How to Say ‘What's wrong?’ in Traditional Chinese
怎麼了？
zěn me le
[dzumm uh luh]
🇹🇼 In Taiwan: [怎麼了？] is normal and direct, but from a taxi driver it can sound a bit challenging depending on tone. Said calmly, it's just [What's the issue?]; said sharply, it can feel defensive.
Phrase Breakdown
怎麼
zěn me
[dzumm uh]
how; what’s wrong
Can ask about method ('how') or, in context, what the issue is.
你看起來有點緊張，怎麼了？
You look a little nervous; what’s wrong?
了
le
[luh]
particle indicating change or completed situation
A very common sentence particle; here it often helps form questions like 'what happened?'
司機突然停下來了，是怎麼了？
The driver suddenly stopped; what happened?
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