麼vs嗎

English translation: written Chinese - a character often used in combination with other characters to mean "what"

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)

Chinese term or phrase:	或
English translation:	written Chinese - a character often used in combination with other characters to mean "what"
Entered by:	Roddy Stegemann

08:15 May 28, 2003

Chinese to English translations [Non-PRO]
Science / linquistics

Chinese term or phrase: 麼vs嗎

你的朋友會寫中文麼？

What if the question marker 麼 were changed to 嗎? How would the meaning of the sentence change? Would such a substitution even be appropriate?

Roddy Stegemann KudoZ activity Questions: 666 (4 open) (6 without valid answers) (3 closed without grading) Answers: 1221 United States
Local time: 16:46

mo vs. ma

Explanation:
don't know if you are still looking for a cantonese-specific answer, because cantonese and mandarin grammar differs greatly in grammar and vocabulary.

"或" usually denotes "what"
What are you doing?
稦或? (mandarin)
暗葾偿? (cantonese)

What time is he arriving?
或ㄓ? (man.)
碭翴兢? (can.)
note that 或 is pretty much being replaced by some other term in Cantonese.

"盾" usually for Yes/No questions
Are you coming tonight?
さ边ㄓ盾? (man.)
さ边兢兢? (can.)

Do you understand?/ Do you get it?
来盾? (man.)
盾? (can.)
note in this rare case 盾 is used in both dialects

Selected response from:

Kvasir
Canada
Local time: 17:46

Grading comment

Apparently no one excepts 或 as an appropriate question tag in the context given. Perhaps the publisher (Yale-in-China Chinese Language Center) of the text book from which I obtained it erred when typing. It was nice to discover that 盾 can be appropriately used in spoken Cantonese, as this was my feeling all along. Your comparisons of written (Mandarin...) and spoken Cantonese were also of interest.

I have yet to pose these questions in still a different light -- written and spoken forms of 約狥杠 and 翠杠. I will save these for another day!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

Summary of answers provided

5 +3

mo vs. ma

Kvasir

Answers

25 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +3

mo vs. ma

Kvasir
Canada
Local time: 17:46
Native speaker of:

Chinese
PRO pts in pair: 123

Grading comment

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麼vs嗎

English translation: written Chinese - a character often used in combination with other characters to mean "what"

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麼vs嗎

English translation: written Chinese - a character often used in combination with other characters to mean "what"

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