<p>You are correct, "些" is used to mean "a few" and it also applies in the example you gave above - ie. you can't even find 'a few' words to say.</p>

<p>I believe you can also leave out "些" and it will still mean almost the same thing. To me, with/without "些" the sentence means the same thing but has a slightly different emphasis/tone to it. </p>

<p>For me, with "些" it feels a bit 'softer'...as if you are genuinely out of words (maybe you saw something and suddenly lost for words); whilst without "些" it sounds like you are frustrated (someone has annoyed you, did something stupid) and you don't know how to comment/what to say to them.</p>

<p>ps. I would personally say:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>我就是不知道要說(些)什麼</p>
</blockquote>

<p>pps. I'm also learning Chinese, so confirmation from someone who is a native speaker would be nice :)</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-01-28T10:51:57.563Z
2012-01-28T10:51:57.563Z
pyko
<p>I found <a href="http://tatoeba.org/eng/sentences/show/458549" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this sentence on tatoeba.org</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>我就是不知道說些什麼。</p>
<p>I just don't know what to say.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>I understand most of the sentence, but what is &quot;些&quot; doing there? I've always seen it used to mean &quot;a few&quot;.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-01-28T14:51:03.263Z
+1 I was getting tired of seeing so much jianti on here...
magnetar
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-01-28T16:16:45.830Z
I'm chinese. Pyko'S answer is correct.
grace
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-01-31T22:19:30.030Z
sorry for hijacking a question for private message: i just noticed that we both have John Skeet in our g+ circles...have you met him personally?
Laguna
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-07-17T04:52:36.753Z
Sorry for the late reply, @Laguna, but no, I've never met him personally.
Don Kirkby
<usage>
What does 些 mean when it's combined with 什麼?
# What does 些 mean when it's combined with 什麼?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2012-01-28)

I found [this sentence on tatoeba.org](http://tatoeba.org/eng/sentences/show/458549):

> 我就是不知道說些什麼。
>
> I just don't know what to say.

I understand most of the sentence, but what is "些" doing there? I've always seen it used to mean "a few".

**Tags:** usage

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: +1 I was getting tired of seeing so much jianti on here...  
> **username_2**: I'm chinese. username_4'S answer is correct.  
> **username_3**: sorry for hijacking a question for private message: i just noticed that we both have John Skeet in our g+ circles...have you met him personally?  
> **username_0**: Sorry for the late reply, @username_3, but no, I've never met him personally.  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_4 on 2012-01-28. Score: 8 | Accepted answer

You are correct, "些" is used to mean "a few" and it also applies in the example you gave above - ie. you can't even find 'a few' words to say.

I believe you can also leave out "些" and it will still mean almost the same thing. To me, with/without "些" the sentence means the same thing but has a slightly different emphasis/tone to it.

For me, with "些" it feels a bit 'softer'...as if you are genuinely out of words (maybe you saw something and suddenly lost for words); whilst without "些" it sounds like you are frustrated (someone has annoyed you, did something stupid) and you don't know how to comment/what to say to them.

ps. I would personally say:

> 我就是不知道要說(些)什麼

pps. I'm also learning Chinese, so confirmation from someone who is a native speaker would be nice :)


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