问道

問道

wèndào

verb #23,620

Meanings

1 to ask
2 to inquire (literary)
3 to ask a question (narrative usage)

Characters

to ask / to inquire

to say (literary) / road / way

Examples

她抬起头，问道："你去哪里？"

Tā tái qǐ tóu, wèndào: "Nǐ qù nǎlǐ?"

She raised her head and asked, "Where are you going?"

他不解地问道："为什么要这样做？"

Tā bùjiě de wèndào: "Wèishénme yào zhèyàng zuò?"

He asked in puzzlement, "Why do it this way?"

记者向发言人问道多个问题。

Jìzhě xiàng fāyánrén wèndào duō gè wèntí.

The reporter asked the spokesperson several questions.

Tips

grammar

问道 is a literary/narrative verb phrase used primarily in written Chinese to introduce direct speech. It is equivalent to 'asked' in English narrative. The spoken equivalent is simply 问 (wèn). The character 道 here means 'to say' in a literary sense, not 'road.'

Stroke Order

问 wèn

道 dào