"老师姓什么?"
Translation:What is the teacher's last name?
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1289
Apostrophe = posession No apostropne = plural
There is a big difference in meaning so it is important.
1289
Posting reformatted what i wrote. So:
Apostrophe = possession
No apostrophe = plural
(From a native speaker)Actually,"老" here is a symbol of reverence. ”老师“ is a single word merely meaning 'teacher' and you shouldn't construe it into two separate words. We Chinese prefer bi-character-words. Accordingly, even if “师” does mean 'teacher' by itself, we still choose “老师“ in a usual conversation. Likewise, we have words like “老虎” meaning 'tiger' and “老鹰” meaning 'eagle' in which “老“ conveys nothing.
1137
Great question! Not stupid at all because no one else has asked it in this thread.
The answer is not possible. The particle 吗 (ma) is used to form yes/no questions by adding it to the end of a statement (can be both positive or negative).
- 老师姓王吗? Is the teacher surnamed Wang?
- 老师不是姓王吗? Isn't the teacher surnamed Wang?
The question here is a query (meaning you need to provide some information, not just yes/no). The particle 呢 (ne) can be added to the end. If there is another question word in the sentence, 呢 can be omitted.
- 你呢? What about you?
- 老师姓什么(呢)? What is the teacher surnamed?
- 老师是谁(呢)? Who is the teacher?
1137
Either use 姓xìng as a verb or a noun. (Bold below are verbs of the sentences)
As a noun: 老师的姓是什么? (Sounds a bit awkward but still OK)
As a verb: 老师姓什么?
1137
Literally "ten persons," derived meaning is "ten," "ten things," "a group of things."
You cannot separate the word. 什么 is one word which means "what."
1046
What is wrong with: "The teacher's name is what?"
I try to translate with the same Chinese structure so I can remember how to use it when going the other way, but Duo doesn't seem to like English done that way.