Chinese word

或是

Pronunciation

Pinyinhuò shì

Meaning

  • conjunctionor

Example

你想吃面，或是吃米饭？nǐ xiǎng chī miàn huò shì chī mǐ fàn

Do you want noodles or rice?

Illustration for 或是 (or)

More examples

你可以坐地铁或是骑自行车去上班。nǐ ké yǐ zuò dì tiě huò shì qí zì xíng chē qù shàng bān

You can take the subway or ride a bike to work.

Core concept

A marker places two or more possibilities side by side without settling on one.

Common phrases

  • 坐地铁或是骑自行车zuò dì tiě huò shì qí zì xíng chē

    take the subway or ride a bike

  • 喝茶或是喝咖啡hē chá huò shì hē kā fēi

    drink tea or drink coffee

Similar words

或者huò zhě: Connects alternatives when offering a choice among several options.
还是hái shì: Invites a choice between options by asking which one is preferred.
要么yào me: Offers two clear alternatives and encourages choosing one.
要不yào bù: Puts forward a different idea or plan as a casual suggestion.

Definition in Chinese

用于在两项或多项之中提出选择，也可表示对某事的推测或可能性，语域与'或者'相近但语感有别。yòng yú zài liǎng xiàng huò duō xiàng zhī zhōng tí chū xuǎn zé yě kě biǎo shì duì mǒu shì de tuī cè huò kě néng xìng yǔ yù yǔ huò zhě xiāng jìn dàn yú gǎn yǒu bié

Word origin

或 (huò, "or/perhaps") combines with 是 (shì, "be/is") to create a conjunction for choosing between options or considering one possible situation.

Usage tips

  • In everyday questions, it often introduces the second choice, while the phrases on both sides usually keep a matching grammatical shape.

Other meanings

  • maybeadverb

Opposites

  • 而不是ér bú shìrather thanconjunction

Word lists with this word