How to say “or” in Chinese To use “or” in a - Cchatty

How to say “or” in Chinese

To use “or” in a statement: choose between the formal, huòshi 或是, and the informal huòzhě 或者:

Every morning I drink tea or coffee
Wǒ měitiān zǎoshàng hē chá huòshì (huòzhě) hē kāfēi.
我每天早上喝茶或是 (或者) 喝咖啡。

To use “either . . . or . . . ,” choose between the more emphatic and the less formal:

either . . . or . . . (more emphatic)
huòshi . . . huòshi . . .
或是 . . . 或是 . . .

OR:

either . . . or . . . (less formal)
huòzhě . . . huòzhě . . .
或者 . . . 或者 . . .

Every morning I either drink tea or coffee.
Wǒ měitiān zǎoshàng huòshì (huòzhe) hē chá huòshì (huòzhě) hē kāfēi.
我每天早上或是 (或者) 喝茶或是 (或者) 喝咖啡。

To use “or” in a question, use háishì 还是:

In the morning do you drink tea or (do you drink) coffee?
Nǐ zǎoshàng hē chá háishì (hē) kāfēi?
你早上喝茶还是 (喝) 咖啡？