Introduction
还是 (háishi) offers a choice between two things: 你喝茶还是喝咖啡？(Nǐ hē chá háishi hē kāfēi?) — Tea or coffee? It is already a question, so it never takes 吗 (ma) — and in a statement the word for "or" is not 还是 at all.
Overview
Structure: A + 还是 (háishi) + B ?
| Pattern | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| N + 还是 + N | 你喝茶还是咖啡？(Nǐ hē chá háishi kāfēi?) | Tea or coffee? |
| V + O + 还是 + V + O | 你去还是我去？(Nǐ qù háishi wǒ qù?) | Are you going, or am I? |
| 是 + A + 还是 + B | 他是老师还是学生？(Tā shì lǎoshī háishi xuéshēng?) | Is he a teacher or a student? |
| Time + 还是 + Time | 今天还是明天？(Jīntiān háishi míngtiān?) | Today or tomorrow? |
| A 或者 B（statement） | 茶或者咖啡都行。(Chá huòzhě kāfēi dōu xíng.) | Either tea or coffee is fine. |
还是 (háishi) asks; 或者 (huòzhě) tells:
- 你喝茶还是咖啡？(Nǐ hē chá háishi kāfēi?) — Which would you like? A question.
- 茶或者咖啡都行。(Chá huòzhě kāfēi dōu xíng.) — Either is fine. A statement.
- ❌ 你喝茶或者咖啡？(Nǐ hē chá huòzhě kāfēi?) and ❌ 茶还是咖啡都行。(Chá háishi kāfēi dōu xíng.)
- Never add 吗 (ma): ❌ 你喝茶还是咖啡吗？(Nǐ hē chá háishi kāfēi ma?) — 还是 is already doing the asking.
Examples
你喝茶还是咖啡？
Nǐ hē chá háishi kāfēi?
Would you like tea or coffee?
你去还是我去？
Nǐ qù háishi wǒ qù?
Are you going, or shall I?
他是老师还是学生？
Tā shì lǎoshī háishi xuéshēng?
Is he a teacher or a student?
我们今天去还是明天去？
Wǒmen jīntiān qù háishi míngtiān qù?
Shall we go today or tomorrow?
你坐飞机还是坐火车？
Nǐ zuò fēijī háishi zuò huǒchē?
Are you flying or taking the train?
这个好还是那个好？
Zhège hǎo háishi nàge hǎo?
Is this one better, or that one?
Usage Notes
- The verb can be repeated on both sides or stated once: 你喝茶还是喝咖啡？(Nǐ hē chá háishi hē kāfēi?) and 你喝茶还是咖啡？(Nǐ hē chá háishi kāfēi?) are both correct.
- With 是 (shì), the second 是 disappears: ✓ 他是老师还是学生？(Tā shì lǎoshī háishi xuéshēng?) ❌ 他是老师还是是学生？
- To answer, just say the half you want: 我喝茶。(Wǒ hē chá.) There is no "the first one" reply.
- 是 (shì) in 还是 is neutral tone — háishi, not hái shì.
- The same 还是 (háishi) in a statement means "all the same": 虽然下雨，我还是去了。(Suīrán xià yǔ, wǒ háishi qù le.) The sentence type tells you which is which.