Does "Ask" equal "问wèn"? - Common Mistakes of Chinese Beginners

[@pansaltman]

Shouo, if there was Oscar Award in online teaching performance,you would at least be nominated

[@brighterowl]

1）这个东西让我意识到。。 2）别让我失望 3）她让我不要想太多 4）请让我给你唱歌 5）她问我是否我是中国人

[@marianocastro3430]

Very helpful. Thank you for the video.

[@leonardoofficial5750]

1. 这件事让我意识到 。。。 2. 别让我失望 3 她跟我说不要想太多 4. 让我给你唱首歌 5. 她问我是不是中国人

[@haloangel007]

多谢老师🙏🏻, you help me detecting wrong word “beginer” 👉🏻 beginner 😆🍀🍀

[@ehsanaminjavaheri9474]

Very very helpful.just a small point: He tells me to not think too much is grammatically not correct.it should be: He tells me not to think too much.

[@curoli]

In German also, "ask (a question)" and "ask (sb to do sth)" are two different words ("fragen" vs "bitten").

[@baizhuwaitingroom7057]

Same in Polish! (zapytać vs poprosić)

[@萧子夜]

In Chinese, equivalent words are "问“ and "叫”

[@elcascodehades1345]

Igual en español, "preguntar" vs "pedir"

[@a.g.4843]

Hi there from berlin

[@gluhwurmchenmunchen7305]

@@a.g.4843 Geht's noch von München

[@NickvonZ]

Thank you for another great and helpful presentation!

[@mountaintag]

The difference between 说 and 告诉 is that 告诉 can take an indirect object, but 说 cannot. An "indirect object" (usually a person) is the recipient of the object. Compared to English, very few Chinese verbs can take an indirect object. For example, in "I bought you a car", "you" is the indirect object, and "car" is the direct object. A word-for-word translation would be: 我买你一辆车 but this is incorrect in Chinese. The correct version is: 我给你买一辆车 (word-for-word: "I for you bought a car")

[@vasileseicaru8740]

My friend tells me... is obviously 告诉 but as a fun fact, when I was taught this distinction between 说 and 告诉 in elementary chinese class, I was also taught that the sentence 我的朋友说我 does in fact exist but in this instance 说 means to gossip: 我的朋友说我 = My friend talks about me behind my back

[@Ismael46934]

哈喽老师，谢谢你教给我的一切。

[@taylorlee5103]

说说中文. I finally got it. It is ingenious.

[@FFFF-ct6oj]

in English : 问 - ask(consult) ; 让 - ask (request) in Spanish : 问 - preguntar ; 让 - pedir but 让 is also commonly used to express passive voice in colloquial Chinese. subject + 让+doer+给（optional）+verb 手机里的照片让我给删除了。 the photos saved in the phone were deleted by me. 我的可乐让他喝了。 my coke cola was drank by him 我的秘密让他知道了。 my secrect was known by him

[@萧子夜]

"让“ same to "被” in your sentences

[@yeroca]

I'm new to your channel. 我刚刚遇到它了 Your acting is really entertaining!

[@marzhana_international]

你的视频让我非常开心🥰

[@DaisalinaForever564]

谢谢，硕老师！

[@curoli]

Yeah, I also initially thought 说说中文 means "Shuo speaks Chinese"

[@mountaintag]

I think that 说说... can sometimes mean "talk about ...". For example, I have heard: 说说你自己 = "Tell me about yourself"

[@sander_bouwhuis]

First, you are awesome because you are so pleasant to listen to. Regarding this video, I am blown away by your explanation of when to use 问 and when to use 让. This is extremely helpful! @4:59, Why is it '上次我告诉过你...'? As a 菜鸟, I would have said '上次我告诉了你...'. Also, Duolingo gave me this sentence: 版权的问题，你需问律师. But, that would be wrong according to your explanation, right?

[@adrianinchina1528]

🤣🤣学习中文让我头疼🤣🤣 那句话我说了很多。

[@VoidloniXaarii]

Brilliantly explained

[@beth5770]

老师，你的笑让我很舒服！😀

[@promphors2658]

Thank you so much for share this mission. I always watch your video ❤️

[@mountaintag]

他的话让我开心 = "His words made me happy" In this sentence, 让 can be interpreted either as "allowed" or as "forced". Both interpretations work here. But, because 让 can have these opposing meanings, it can be unclear. (It can also mean "asked".) Recently I heard: 我让妈妈照顾我的狗 Does this mean "I let my mom take care of my dog" or "I asked my mom take care of my dog" ??? For "let" I would use 允许. For "asked" I don't think that 请 or 要求 or 拜托 work very well. Recently, I've heard 找 used in this type of context, and I think it works very well: 我找妈妈照顾我的狗 = "I asked my mom to take care of my dog"

[@张蛋疼]

in most context 让妈妈照顾我的狗 is clearly means to ask her, because you are the active side (need to find someone to take care your dog), so you can authorize any one that agreed with your request.

