你吃了吗？

Learning Chinese: How to Ask "Have You Eaten?" in Chinese

Chinese Characters: 你吃了吗？
Pinyin: Nǐ chī le ma?
Pronunciation: ni3 chi1 le5 ma5
English Translation: Have you eaten?

Usage:

"你吃了吗？ (Nǐ chī le ma?)" is a common way to greet someone in Chinese, especially during mealtimes. It is a way of showing concern and care for the other person's well-being.

Example:

Chinese: 你吃了吗？
Pinyin: Nǐ chī le ma?
English: Have you eaten?

Chinese: 我吃过了。
Pinyin: Wǒ chī guò le.
English: I have already eaten.

Variations:

There are a few variations of "你吃了吗？ (Nǐ chī le ma?)" that you may hear:

你吃饭了吗？ (Nǐ chī fàn le ma?): A more specific way to ask if someone has eaten a meal.
你吃东西了吗？ (Nǐ chī dōngxi le ma?): A more general way to ask if someone has eaten anything.
Tips for Learning:

Practice saying "你吃了吗？ (Nǐ chī le ma?)" out loud to improve your pronunciation.
Listen to native Chinese speakers asking "have you eaten?" to get a sense of the natural rhythm and intonation.
Use "你吃了吗？ (Nǐ chī le ma?)" in your daily conversations to practice using it in context.
Additional Notes:

"你吃了吗？ (Nǐ chī le ma?)" is typically used in informal settings.
In formal settings, you can use "您吃了吗？ (Nín chī le ma?)" to show respect to the other person.
When responding to "你吃了吗？ (Nǐ chī le ma?)", you can say "我吃过了 (Wǒ chī guò le)" to indicate that you have already eaten, or "我还没吃 (Wǒ hái méi chī)" to indicate that you have not eaten yet.