| 1) To mean "How?" as a question word |
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| 怎么 zěnme |
| How? |
| 你怎么知道我喜欢这样的东西呢？ nǐ zěnme zhīdào wǒ xǐhuān zhèyàng de dōngxī ne? |
| How did you know I like this kind of thing? |
| 你怎么会说中文说得那么好？ nǐ zěnme huì shuō Zhōngwén shuō dé nàme hǎo |
| How can you speak Chinese so well? |
| 你怎么能忘了我们的结婚纪念日 nǐ zěnme néng wàng le wǒmen de jiéhūn jìniànrì |
| ow could you forget our wedding anniversary?!? |
Without a doubt, you will quickly learn the art of 怎么样, which is best translated as “How about it?”
| 2) To mean "How about it?" in many contexts with 怎么样 (zěnmeyàng) |
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| 怎么样 zěnmeyàng |
| How about it? |
| 今天过得怎么样 jīntiān guòdé zěnmeyàng |
| How have things been lately? |
| 你的家庭怎么样？ nǐ de jiātíng zěnmeyàng |
| How is your family? |
| 我们下个星期五一起去吃饭怎么样？ wǒmen xiàgè xīngqīwǔ yìqǐ qù chīfàn zěnmeyàng |
| How about we get dinner together next Friday? |
When you add a negating 不 (bù), the phrase 不怎么样 (bù zěnmeyàng) can also be used to convey a sense of blandness or nothing special.
| 3) The use of 不怎么样 (bù zěnmeyàng) |
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| 不怎么样 bù zěnmeyàng |
| Nothing special or particular, nothing to write home about, nothing much |
| 我最近的成绩不怎么样 wǒ zuìjìn de chéngjì bù zěnmeyàng |
| My recent grades are nothing to write home about |
| 最近过得不怎么样 wǒ zuìjìn guòdé bù zěnmeyàng |
| Haven't been up to anything much lately |
With all the problems in our worlds with so many complex situations, inevitably your expertise will be called upon at some point with the infamous Chinese cry of "怎么办?" (zěnme bàn), or "What should I do?". By the way, Yahoo Answers trolls exist in China too, as Baidu Answers trolls, and this is their lure!
| 4) Seeking world solutions with 怎么办 (zěnme bàn) |
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| 怎么办 zěnme bàn |
| What should I do? (frequently at the end of sentences) |
| 我怀孕了的话该怎么办? wǒ huáiyùn le dehuà gāi zěnme bàn |
| What should we do if I get pregnant? |
| 真来不及吧，你看我们该怎么办？ zhēn láibují ba, nǐ kàn wǒmen gāi zěnme bàn |
| There's really no time for that, what do you suggest we do? |
This term is so useful, that when you combine it with a few other characters, it can express an entire sentence.
| 5) When 怎么 (zěnme) means more than the sum of its parts |
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| 怎么了 zěnme le |
| What's up with? / What's gotten into ? / What's the deal with? / What's the problem with? |
| 你怎么了 ni zěnme le |
| What's gotten into you? (You aren't your normal self) |
| 他会怎么样 tā huì zěnmeyàng |
| What's going to happen to him? / What could happen to him? |
And one last bit here, you can also hear 怎么 (zěnme) used with 回事儿 (huíshìr) to mean something like "What's going on here?" or "What's this about?".
| 6) Together with 回事儿 (huíshìr) |
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| 怎么回事儿 zěnme huíshìr |
| What's up with? / What's gotten into ? / What's the deal with? / What's the problem with? |
| 这是怎么回事儿 zhè shì zěnme huíshìr |
| What is this (matter) all about? / What's going on here? |
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