Hi ChinesePod team, my question is this:
I’m struggling to fully grasp the concept of question words being used in declarative sentences to be purposefully vague.
is there a lesson on this or could you help with my understanding.
Thanks
Craig
Hello Craig,
The sentence structure is actually hard than it seems!
This is how it’s used most of the time:
S. + Negative indicators (沒有/沒/不) + (V.) + Question word (多少/幾個/什麼/哪裡/誰) + (O.)
It’s a very versatile structure so you might see it in different formats, but the important thing is that it’s ALWAYS negative, and it’s always paired up with a question word.
It indicates a non-committal attitude, like someone is reluctant to answer your question but usually we would interpret it as “very little/ very few/barely”.
Let’s go back to the sentences in the text.
- 我沒有多少錢–> I have little money.
- 她沒有幾個朋友–>She has very few friends.
- 你的感冒沒有什麼關係–>Your cold is barely serious
- 我沒去哪裡–>I barely went anywhere.
- 他不打算買什麼–>He didn’t plan to buy a lot. (He planned to buy very little)
- 我昨天沒跟誰去看電影–>I went to the movie barely with anyone yesterday.
I hope this helps! Let me know if this is clear enough.