<p>Actually, 你现在人在哪里, is more like "where the hell are you now?" but maybe not that strong.  I personally will use that sentence if I were kept waiting and had to call someone to ask where he/she is.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-09-11T08:51:27.340Z
2012-09-11T08:51:27.340Z
pzGrenadier
<p>正确的解析应该是有点埋怨的意思，例如我跟你约会，你迟到，我有点生气打电话：：“你现在人在哪里！”</p>

<hr>

<p>A proper analysis should have a bit of a reproachful feeling. For example, if you are late arriving for our date, I might make an angry phone call: “你现在人在哪里！”</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-09-27T20:12:16.167Z
Welcome to the site, and thanks for your answer. Answering in Chinese is OK, but try to add a small English translation if you can, especially if the question was in English.
Don Kirkby
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-09-11T10:40:08.753Z
2012-09-27T20:08:50.457Z
2012-09-27T20:08:50.457Z
wuchang
<p>你现在人在哪里？ refers to the <em>physical</em> person, as opposed to "where are you" (intellectually)?</p>

<p>The 人character also separates the two 在s</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-28T15:02:46.830Z
Oh, so "你现在在哪里？" can be used to mean "where are you [intellectually]"? Is it in the sense of "what are you thinking about right now" or "what do you think now [about that issue we talked about earlier]"? I'm guessing the latter..?
dr Hannibal Lecter
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-28T15:04:12.163Z
That's my understanding, although it isn't often used that way.
Tom Au
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-28T15:04:30.073Z
Also, is it necessary to separate the two 在s? Or is it just something which makes you sound more natural or "more native"?
dr Hannibal Lecter
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-28T15:26:20.343Z
I'd say it sounds more natural. It's helpful but not mandatory.
Tom Au
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-28T13:23:45.613Z
2012-08-28T13:23:45.613Z
Tom Au
<p>Understanding the following sentences may help you resolve your confusion.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>你的人在哪里？</p>
</blockquote>
<p>It can be parsed like</p>
<p>你的 人 在哪里？</p>
<p>It just like</p>
<p>你的 手机 在哪里?</p>
<p>你的 脑袋 在哪里？</p>
<p>你的 注意力(attention) 在哪里？</p>
<p>你的 精神(like ego in boost one's ego) 在哪里？</p>
<blockquote>
<p>你的现在的人在哪里？</p>
</blockquote>
<p>你的 现在的 人 在哪里？</p>
<blockquote>
<p>你(的)现在(的)人在哪里</p>
</blockquote>
<p>or</p>
<blockquote>
<p>现在，你的人在哪里</p>
</blockquote>
<p>现在，你的 人 在哪里</p>
<p>skimming redundant yields</p>
<blockquote>
<p>现在，你 人 在哪里</p>
</blockquote>
<p>interchange the order of &quot;现在&quot; and &quot;你&quot; to emphasize the latter.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>你[现在] 人 在哪里</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-10-31T15:06:24.753Z
2020-10-31T15:06:24.753Z
Peter Whang
<p>Both sentences are correct. The word "人" is added to add emphasis to the <strong>physical</strong> location of the person.</p>

<p>You can take <code>你现在在哪里？</code> to mean "Where are you now?"</p>

<p>And <code>你现在人在哪里？</code> to mean "What is your current physical location?"</p>

<p>The former is normally used when the asker and the subject are within the same locality (e.g in a shopping mall). The latter is often used when the asker and the subject are far away from each other (e.g. in different countries).</p>

<p>A corresponding response to <code>你现在在哪里？</code> is <code>我现在在XX。</code></p>

<p>A corresponding response to <code>你现在人在哪里？</code> is <code>我现在人在XX。</code></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-26T14:49:10.347Z
This may be a stupid question, but how are the answers to those questions different? Aren't they both asking about physical location?
dr Hannibal Lecter
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-26T15:12:52.237Z
@drHannibalLecter, I have updated my answer to clarify the usage. Please take a look.
杨以轩
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-27T07:59:04.740Z
I believe in english you could also say "where is your person"? But sounds very formal. In on-flight safety videos they use instruct passengers "remove sharp objects from your person" in case of emergency landing.
Niklas Berglund
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-27T23:32:26.523Z
In English, it's more natural to explicitly specify the location - "Where are you in the mall?" or "Where are you in the carpark?"
deutschZuid
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-09-14T17:58:06.287Z
@drHannibalLecter 张三：“你在哪儿？”李四：“我在freenode.net的#ruby频道。”张三：“你人在哪儿？”李四：“在北京。”
wks
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-26T13:08:12.083Z
2012-08-26T15:17:10.837Z
2012-08-26T15:17:10.837Z
杨以轩
<p>I got this sentence in my "daily exercise" newsletter, and I really don't understand what's 人 doing there? Doesn't it mean the same when 人 is removed? Could this simply be a typo?</p>

