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Yes or no questions with 吗

Add 吗 to the end of a statement and it becomes a yes or no question.

Nothing in the sentence moves and nothing changes form. 吗, ma, is said with a light neutral tone. The answer echoes the verb or adjective from the question, as it is or with 不 in front, because Chinese has no single word for yes.

Examples

你忙吗?
nǐ máng ma?
are you busy?
很忙
hěn máng
yes, busy
the adjective is echoed
你喝茶吗?
nǐ hē chá ma?
do you drink tea?
不喝
bù hē
no, I don't
the verb is echoed with 不
Watch out: the mistake this causes

Answering every question with 是. Echo the verb instead.