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Level Proficient Chinese · HSK 7–9

Classical Function Words I: 者, 即, 乃 and 何

Classical Chinese (文言, wényán) was the written standard for two thousand years, and modern formal writing still borrows its function words. They're short, dense and often replace a whole spoken phrase: 为何 does the work of 为什么, 即 the work of 就是. Recognising them is essential for reading; using a few of them well marks your writing as genuinely advanced.

者: the one who, the former and the latter

者 (zhě) after a verb or adjective makes a noun for a person: 'the one who …'. Many are ordinary words: 读者 (reader), 作者 (author), 记者 (journalist), 消费者 (consumer), 志愿者 (volunteer). In writing it can be attached to a phrase: 违者罚款 (offenders will be fined).

前者 (qiánzhě, the former) and 后者 (hòuzhě, the latter) refer back to two things just mentioned. 或者 and 再者 (furthermore) also contain it.

  • 城市和农村各有优点：前者方便，后者安静。

    Chéngshì hé nóngcūn gè yǒu yōudiǎn: qiánzhě fāngbiàn, hòuzhě ānjìng.

    Town and country each have their advantages: the former is convenient, the latter quiet.

  • 公园内禁止钓鱼，违者罚款。

    Gōngyuán nèi jìnzhǐ diào yú, wéizhě fá kuǎn.

    Fishing is prohibited in the park. Offenders will be fined.

即 and 乃: is, namely

即 (jí) means 'that is, namely' or 'is precisely': 即将 (about to), 即使 (even if) and 立即 (at once) contain it. On its own it defines or explains: 农历正月初一，即春节 (the first day of the first lunar month, that is, Spring Festival). It also means 'immediately': 一触即发 (ready to explode at a touch).

乃 (nǎi) is a literary 'is, is indeed': 胜败乃兵家常事 (victory and defeat are a normal part of war). It appears mainly in set phrases and elevated rhetoric.

  • 农历正月初一，即春节，是中国最重要的节日。

    Nónglì zhēngyuè chū yī, jí Chūnjié, shì Zhōngguó zuì zhòngyào de jiérì.

    The first day of the first lunar month, that is, Spring Festival, is China's most important holiday.

  • 失败乃成功之母。

    Shībài nǎi chénggōng zhī mǔ.

    Failure is the mother of success.

何: what, why, how

何 (hé) is the classical question word. It survives in many compounds: 何时 (when), 何处 (where), 为何 (why), 如何 (how), 任何 (any), 何况 (let alone), 何必 (why must, there's no need). In writing these replace the spoken 什么时候, 哪里, 为什么 and 怎么样.

何必 (hébì) and 何苦 (hékǔ) are rhetorical: 'why bother, why put yourself through that'. They're common in speech too.

WrittenSpokenMeaning
何时什么时候when
何处哪里where
为何为什么why
如何怎么样 / 怎么how
何必为什么一定要why must, no need to

  • 会议何时开始尚未确定。

    Huìyì héshí kāishǐ shàngwèi quèdìng.

    When the meeting will start has not yet been decided.

  • 一点小事，何必生气？

    Yì diǎn xiǎo shì, hébì shēng qì?

    It's such a small thing; why get angry?

Common mistakes

  • ✗苹果、香蕉和橙子，我最喜欢前者。

    ✓苹果、香蕉和橙子，我最喜欢苹果。

    Píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo hé chéngzi, wǒ zuì xǐhuan píngguǒ.

    前者 and 后者 only work for exactly two items. With three or more, name the one you mean.

  • ✗你为何不来？ (texting a friend)

    ✓你为什么不来？

    Nǐ wèi shénme bù lái?

    为何 is written style. In a casual message it sounds theatrical.

  • ✗如何你打算前往？

    ✓您打算如何前往？

    Nín dǎsuan rúhé qiánwǎng?

    Like 怎么, 如何 stays in place before the verb; Chinese question words don't move to the front.

Questions learners ask

Is 如何 too formal for speech?

It's fine in a formal spoken context (a meeting, a presentation) and in set questions like 你觉得如何？ In casual talk, 怎么样 is more natural.

Is 即 the same as 就?

Often: 即 is the written equivalent of 就 / 就是 in 'that is' and 'immediately'.

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