那 | 哪
nâ-5, nâ-6 | nâ-1, nâ-4, nâ-5

there, that | where

目的 | Special Topics

The characters 那 and 哪, although very similar in meaning, are very different in use. Whereas the first can mean there when used in combination with the characters 裏（裡）and 兒 -- the latter is used to ask questions and means where. Consider the following conversation between speakers A and B. The phrases indicated in gray are statements of fact about the whereabouts of speaker A's aunt and the city of Yokohama. The phrases indicated in pink are questions posed by speaker B to A about the location of speaker A's aunt and the city of Yokohama.
A:	我下個月底到日本去。我的阿姨在那裡，我要去探望她。
I am going to Japan at the end of next month. My aunt lives there, and I want to visit her.
B:	日本？你阿姨住在哪裡？
Japan? Where does your Aunt live in Japan?
A:	她住在横浜。上過，我先去京都和東京，之後回程才去阿姨那兒。
She lives in Yokohama, but first I will travel to Kyôto and Tôkyô. Then I will visit my Aunt in Yokohama.
B:	哪兒是横浜？
Where is Yokohama?
Note: The character 那 is also used in combination with the character 這 to express the idea of this 這 and that 那. The opposite sense, although implied, is often not stated or written.

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