够严厉吗？
nǐ rèn wéi dāng qián duì zuì fàn de pàn jué zú gòu yán lì ma？
Do you believe that sentences for criminals are tough enough at present?
15
你认为自己深受民众喜爱吗？
nǐ rèn wéi zì jǐ shēn shòu mín zhòng xǐ ài ma？
Do you have the sense that you are loved by the public?
Exercise 1 of 1
Reorder the Sentence
Do you like Chinese food?
Tap tokens to build the sentence
Cultural Notes for 吗
💡Did you know?
'吗' is a very important particle in Chinese. It allows speakers to easily turn statements into questions, making conversations more interactive.
🏮Cultural insight
Using 吗 is an essential part of conversational Chinese, reflecting the importance of interaction and clarity in communication. It highlights the Chinese preference for direct questioning in social contexts.
🌏Cross-cultural Insight
In English, we often use intonation to indicate a question, while in Chinese, the particle '吗' serves this purpose, highlighting a significant difference in how questions are formed across languages.
Word Family of 吗
Words Containing This Character3
吗ma(question particle for "yes-no" questions)嗎
干吗gànmáwhatever for?幹嗎
吗啡morphine (loanword)嗎啡
Exercise 1 of 3
Compound Meaning
What does 吗 mean?
Frequently Asked Questions about 吗
Yes, 吗 (ma) can be used with any declarative sentence to form a yes-no question. However, it is not used with imperative or negative sentences. For example, '你喜欢这个吗?' (Nǐ xǐhuān zhège ma?) translates to 'Do you like this?'
吗 (ma) is specifically a question particle for yes-no questions, while 呢 (ne) is generally used to ask follow-up questions or to prompt further information. For example, '你喜欢这个吗?' (Nǐ xǐhuān zhège ma?) asks 'Do you like this?' and '你呢?' (Nǐ ne?) asks 'What about you?'
吗 (ma) is a question particle used at the end of a sentence to form yes-no questions. It does not have a specific meaning on its own but indicates that the speaker is seeking confirmation or a response. For example, in the sentence '你好吗?' (Nǐ hǎo ma?), it translates to 'Are you good?' or 'How are you?'
To use 吗 (ma) in a sentence, simply place it at the end of a statement to turn it into a yes-no question. For instance, if you say '你是学生' (Nǐ shì xuéshēng), meaning 'You are a student,' adding 吗 makes it '你是学生吗?' (Nǐ shì xuéshēng ma?), asking 'Are you a student?'
No, 吗 must be placed at the end of a statement to indicate that it is a yes-no question.
Generally, 吗 is informal and is primarily used in spoken language or casual writing.
Yes, besides 吗, you can also use words like '吗' with question words like '什么' (what) or '谁' (who) to ask more specific questions.