[@賴佳瑋]

I think我让妈妈照顾我的狗is more like "I let my mom take care of my dog". 让is a little bit force, just like a commend.Because she your mother, you don't think your mouther will reject you, you're not asking her. It's not polite, but some time people talk to ther parents impolitely. 我请妈妈照顾我的狗is more like "I asked my mom take care of my dog". It means to ask her. 请is more polite to say to everyone.

[@张蛋疼]

不会对关系亲近的人用请的，这反而听起来像命令。“让”只是对事实的中性描述。

[@ilaydauzunoglu708]

It’ll be extremely useful for me , thank you for the video

[@guilhermeportugal6389]

Great video! I was actually neglecting 让 for a long time xD

[@penelopesa]

1. 这个让我意识到... 2. 别让我失望。 3. 她让我别想太多。 4.让我给你唱一首歌。 5. 她问我是不是中国人。 The last one is a question that someone is asking you, so you need to use 问 right? ...right? Or am I stupid? I might be stupid.

[@PiaoZheng]

RIGHT. 她问我是不是中国人。

[@penelopesa]

@@PiaoZheng Perfect, thanks!

[@ShuoshuoChinese]

哈哈哈！你的答案都是对的！

[@penelopesa]

@@ShuoshuoChinese 太好了。 谢谢呀。

[@akgnag4601]

@@ShuoshuoChinese wait, so 问 is always followed by a question? how does one say: "He always asks stupid questions." 是不是：他老是问愚蠢的问题。 or "I want to ask a question" - 我想问个问题！ 谢谢，硕老师！

[@张蛋疼]

you can not 说somebody but you can 说说somebody , this means to persuade or convince.

[@fabj5828]

1。这个让我发现… 2。别辜负我的期望。 3。她让我不要想太多。 4。让我给你唱支歌。 5。她问我是不是中国人。

[@lutchbizin5385]

Shuoshi, I find you so cute, charming and witted. I am your fan and I love your channel ! Warm hugs from Brazil

[@erlebach123]

请 is another word that can mean "ask" (for example, in 请假 = ask for leave), but I guess 我的朋友请我帮她 is also wrong.

[@CanadaMinute]

The English equivalent of 让 in English is "have" not ask. "My friend had me help her", 我的朋友是让我帮她的. The English expresion "ask to" is a simplified sentence coming from "ask if it's ok to....." and other derivatives, I think this person is learning Chinese and English 😋

[@DaisalinaForever564]

1. 这个事情让我意识到。。。 2. 别让我失望。 3. 她让我不要想太多。 4. 让我给你唱歌。 5. 她问我是不是中国人。

[@erinqi4455]

you could also use 求 in certain context!

[@KevinUchiwa]

Interesting video

[@christianzhang5479]

讓我回答這種問題 1. 這種讓我實現哪… 2. 别讓我難過 3. 她問我不要想太多 4. 讓我唱一首歌给你聽了 5. 他問我要是我是個中國人

[@TweenkPL]

1 - 實現 means "to realize" as in "to make real", e.g. "realize one's ambition/dream" not as in "to learn about" e.g. "I realized that my cat is missing". I think it should be 認識到 or 發覺. 3 - "ask" means "request to" here, so we can't use 問 5 - 要是 is only used for conditionals, but in this sentence the "if" means "whether or not", so the verb-not-verb (是不是) construction should be used.

[@breadman5048]

让我出去 … I laughed but also cried lol

[@萧子夜]

Why?

[@breadman5048]

@@萧子夜 it was funny how she did it, but she's obviously referencing the lockdowns in china - which is sad.

[@萧子夜]

@@breadman5048 Maybe,but working can be done when lie on bed.

[@breadman5048]

@@萧子夜 I suppose so.. have you been in lockdown for a long time like that? I had to quarantine for 5 days and at least I had my family around.. if I was living alone - I'd go crazy

[@萧子夜]

@@breadman5048 I'm going through lockdown at school,just forbid us to go out.We still have to go to class.

[@justinmike0236]

1：这让我意识到 2：不要让我失望 3：她让我不要想太多 4：didn't know how to translate the 4th one. 5：can't translate this one either.

