How to Say ‘What did you do?’ in Simplified Chinese
干什么了？
gàn shén me le
[gàn shénme luh]
💬 Usage Tip: The 了 at the end marks that the action is finished, so 干什么 "do what" becomes "what did you do". Chinese verbs never change for past tense; 了 does that job.
Phrase Breakdown
干什么
gàn shén me
[gàn shénme]
to do what; why
Asks what someone is doing or for what purpose; can sound teasing.
你在这儿干什么？
What are you doing here?
了
le
[luh]
completed action marker
Shows that an action has happened or a new situation has occurred.
我想了很久，还是决定联系你。
I thought about it for a long time and still decided to contact you.
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