那 nǎ / nà / nèi — how; which; that; those; that; those
那座山很高。Nà zuò shān hěn gāo.That mountain is very tall.
Common words: 那些 (nà xiē)、那里 (nà li)、那边 (nà bian)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "how"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "how", including 那 (nǎ / nà / nèi), 何 (hé), 怎 (zěn), 哪 (nǎ / na / něi). Study pinyin, English meanings…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "how" covers 4 different Chinese characters — 那 (nǎ / nà / nèi), 何 (hé), 怎 (zěn), 哪 (nǎ / na / něi) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 4 characters do not share a sound — their readings span nǎ, nà, nèi, hé, zěn, na, and more — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 那 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 那 nǎ / nà / nèihow; which; that; those; that; thoseUseful words: 那些, 那里
- 何 hécarry; what; how; why; whichUseful words: 任何, 如何
- 怎 zěnhowUseful words: 怎么, 怎么样
- 哪 nǎ / na / něihow; which; (final part. preceded by N); which (followed by M or Num)Useful words: 哪里, 哪儿
Common words for these 4 "how" characters
Anchor each of these 4 characters in a word you can picture — start with 那 (nǎ / nà / nèi) — so "how" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
那些nà xiēthose那里nà lithere; that place那边nà bianover there; yonder任何rèn héany; whatever; whichever如何rú héhow; what way; what何必hé bìthere is no need; why should怎么zěn mehow?; what?; why?怎么样zěn me yànghow?; how about?; how was it?; how are things?怎样zěn yànghow; what kind哪里nǎ lǐwhere?; somewhere; anywhere; wherever
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 4 ways to say "how".
何 hé — carry; what; how; why; which
你为何这么晚才来？Nǐ wèi hé zhè me wǎn cái lái?Why did you come so late?
Common words: 任何 (rèn hé)、如何 (rú hé)、何必 (hé bì)
怎 zěn — how
你怎么还不睡觉？Nǐ zěn me hái bú shuì jiào?Why are you not asleep yet?
Common words: 怎么 (zěn me)、怎么样 (zěn me yàng)、怎样 (zěn yàng)
哪 nǎ / na / něi — how; which; (final part. preceded by N); which (followed by M or Num)
请问，洗手间在哪儿？Qǐng wèn, xǐ shǒu jiān zài nǎr?Excuse me, where is the restroom?
Common words: 哪里 (nǎ lǐ)、哪儿 (nǎ r)、哪些 (nǎ xiē)
All 4 characters
Open 那、何、怎 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.