[@Ismael46934]

1。这让我realized那。。。 2。不让我失望了。 3。让我唱一首歌曲为了你。 4。她让我是不是中国人。

[@dtmlinh123]

1. 这个让我发现… 2. 别让我失望 3. 她让我别想太多 4. 让我唱给你一首歌 5. 她问我是不是中国人

[@bunny-cq8iz]

1:32 i loled

[@和蘭芹かりかり]

硕老师，让我试试回答σ( ´ᐞ` * )💭 1这件事让我realize… 2 别让我不开心 3 她告诉我“你不要思考那么多啊” 4 让我给你唱一首歌 5 他问我“你是不是中国人呢？” 何も調べずに頑張ってみましたᕦ(ò_óˇ)ᕤ

[@张蛋疼]

3 “你不要想太多/想那么多啊” 这样更准确，想太多/想那么多是个略带贬义的固定用法。（因为思考是更书面的词汇，略带褒义，而想是纯中性词）

[@和蘭芹かりかり]

@@张蛋疼 哦，是这样啊。谢谢你啦！

[@张蛋疼]

@@和蘭芹かりかり

[@diorstarrr]

说说中文的话非常厉害啊

[@jsalimyc]

Lao shi, can I use jiao 叫? So can it be 我的朋友叫我帮他？Thanks

[@ShuoshuoChinese]

可以的！

[@mountaintag]

I think that 叫 is okay here, but in my experience, 叫 is a little stronger than "ask" and closer to "command". It's usually used by people in authority. For example: 我的父亲叫我帮他 = My father told me to help him 我的老师叫我帮他 = My teacher told me to help him 我的老板叫我帮他 = My boss told me to help him

[@anyilama8769]

How can i get your course in online? Like your website to learn with you

[@LJJ22]

I have a question about 让 when it's implying "ask". Is it also used if it is without a result? If the friend asked you to do something and then you did/do it, in my opinion it is pretty much the same as "made you do it", while if they only asked you to to do, but you refused, it is different. Same with the teacher, there are 2 situations: The teacher picked you to answer a question (asked you to answer), but you could or could not answer; The teacher let you answer their question when you wanted to answer it.

[@Graphite2983]

I guess so, since it would mean “let” or “ask” in English instead of “make (someone do something)”.

[@aleksk9643]

Of course. When he was asking how could he know the possible result?

[@erlebach123]

I have the same question. I also feel that 让 implies that the person who was asked to do something has agreed to do it, but I'm not sure. For example, does 他让我照顾他的猫 say only that he asked me to take care of his cat (and I may or may not have agreed), or does it already imply that I have agreed to do it?

[@张蛋疼]

@@erlebach123 yes, 让 does not care about the agreement or accomplishment.

[@wonderbu598]

我想知道我到底可否做个英语-中文的翻译哦🤭~ 1. 这个让我意识到。。。 2. 别让我失望(哦、啦。语气词或者动词“别”/副词 “不要”让我有不一样的感觉）。 3. 她让我别想太多（了）。 4. 让我给你唱一首歌吧。 5. 她问我是不是（是否）中国人。

[@萧子夜]

All right!You're so good!

[@Graphite2983]

1:35 This one made me laugh so much. 🤣 Your mom “let” you do some chores?? Also, the sentence “She asked me to help her” translated incorrectly in Chinese was… very unusual. 😆 You don’t _interrogate_ someone to help you, you _request_ them to help you. 2:58 这个让我realize… 不要让我(something about disappointing) 她让我不要想太多。(Dunno if that’s the correct way to say “think too much”.) 让我给你唱歌。(Dunno if that’s right either.) 她问我是不是中国人。 Wait, so… the word “word” is “话”？

[@ShuoshuoChinese]

你的答案都很棒哦！(”Let me sing you a song“ could also be "让我给你唱一首歌吧”) ”话“ means someone's words/speech, what someone said

[@TweenkPL]

The word "word" is 词, but as far as I can tell, it only refers to the concept of a word as it appears in dictionaries and is not used metaphorically like in English. If you said 他的词让我开心, it would be understood as "his word (a new term that he invented) made me happy" instead of "his words (what he said to me) made me happy"

[@wilerrenteria8681]

Teacher, thanks for your lesson today, it was so helpful. I also wanted to ask you if you had iTalki account? or how can I book a lesson with you?

[@AsiaLoverBoy_87]

Not everybody is a BEGINNER FOREVER... until the year 2060. 每个学汉语的人并不是初学者直到2060年。

[@MrAbrandao]

why there is a double 说说 in the 大学 exemple?

