Normal questions

Normal questions can be formed by adding "ma" at the end of a sentence.

• Tā shì Fēnlánrén.
  他 是 芬兰人。


• Tā shì Fēnlánrén ma?
  他 是 芬兰人 吗？


• Tā hěn hǎo.
  她 很 好。


• Tā hěn hǎo ma?
  她 很 好 吗？

Special questions

1. shénme 什么(what)
2. shéi 谁 (who, whom)
3. zàinǎli 在哪里 (where)

Special question words are not usually in the beginning. The place of a special question word depends on which sentence member it is: If it is an object, its place is at the end of a sentence. The word order of a Chinese sentence is usually SAVO.

SAVO

S = subject
A = time, place and ways of doing
V = verb
O = object

• Nǐ zàinǎli hē kāfēi? (you where drink coffee)
  你 在哪里 喝 咖啡？


• Nǐ shuō shénme? (you say what)
  你 说 什么？


• Shénme měilì? (what be beautiful)
  什么 美丽？