<meaning-in-context><sentence-structure>
What is 人 doing in 你现在人在哪里？
# What is 人 doing in 你现在人在哪里？

(Asked by: username_0 on 2012-08-26)

I got this sentence in my "daily exercise" newsletter, and I really don't understand what's 人 doing there? Doesn't it mean the same when 人 is removed? Could this simply be a typo?

**Tags:** meaning-in-context, sentence-structure


---

## 5 answers

### Answer by username_6 on 2012-08-26. Score: 9 | Accepted answer

Both sentences are correct. The word "人" is added to add emphasis to the **physical** location of the person.

You can take `你现在在哪里？` to mean "Where are you now?"

And `你现在人在哪里？` to mean "What is your current physical location?"

The former is normally used when the asker and the subject are within the same locality (e.g in a shopping mall). The latter is often used when the asker and the subject are far away from each other (e.g. in different countries).

A corresponding response to `你现在在哪里？` is `我现在在XX。`

A corresponding response to `你现在人在哪里？` is `我现在人在XX。`

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: This may be a stupid question, but how are the answers to those questions different? Aren't they both asking about physical location?  
> **username_6**: @username_0, I have updated my answer to clarify the usage. Please take a look.  
> **username_7**: I believe in english you could also say "where is your person"? But sounds very formal. In on-flight safety videos they use instruct passengers "remove sharp objects from your person" in case of emergency landing.  
> **username_8**: In English, it's more natural to explicitly specify the location - "Where are you in the mall?" or "Where are you in the carpark?"  
> **username_9**: @username_0 张三：“你在哪儿？”李四：“我在freenode.net的#ruby频道。”张三：“你人在哪儿？”李四：“在北京。”  

---

### Answer by username_1 on 2012-09-11. Score: 5

Actually, 你现在人在哪里, is more like "where the hell are you now?" but maybe not that strong. I personally will use that sentence if I were kept waiting and had to call someone to ask where he/she is.


---

### Answer by username_2 on 2012-09-11. Score: 3

正确的解析应该是有点埋怨的意思，例如我跟你约会，你迟到，我有点生气打电话：：“你现在人在哪里！”

---

A proper analysis should have a bit of a reproachful feeling. For example, if you are late arriving for our date, I might make an angry phone call: “你现在人在哪里！”

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: Welcome to the site, and thanks for your answer. Answering in Chinese is OK, but try to add a small English translation if you can, especially if the question was in English.  

---

### Answer by username_4 on 2012-08-28. Score: 1

你现在人在哪里？ refers to the *physical* person, as opposed to "where are you" (intellectually)?

The 人character also separates the two 在s

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Oh, so "你现在在哪里？" can be used to mean "where are you [intellectually]"? Is it in the sense of "what are you thinking about right now" or "what do you think now [about that issue we talked about earlier]"? I'm guessing the latter..?  
> **username_4**: That's my understanding, although it isn't often used that way.  
> **username_0**: Also, is it necessary to separate the two 在s? Or is it just something which makes you sound more natural or "more native"?  
> **username_4**: I'd say it sounds more natural. It's helpful but not mandatory.  

---

### Answer by username_5 on 2020-10-31. Score: 0

Understanding the following sentences may help you resolve your confusion.

> 你的人在哪里？

It can be parsed like

你的 人 在哪里？

It just like

你的 手机 在哪里?

你的 脑袋 在哪里？

你的 注意力(attention) 在哪里？

你的 精神(like ego in boost one's ego) 在哪里？

> 你的现在的人在哪里？

你的 现在的 人 在哪里？

> 你(的)现在(的)人在哪里

or

> 现在，你的人在哪里

现在，你的 人 在哪里

skimming redundant yields

> 现在，你 人 在哪里

interchange the order of "现在" and "你" to emphasize the latter.

> 你[现在] 人 在哪里


---