[@ParagonPKC]

1. 这个让我了解那 2. 没让我放弃 3. 她让我算了梦寐以求 4. 让我唱歌与你 5. 她让如果我是不是中国人

[@glowingfatedie]

Can you say, 【我的朋友把我说，他今天不来。】or 【我的朋友对我说，他今天不来。】？

[@jonwharton6747]

1. 这让我想起来那个。。。。 2.别让我失望。 3.她告诉我别想多了。 4.让我唱一个唱歌为了你。 5. 她问我你是不是中国人啊？

[@karabogaz]

1:52 min > not that Shanghai or Beijing friends get hurt by this accidental sarcasm... 🥺... with regard to wèn vs ràng even Latin has a very similar distinction (quaero vs peto), German as well (fragen vs bitten), and surely some other languages.

[@maxwelltan9417]

How to say ' the cat ask me for food' ?

[@jckbquck]

LOL! Here's a much better way to explain this. In English, the word "ask" carries two sets of meanings when translated into Chinese. "Ask" can mean "to pose a question". "Ask" can also mean "to make a request". The problem posed in this video has less to do with the English speaker's poor understanding of the Chinese words; it has more to do with the Chinese speaker's poor understanding of the English word "ask". You need to approach this subject from the English speaker's point of view, as opposed to Ms. Shuo Shuo's approach from the Chinese side. The former is a much less confusing way to explain this subject than the latter. In Chinese, "to pose a question" is 問 (wen4). In Chinese, "to make a request" can be 請 (qin3), which literally means to "invite". It can also be 讓 (rang4), which means to "let" or "allow". Additionally, it can also be 叫 (jiao4), which means to "order" or to "call upon". In English, you can use the same word in all these occasions, "ask". The upside of having a native Chinese speaker teach you Chinese is her fluency in Chinese. The downside is her inadequate understanding of English (i.e. the reason you are struggling with a particular subject). I happened to be fluent in both Mandarin and English.

[@airgoola1237]

Your explanation is actually better than the video.

[@GeorgAnkar]

我有个问题想问，“她让我帮她”和“她请我帮她”这两种句子有没有什么值得注意的区别？

[@mountaintag]

“她让我帮她”可能意味着“她允许我帮助”或者“她逼我帮她”。 “她请我帮她”可能意味着“她邀请我帮她”。 最近我听到“找”代替“让”。 我认为“她找我帮她”更清楚。

[@milena6402]

Thank you! And we can't say: 我请我的朋友帮我？ 谢谢！

[@ShuoshuoChinese]

可以的，“请”更礼貌

[@danavicol2534]

1. 这让我发现那。。。 2. 别让我失望(?)。。。 3. 她让我别想多呢。。。 4. 让我给你一个唱歌吧。。。 5. 她让我是不是中国人呢。。 I got no clue if I wrote it correctly. Feel free to corect me.👀

[@magdalenaszulc8997]

Am i bad student if i would make all mistakes

[@TweenkPL]

Zły uczeń to taki co nie próbuje 😏

[@ИгорьБеда-о8н]

谢谢 您 硕老师。她让我是中国人。让我唱歌你。不让我下来了。

[@bunny-cq8iz]

是不是“从来不让我下来了”？

[@AliyaVeber]

他她让我是中国人。 Как перевододиться ?

[@magicchef]

This was super informative! Is "讓" to mean "ask" also true in Taiwanese-style Mandarin? I don't think I've noticed it used this way before. (I'm ABC, so my level of Mandarin is super basic.)

[@steventseng2513]

台灣人的講法 My friend asked me to help her. 我的朋友"要"我幫她。 Teacher asks me to answer the question. 老師"要"我回答這個問題。

[@magicchef]

​@@steventseng2513 Thank you, Steven! Using "要" definitely feels more familiar. Much appreciated.

[@Casutama]

This is probably a stupid question, but there is a distinct difference in meaning between "my teacher asks me to answer the question" and "my teacher lets me answer the question" (some dedicated students may really want to be called on by the teacher). Is there any way to make this difference clear in Chinese?

[@Jason-b9t]

use "請" or "叫/找"。 "my teacher asks me to answer the question" ->"我的老師請我回答這個問題"

[@Casutama]

@@Jason-b9t Thank you!

[@sunfirefire45]

她的说话让我哭了。

[@ΑθανάσιοςΚΥΡΙΑΚΟΠΟΥΛΟΣ-θ7γ]

Ok but I asked my friend to help me would be better as 我请朋友帮我。 我让朋友帮我 is more like I told my friend to help me

[@mountaintag]

The word 请 basically means "to invite". The word 让 can mean "to allow", or "to ask", or "to force". Lately, I've heard 找 used instead of 让. Now, I think 我找朋友帮我 is clearer. Basically, 找 means "to look for (sb)", but, by extension, it can mean "to ask (sb's help, etc)"

[@bunny-cq8iz]

i am a little confused at 4:20 (haha) why does 也 appear here?

