The uses of 什么, 哪儿都, and 谁都

Exercises

 

When do I use the 什么, 哪儿 都, and 谁 都constructions?

 

These constructions are used to indicate general categorisation. They can be used when you want to describe how a particular action applies to a general object, as in 我什么()都吃 wŏ shénme (cài) dōu chī I eat anything. They can also be used to describe people in general doing a particular type of thing, as in 谁都喜欢吃中国菜 shéi dōu xǐhuān chī Zhōngguó cài everybody likes eating Chinese food.

 

How do I form a sentence with these constructions?

 

The interrogative什么 shénme what is placed before a noun to become any or every.  Any or every can be used as the subject or object of a sentence. If the word什么 shénme any or every is used as the object, it should be placed before the adverb dōu both, all and can be placed before or after the subject of the sentence. The adverb dōu is placed before the verb, as indicated below.

s

什 么 o

v

shénme dōngxi

什么东西

dōu

chī

I      

ANY THING

ALL

EAT.

I eat anything. Or

什 么 o

s

v

shénme dōngxi

什么东西

dōu

chī

ANY (THING)

I      

ALL

EAT.

Apart from什么 shénme what, the interrogatives 哪儿 nǎr where and shuí who are also used in this type of construction. If the word any or every refers to the subject of a sentence, the resulting sentence pattern will take the form of one of the four examples below.

(s)

v

o

shuí

dōu

xihuan chī

喜欢 吃

Zhīngguó fàn

 国 饭

ANY/EVERY (ONE)

ALL

LIKE

CHINESE FOOD.

Everyone likes eating Chinese food. Or

什 么 s

v

o

shénme rén

什么 人

dōu

xihuan chī

喜欢 吃

Zhīngguó fàn

  国 饭

ANY/EVERY (ONE)

ALL

LIKE

CHINESE FOOD.

 

(s)

v

o

shuí

dōu

shnàng

dàxué

大学

ANY/EVERY (ONE)

ALL

GO 

UNIVERSITY.

Everyone goes to university. Or

什 么 s

v

o

shénme rén

什么 人

dōu

shnàng

dàxué

大学

ANY/EVERY (ONE)

ALL

GO 

UNIVERSITY.

 

How do I form a negative sentence with these constructions?

 

In a negative sentence, the adverb is used instead ofdōu.  The negation bù orméi is placed before the verb as indicated below.

s

哪 儿(o)

/v

năr

哪儿

bú qù

不去

I

ANY/EVERY (WHERE)

ALL

NOT GO.

I don’t go anywhere. Or

s

什 么 o

/v

shénme dìfang

什 么 地方

méi qù

没去

I

ANY/EVERY (WHERE)

ALL

NOT GO.

 I didn’t go anywhere.

 

Is there any difference in meaning betweenand here?

 

No, not really. The adverbyě is usually used in negative sentences as above, while the adverbdōu can be used in both affirmative and negative sentences as in

s

哪 儿(o.)

/

v

năr

哪儿

  /  dōu

/

bú qù

不去

I

ANY/EVERY (WHERE)

ALL

NOT GO

I don’t go anywhere. Or

s

什 么 o

/

v

shénme dìfang

什么 地方

  /  dōu

/

bú qù

不去

I

ANY/EVERY (WHERE)

ALL

NOT GO.

 

Are there any differences in word order between the constructions of 什么, 谁都 and哪儿都?

 

The word order in all these constructions is the same, but there are differences in the way that things are indicated. A noun is often used to specify什么, as in 什么… shénme rén dōu anybody, 什么东西… shénme dōngxi dōu anything or 什么… shénme cài dōu any kind of food... The word 什么 shénme any in these constructions has a similar meaning to the adjective 任何 rènhé any, which is also followed by a noun, as in 任何人rènhé rén anybody, 任何东西rènhé dōngxi anything, and 任何菜rènhé cài any kind of food. However, shuí anybody or 哪儿nǎr anywhere refers to a person or a place, so there is no additional noun needed to specify shuí and 哪儿nǎr.

 

What is the difference in meaning between using 任何, 所有的and these constructions?

 

任何rènhé any and 所有的 suŏyŏude every/all expressions are followed by dōu (but notyĕ). 任何rènhé any can be used in a similar way to the sentence constructions above, with a noun being placed after 任何 rènhé any, as in

 

 

rènhé dōngxi / shénme dōngxi

任何东西/什么东西

dōu

chī

I

ANY/EVERY (THING)

ALL

EAT.

I eat anything.

 

rènhén rén /shénme rén

任何 人/   

dōu

shuō

Zhōngguó fàn  hăo

  国 饭 好

ANY/EVERY (BODY)

ALL

SAY

CHINESE FOOD GOOD.

