interrogative pronoun / adverb HSK 2
Traditional 怎樣
zěn yàng
how · in what way · what about

Meaning

怎样 is a common interrogative word asking about the manner, method, or state of something. It can inquire about how to do something, what something is like, or ask for an opinion about a suggestion. It's slightly more formal or northern in flavor compared to 怎么, though both are widely used.

Usage

Native speakers use 怎样 to ask 'how' or 'in what way' something is done, or to ask about someone's opinion on a matter. It often appears in questions like 你觉得怎样? (What do you think?) or 情况怎样? (How's the situation?). In spoken Mandarin, 怎么 is more common in casual contexts, while 怎样 can sound slightly more formal or deliberate.

Examples

  1. 01
    你觉得这个计划怎样?
    jué de zhè ge huà zěn yàng?
    What do you think of this plan?
  2. 02
    我应该怎样学好中文?
    yīng gāi zěn yàng xué hǎo Zhōng wén?
    How should I learn Chinese well?

Characters

Common collocations

  • 怎样才能
    zěn yàng cái néng
    how can one...
  • 你觉得怎样
    jué de zěn yàng
    what do you think
  • 情况怎样
    qíng kuàng zěn yàng
    how's the situation
  • 不管怎样
    guǎn zěn yàng
    no matter what, anyway

Origin

怎样 combines 怎 (how/why) with 样 (manner/appearance) to literally mean 'what manner' or 'what way', forming a natural interrogative about method or state.

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