你好吗 and why it sounds formal
- Characters: 你好吗 (Traditional 你好嗎). 你好 means hello; 吗 turns a sentence into a yes-or-no question.
- Pronunciation: nǐ hǎo ma. Two third tones in a row, so 你 is said with a rising second tone: ní hǎo ma. See Chinese tones.
- When it fits: catching up with a friend after months apart, a letter or message, or talking to someone older: 您好吗？ (nín hǎo ma, with the polite "you").
- When it doesn’t: as a hello to a shop assistant or a colleague you see every day. Use 你好 (hello) alone, or one of the check-ins below. More on greetings: hello in Chinese.
What people say instead
| Chinese | Pinyin | Literally | Feels like |
|---|---|---|---|
| 最近怎么样？ (最近怎麼樣？) | zuìjìn zěnmeyàng? | Lately how? | How have you been? |
| 最近好吗？ | zuìjìn hǎo ma? | Lately good? | Been well? |
| 怎么样 ★？ | zěnmeyàng? | How? | How’s it going? How was it? |
| 忙吗？ / 忙不忙？ | máng ma? / máng bu máng? | Busy? | Keeping busy? |
| 你吃了吗？ | nǐ chī le ma? | Have you eaten? | A friendly "hi, how are you" |
| 去哪儿？ (去哪兒？) | qù nǎr? | Going where? | Where are you off to? (in passing) |
| 你还好吗？ (你還好嗎？) | nǐ hái hǎo ma? | You still OK? | Are you all right? (after bad news) |
你吃了吗 is a greeting, not an invitation, and it is more common among older people. "Yes, I’ve eaten" (吃了) is a full answer. In Taiwan you may hear 吃飽了沒？ (chī bǎo le méi, "eaten your fill?") the same way.
去哪儿 is small talk too. A vague 出去一下 (just heading out) is a perfectly polite answer.
How to answer
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 很好 ★，你呢？ | hěn hǎo, nǐ ne? | Good, and you? |
| 挺好的。 | tǐng hǎo de. | Pretty good. |
| 不错。 (不錯。) | búcuò. | Not bad (which means good). |
| 还行。 / 还可以。 (還行。 / 還可以。) | hái xíng. / hái kěyǐ. | OK, alright. |
| 老样子。 (老樣子。) | lǎo yàngzi. | Same as always. |
| 挺忙的。 | tǐng máng de. | Pretty busy. |
| 不太好。 | bú tài hǎo. | Not so good. |
| 马马虎虎。 (馬馬虎虎。) | mǎmahūhū. | So-so. (Textbook favorite; heard, but less than 还行.) |
Turn the question back with 你呢？ (nǐ ne? and you?).
Why "我很好" doesn’t mean "I’m very good"
Chinese adjectives act like verbs, so there is no "am" in 我好 (I’m good). On its own, though, 我好 sounds unfinished or like a comparison, so speakers add 很 (hěn, "very"). In 我很好, 很 is mostly there for the rhythm and means just "I’m fine". To really say "very", stress it or use 非常 ★ (fēicháng).
The same rule means you should not add 是: 我是好 is wrong.
Example sentences
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 好久不见！最近怎么样？ | Hǎojiǔ bú jiàn! Zuìjìn zěnmeyàng? | Long time no see! How have you been? |
| 挺好的，就是有点忙。你呢？ | Tǐng hǎo de, jiùshì yǒudiǎn máng. Nǐ ne? | Pretty good, just a bit busy. You? |
| 王老师，您好吗？ | Wáng lǎoshī, nín hǎo ma? | How are you, Professor Wang? |
| 吃了吗？ 吃了，你呢？ | Chī le ma? Chī le, nǐ ne? | Eaten yet? Yes, you? |
| 你还好吗？ 没事，谢谢。 | Nǐ hái hǎo ma? Méi shì, xièxie. | Are you OK? I’m fine, thanks. |
| 考试考得怎么样？ | Kǎoshì kǎo de zěnmeyàng? | How did the exam go? |
Common mistakes
- Greeting everyone with 你好吗. It marks you as a textbook learner. Say 你好 alone, or ask 最近怎么样.
- Answering 你吃了吗 with what you ate. It is a greeting; 吃了 or 还没 is enough.
- Saying 我是好. Adjectives take 很, not 是: 我很好.
- Forgetting 你呢. Answering without asking back can come across as curt.
- Missing the tone change in 你好. Before another third tone, 你 rises: ní hǎo.