[@PiaoZheng]

This is a language structure indicating complete negation “什么 + 也/都 + 不/没 + V (not even one)” E.g. 什么也没说 didn't say anything. OR 什么都没说。 E.g. 她今天什么也没吃 SHE DIDN'T EAT ANYTHING. OR 她今天什么都没吃。

[@emaadpao3568]

可不可以說"我的朋友叫我幫她"?

[@timdietz350]

would the standalone sentence "我的朋友让我帮他“ be more likely to be interpreted as "my friend asked me to help him" or "my friend made me help him"? Is there a more appropriate way to say either?

[@airgoola1237]

"my friend asked me to help him"

[@timdietz350]

@@airgoola1237 what would be the less ambiguous way to say "My friend made me help him"?

[@賴佳瑋]

In my understanding, "my friend made me help him" is translated to"我的朋友叫我帮他“. "my friend let me help him"is translated to "我的朋友让我帮他“. "my friend asked me to help him" is translated to "我的朋友请我帮他“. 叫 is like command; 让is more like "let", 请is more polite, is just like "ask to". My boss/mother 叫/让/请我帮他 My friend 让/请我帮他 A person I am not acquainted 请我帮他 请is most polite, it has "please" meaning in it. you can use请to everyone. Sometime 请 is too polite for someone your are familiar. You would not always say "please" to your friend or your family. We use"让" to someone you know. 叫 is a order, it usually used when parents made child do something. This word is very impolite, even parent or the boss use it seldom.

[@nickekotevski9277]

Can't you also say; 我朋友跟说我? ^^

[@MMayer-vn3vv]

有时候可不可以用”请”吗？她请我帮她的朋友一个忙。对不对？

[@TL243]

❤❤🇹🇼

[@RechtmanDon]

When saying please let me ask (请问 ), 问 is not followed by something! 😋

[@natalielongtin4430]

他说的话让我哭了 也可以吗？

[@Iisheell]

那就是，说 “我想请你帮助我”是错的吗？

[@Kotsuyosama]

Well, it's not wrong, but just a little strange to say in this way, as it feels neither casual nor formal😂. On different occasions, you can say： 诶，帮个忙/诶，帮我一下。→ To friends (casual) 请问，可以帮我一下吗？/不好意思，请帮帮我。→ To strangers (polite) 不好意思，我想拜托您帮我......，不知您是否方便呢？→ To superiors (very polite) 不好意思，我有个不情之请，请问您可否帮我......呢？→ To superiors (honorifics)

[@Iisheell]

@@Kotsuyosama but in similar cases using 请 is still wrong, am I right? Ask to come, ask to do something...I distinctly remember learning about that when I studied in China, but maybe I got something wrong 😂

[@PiaoZheng]

​@@Iisheell I would do it in questions. 能请你过来一下吗？ （COULD YOU PLEASE COME OVER?） 能请你帮我拿一下包吗？ (COULD YOU PLEASE HOLD THE BAG FOR ME? ) 请 will be used in these cases to show politeness. 让 doesn't work. 我请他明天来。 VS. 我让他明天来。 请 sentence is polite, 让 sentence could sound "bossy" and commanding, it's ok only used among acquaintances.

[@Kotsuyosama]

​@@Iisheell 请 can be put in many places of the sentence, especially when you use 请 to replace 让 to sound more polite. The expressed nuance of 请 is different if you use it in different ways (besides, 请 can also be seen as the short of 邀请). So I would suggest using 请问 as a universal phrase, it can "soften" the sentence a lot; putting it at the very beginning of the sentence, saying your request after that, and using "吗/呢？" at the end, which makes the request not be like a command. You can also add some phrases such as 不好意思，我想..., 可不可以... to make it even more polite; or replace 请 by 拜托 if you use 请问... sentence (because too many 请 in a sentence sounds a little weird ). Back to your first question, I would say in this way: （不好意思，请问...）我想请（拜托）你（/您）帮个忙。/（，可以吗？） The most common expression is 我想请你帮个忙, all these phrases in brackets can be added to fit different levels of politeness; if you add them all, it will be a super polite sentence 😂.

[@AlvaroBlancoK]

你的话让我笑了！

[@WaMo721]

you are weirdly attractive

[@marzhana_international]

你的视频让我非常开心🥰