Search from various English teachers...
[Deleted]
Whats the difference between 或者 and 还是。
Please help me understand the difference
Jun 30, 2012 6:46 PM
Answers · 7
5
或者 is used in a statement while 还是 is used in a question.
你要吃草莓还是香蕉?- Do you want to eat strawberries or bananas?
你可以吃草莓或者香蕉? - You can have strawberries or bananas?
June 30, 2012
1
a或者b
A or B - multiple possibilities
a還是b
is it A? or is it B?
“或” most corresponds to our "or", you will often see this single character in a sentence like
A (或:B)
in spoken language they say 或者 (huo2zhe3)
as i undersatnd it, if you use the meanings in the same sentence, the meanings change like this:
你想吃麵 或者 飯
you want to eat noodles or rice!
你想吃麵 還是 (想吃)飯
do you want to eat noodles? "or is it" (還是) rice (that you want).....
notice that chinese speakers don't add 嗎 in this style of question, because "還是" is a signal to the listener that you are unsure which is the case, implicitly asking the other party a question, so 嗎 becomes unnecessary. (The same is true for things like 什麼, I never hear: 你想要什麼嗎, only 你想要什麼?. )
(I hope if I am wrong, a native speaker will correct or clarify)
July 1, 2012
hi
1 “或者”表示肯定(to be sure)
2“还是”表示疑问,用在疑问句(we often use interrogative sentence)
For example:我们吃米饭还是吃面包?
我们吃米饭或者面包。
July 2, 2012
thats a tough question, have no idea how to explain...:
June 30, 2012
Still haven’t found your answers?
Write down your questions and let the native speakers help you!
Articles You May Also Like

Santa, St. Nicholas, or Father Christmas? How Christmas Varies Across English-Speaking Countries
6 likes · 4 Comments

Reflecting on Your Progress: Year-End Language Journal Prompts
5 likes · 3 Comments

Same Word, Different Meaning: American, British, and South African English
25 likes · 18 Comments
More articles
