Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar

54 expressing knowledge, advice, and opinions

54.1 Expressing knowledge

To express knowledge, use the following verbs:

知道 zhīdao to know

认识/認識 rènshi to recognize/to know

会/會 huì to be able to, to know

54.1.1 expressing knowledge with 知道 zhCdao and 认识/認識 rènshi

知道 zhīdao and 认识/認識 rènshi can both be translated into English as ‘to know.’ They are

sometimes interchangeable, but they often have distinct uses.

• 知道 zhīdao means to know information.


• 认识/認識 rènshi means to know of or to recognize. It is used to talk about recognizing
  Chinese characters and locations, as well as people.
  The following examples illustrate the differences between 知道 zhīdao and 认识/認識 rènshi.

Conversation 1

Q: 你认识他吗？ A: 我知道他是谁，可是我不认识他。

你認識他嗎？ 我知道他是誰，可是我不認識他。

Nǐ rènshi tā ma? Wǒ zhīdao tā shì shéi, kěshì wǒ bù rènshi tā.

Do you know him? I know who he is, but I don’t know him.

Do not say

*你知道他吗？

你知道他嗎？

Nǐ zhīdao tā ma?

Conversation 2

Q: 你知道火车站在哪儿吗？ A: 我不知道。对不起。

你知道火車站在哪兒嗎？ 我不知道。對不起。

Nǐ zhīdao huǒchēzhàn zài nǎr ma? Wǒ bù zhīdao. Duìbuqǐ.

Do you know where the train station is? I don’t know. Sorry.

Do not say Do not say

*你认识火车站在哪儿吗？ *我不认识。对不起。

你認識火車站在哪兒嗎？ 我不認識。對不起。

Nǐ rènshi huǒchēzhàn zài nǎr ma? Wǒ bù rènshi. Duìbuqǐ.