2.12: Lesson 1 Grammar - The verb 姓 (xìng)
- Page ID
- 66553
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)The verb 姓 (xìng) literally means "to be surnamed" or "to have the surname." It may seem awkward at first that there's a verb just for this, but you'll find that it's used quite often in Chinese. 姓 (xìng) is used most often to tell someone your own surname ("family name" or "last name"), or to ask the surname of someone else.
Although 姓 (xìng) is equivalent to the English expression "last name" this can be misleading, since in Chinese the 姓 (xìng) comes before the given name. For this reason, it may be easier for you to think of 姓 (xìng) as meaning "family name" or "surname".
Structure
Subj. + 姓 + [Surname]
Examples
-
我姓王。
Wǒ xìng Wáng.
My family name is Wang. - 你老板姓李吗？
Nǐ lǎobǎn xìng Lǐ ma?
Is your boss's last name Li?
- 那个帅哥姓张。
Nàge shuàigē xìng Zhāng.
That handsome guy's last name is Zhang.
- 我爸爸姓周，我妈妈姓林 。
Wǒ bàba xìng Zhōu, wǒ māma xìng Lín.
My father's family name is Zhou. My mother's family name is Lin.
- 他女朋友姓钱。
Tā nǚpéngyou xìng Qián.
His girlfriend's last name is Qian.
- 你好，我姓毛。
Nǐ hǎo, wǒ xìng Máo.
Hello. My last name is Mao.
- 我姓赵，我太太也姓赵。
Wǒ xìng Zhào, wǒ tàitai yě xìng Zhào.
My last name is Zhao. My wife's last name is also Zhao.
- 我的中文老师姓陈。
Wǒ de Zhōngwén lǎoshī xìng Chén.
My Chinese teacher's surname is Chen.
- 你奶奶也姓陈吗 ？
Nǐ nǎinai yě xìng Chén ma?
Is your grandma's family name also Chen?
- 他们都姓李。
Tāmen dōu xìng Lǐ.
They all have Li as their family name.
Asking Someone's Surname
You can also use 姓 (xìng) to ask people their surnames. You could do this quite directly by saying:
- 你姓什么?
Nǐ xìng shénme?
What is your last name?
However, the formal way to ask has a set form, and this is almost invariably the way people ask:
- 您贵姓？
Nín guì xìng?
What is your honorable surname?
Literally this means "What is your honorable surname?" Use this form whenever you ask someone their surname in Chinese.
[adapted from AllSet Learning Chinese Grammar Wiki, Creative Commons License BY-NC-SA 3.0]
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Any Questions?
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