怎么样 from HSK Level 2 Vocabulary List

The Chinese word 怎么样 (zěnme yàng) is a versatile phrase that can be used in a variety of ways. It can be used as a question to ask "how?" or "what's the matter?", or as an exclamation to express surprise or disbelief. It can also be used as an adverb to mean "in what way" or "how".The word 怎么样 is composed of two characters: 怎么 (zěnme) and 样 (yàng). The character 怎么 is a combination of the characters 何 (hé, "what") and 如 (rú, "how"). The character 样 means "manner" or "appearance". So, the literal meaning of 怎么样 is "what manner" or "what appearance".When used as a question, 怎么样 can be used to ask about the state or condition of something. For example, you could say 怎么样了? (zěnme yàngle?) to ask "How are you?" or 怎么样? (zěnme yàng?) to ask "What's the matter?"When used as an exclamation, 怎么样 can be used to express surprise or disbelief. For example, you could say 怎么样! (zěnme yàng!) to express surprise at something unexpected.When used as an adverb, 怎么样 can be used to mean "in what way" or "how". For example, you could say 你怎么样做到的? (nǐ zěnme yàng zuò dào de?) to ask "How did you do that?" or 我不知道怎么样做 (wǒ bù zhīdào zěnme yàng zuò) to say "I don't know how to do it".The word 怎么样 is a very useful phrase that can be used in a variety of ways. It is important to understand the different ways that it can be used in order to use it correctly.