Everybody says that Chinese food is good.

 

rènhé dìfang / shénme dìfang

任何地方/    地方

dōu

búqù

不去

I

ANY/EVERY (WHERE)

ALL

NOT GO.

I don’t go anywhere.

However, unlike任何rènhé, sometimes什么 shénme does not necessarily need a specified noun. For example, 我什么都吃 wŏ shénme dōu chī I eat anything. 我什么都看wǒ shénme dōu kàn I read anything/ I watch anything.

 

How can I form a or a sentence with these constructions?

 

The general principle for forming these sentences is the same: the adverbs or should be placed before verbs and stative verbs. Please see the following word order possibilities in sentences using and .

 

The following sentence demonstrates a construction whereshéi dōu forms the subject.

 

1.

s

o

sv

shéi

dōu

bĭ

hǎo

ANY/EVERY (BODY)

ALL

COMPARE

HIM

BETTER

Anybody is better than him.

 

The following sentence demonstrates a construction where哪儿 nǎr dōu forms the object.

 

2.

s

o

sv

zhèr

这儿

bĭ

nǎr

哪儿

dōu

hǎo

HERE

COMPARE

ANY/EVERY (WHERE)

ALL

BETTER

Here is better than anywhere else.

If the construction forms the subject of a sentence, as demonstrated in example 1, dōu is placed before, and if it forms the object of a sentence, as in example 2, dōu is placed before the stative verb.

 

  

Let’s see how these constructions are used to compare actions. The construction forms the object of the sentence in examples 3 and 3b.

3.

s (topic)

o

verb phrase

tāshō Zhōngwén

他说中  

bĭ

shéi

dōu

shuō  de liú lì

  得流利

HE SPEAKS CHINESE

COMPARE

ANY/EVERY (BODY)

ALL

SPEAK DE FLUENTLY

He speaks Chinese more fluently than anybody.

3b.

s (topic)

v (complement of degree)

o

adverb

tāshō Zhōngwén

他说中 

shuōde

说 得

bĭ

shéi

dōu liú lì

流利

HE SPEAKS CHINESE

SPEAK DE

COMPARE

ANY/EVERY (BODY)

ALL FLUENTLY

Please also see the notes on the complement of degree’ construction.

 

The construction forms the subject of the sentence in examples 4 and 5.

4.

s

o

verb phrase

shéi

dōu

bĭ

shō      Zhōngwén shuō de    liú lì

    文 说  得 流利

ANY/EVERY (BODY)

ALL

COMPARE

HIM

SPEAKS CHINESE SPEAK DE    FLUENTLY

Anybody can speak Chinese more fluently than he does.

5.

topic

s

o

verb phrase

shō Zhōngwén

说 中 

shéi

dōu

bĭ

shuō  de       liú lì

    流利

SPEAKS CHINESE

ANY/EVERY (BODY)

ALL

COMPARE

HIM

SPEAK DE    FLUENTLY

We can see a common feature in the example sentences, which is that the adverb dōu is always placed after the interrogative.

 

 

The following examples demonstrate the constructions used with the co-verb .

1.

s

o

verb phrase

shénme shì

什么  

dōu

zuò hǎo          le

作 好   

HE

BA

ANY/EVERY  (THING)

ALL

DO COMPLETE LE

He has done everything.

2.

s

neg/mv

dir. o

v

indir. o

shéi

dōu/yĕ

/

bùxiǎng

不想

zhèj iànshì

这 件事

gàoshu

告诉

ANY/EVERY (BODY)

ALL

NOT INTEND

BA

THIS JIAN MATTER

TELL

HER

Nobody wants to tell her about this matter.

 

As with the bĭ construction, if the XXconstruction forms the subject of a sentence, as in example 2, dōu all is placed beforebǎ; while if XXconstruction forms the object of a sentence, as in example 1, dōu all is placed before the main verb.

 

 

Exercises

Click here for the answers

 

1. Translate the following sentences into Chinese.

 

  1. I have been looking everywhere, but I still can’t find my shirts.
  2. Xiao Wang is both pretty and friendly, so everybody wants to be her friend.
  3. I am so tired that I don’t want to go anywhere this evening.
  4. My brother’s classmate can learn languages more quickly than anyone.
  5. He hasn’t bought any new clothes this year.
  6. Whatever you say, it’s no good! He won’t listen to anything.
  7. Xiao Li spends all his time at home studying and he won’t go out anywhere.

 

 

2. Put the following words in the correct order, and translate them into English.

 

  1.     问了          , 不知道       可是    上海      在哪儿.
  2. 中国饭店         哪儿 找到.
  3.    用电脑                  在我们大学.
  4.    爱 吃 中国饭      什么人.