为什么中国人见面总问“吃了吗”？
Why do Chinese people ask “Have you eaten?”
Name: ________________ Date: ________
马克刚来北京的时候，每天早上下楼都会遇到王阿姨。王阿姨总是笑着问他：“吃了吗？”马克认真地回答：“还没吃呢，冰箱里只有一个鸡蛋，我不知道去哪儿吃早饭。”王阿姨听完，说了声“哦”，就走了。
其实，王阿姨并不想知道他吃没吃。“吃了吗”常常不是真的在问，只是打招呼，和“你好”差不多。别人这样问你，你就说：“吃了，你呢？”就算没吃，很多人也会说“吃了”。说“还没呢”也没问题，就是不要说太多。
中国人见面还常常问一些这样的“问题”。你背着包出门，邻居问：“上班啊？”你走在小区里，朋友问：“去哪儿啊？”你说“出去一下”就行。晚上回到家，家人说：“回来了？”这些话都是一个意思：我看见你了。
那么为什么是“吃”呢？有一种常见的说法是：以前很多人吃不饱，见面问一句“吃了吗”，就像在问你过得好不好。现在大家都吃得饱了，这句话还留着，只是年轻人说得不多了。
第二天早上，王阿姨又问：“吃了吗？”马克马上说：“吃了，您呢？”其实他还没吃。王阿姨笑得很开心：“这孩子，中文真不错！”
Key words
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 笑 | xiào | to laugh; to smile |
| 走 | zǒu | to go; to leave |
| 这样 | zhèyàng | like this; this way |
| 包 | bāo | bag; sack |
| 出门 | chūmén | to go out |
| 回来 | huílái | to come back; to return |
| 意思 | yìsi | meaning; idea |
| 不错 | búcuò | not bad; pretty good |
| 遇到 | yùdào | to meet; to run into; to encounter |
| 阿姨 | āyí | aunt (term of address for a woman of one's mother's generation) |
| 认真 | rènzhēn | conscientious; earnest; serious; to take seriously |
| 回答 | huídá | to answer; to reply; answer; reply |
English (for the teacher)
When Mark first came to Beijing, he ran into Auntie Wang every morning on his way downstairs. Auntie Wang always smiled and asked him, “Have you eaten?” Mark answered seriously, “Not yet. There’s only one egg in the fridge, and I don’t know where to go for breakfast.” Auntie Wang listened, said “Oh,” and walked off.
In fact, Auntie Wang didn’t really want to know whether he had eaten. “Have you eaten?” often isn’t a real question, just a way of saying hi, much like “hello”. When someone asks you this, just say, “I have, and you?” Even if they haven’t eaten, lots of people still say “I have”. Saying “Not yet” is fine too, just don’t say too much.
When Chinese people meet, they often ask other “questions” like this too. You head out the door with your bag, and your neighbour asks, “Off to work?” You’re walking through your neighbourhood, and a friend asks, “Where are you off to?” You can just say, “Popping out.” When you get home in the evening, your family says, “You’re back?” They all mean the same thing: I see you.
So why is it about eating? One common explanation is that in the past many people didn’t have enough to eat, so asking “Have you eaten?” when you met was like asking how someone was really doing. Today everyone has enough to eat, but the phrase is still around, though young people don’t say it much any more.
The next morning, Auntie Wang asked again, “Have you eaten?” Mark said right away, “I have, and you?” In fact he still hadn’t eaten. Auntie Wang beamed. “Look at this kid, his Chinese is great!”