Chinese phrase
〜是口语还是书面语？ 〜 shì kóu yǔ hái shì shū miàn yǔ
Meaning
Is ___ a spoken or written expression?
When to use it
Asks if an expression is used mainly in speech or writing. It helps show whether the expression suits casual conversation or formal writing.
Example dialogue
这个表达 是口语还是书面语？ zhè ge biǎo dá shì kóu yǔ hái shì shū miàn yǔ
Is this expression a spoken or written expression?
我觉得比较口语，写论文就不太合适。 wǒ jué de bǐ jiào kóu yǔ xiě lùn wén jiù bú tài hé shì
I think it is mostly conversational, so it is not very suitable for academic papers.