Introducing Yourself: Names, Nationalities, and Simple Questions

New Words and Phrases: Introducing Yourself

In this step, you will learn key words and phrases to say your name, talk about your nationality, and ask simple personal questions in Mandarin Chinese.

Language Pattern: Using 是 (shì) and 吗 (ma) in Simple Sentences

1. Basic sentence structure: Subject – 是 – Object

In simple "to be" sentences, Mandarin usually follows this pattern:

Subject + 是 (shì) + Noun / Nationality / Role

Examples:

• 我是美国人。
• wǒ shì Měi‑guó rén.
• I am American.

• 他是老师。
• tā shì lǎo‑shī.
• He is a teacher.

• 我是中国人。
• wǒ shì Zhōng‑guó rén.
• I am Chinese.

Notice that Mandarin does not use separate words for "am / is / are". All of them are covered by 是 (shì) in this type of sentence.

2. Asking yes/no questions with 吗 (ma)

To turn a statement into a yes/no question, you usually:

1. Keep the word order the same.
2. Add 吗 (ma) at the end of the sentence.

Example statement:

• 你是美国人。
• nǐ shì Měi‑guó rén.
• You are American.

Turn it into a question:

• 你是美国人吗？
• nǐ shì Měi‑guó rén ma?
• Are you American?

Another example:

• 他是中国人。
• tā shì Zhōng‑guó rén.
• He is Chinese.

• 他是中国人吗？
• tā shì Zhōng‑guó rén ma?
• Is he Chinese?

3. Answering yes/no questions with 是 (shì)

For yes:

• Use 是 plus a short repeat of the information.

Example:

• Q: 你是美国人吗？
• nǐ shì Měi‑guó rén ma?
• Are you American?
• A: 是，我是美国人。
• shì, wǒ shì Měi‑guó rén.
• Yes, I am American.

For no:

• Use 不是 (bú shì) = "am/is/are not".

Example:

• Q: 你是中国人吗？
• nǐ shì Zhōng‑guó rén ma?
• Are you Chinese?
• A: 不是，我是英国人。
• bú shì, wǒ shì Yīng‑guó rén.
• No, I am British.

4. Asking about name and nationality

Asking someone’s name:

• 你叫什么名字？
• nǐ jiào shén‑me míng‑zi?
• What is your name?

Answering:

• 我叫安娜。
• wǒ jiào Ān‑nà.
• My name is Anna.

Asking about nationality:

• 你是哪国人？
• nǐ shì nǎ guó rén?
• Which country are you from? / What is your nationality?

Answering:

• 我是美国人。
• wǒ shì Měi‑guó rén.
• I am American.

Here you still see the pattern: Subject (我 / 你) + 是 (shì) + Nationality word (美国人 / 中国人).

Practice Dialogue: Meeting Someone New

In this dialogue, two people meet for the first time and introduce themselves with their names and nationalities. Read the Mandarin lines and check the English translations.

Check Your Understanding: Names and Nationalities

Answer this question to test your understanding of using 是 (shì) and 吗 (ma) in simple introduction sentences.