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Is it ok to ask:

你的电话号码是什么? (What is your telephone number)

Or do I have to say:

你的电话号码是多少? which is the translation on Duolingo.

Also, can I just say:

"你的电话是多少?

because 电话 already means phone number.

blackgreen
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Falak Gilani
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  • For more context on the question from the OP, see the NAA because edit was rejected. – Frenzy Li Jun 12 '18 at 03:46
  • A phone number can be either considered a number of a string so both are okay. – user3332315 Jul 01 '18 at 10:55
  • Im sorry Im posting an answer instead of using the comments section but Im not a member yet, so Im unable to do so. Thank you for your answer, but the usage described, in my question, of dianhua as "telephone/telephone number" and duoshao as "which (number)" is based on the duolingo course created by chinese speakers and this dictionary: https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?page=worddict&wdrst=0&wdqb=Duoshao https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?page=worddict&wdrst=0&wdqb=Dianhua enter image description here So – Falak Gilani Jun 09 '18 at 16:19

4 Answers4

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I'd say all of your sentences are used in practice within the mainland.

These are all correct expressions:

  1. 你的电话号码是什么？

  2. 你的电话号码是多少？

  3. 你的电话是多少？

Colloquially, we even brief it like 你电话多少？ or 电话多少？

Hope this could help you.

dan
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It depends on how you look at the "numbers". Someone think they are words, especially when there are "-" sign or space between the numbers, so they ask "what". On the other hand, someone think they are pure numbers, so they ask "how many / much". But both of them are understandable for native speakers.

thinwa
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0

You should know although telephone numbers are not quantity, but still made of digits. So people say it in both form. This also applies to street number or zip code.

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  • 是什么 /shi shenme/ = 'is what'

  • 是多少 /shi duoshao/ = 'is how many'

A telephone number is not an amount or quantity, It is a specific code made up of numbers, not unlike an serial number made up of numbers . If you don't say "你手机的 serial number 是多少", then you shouldn't say "你的电话是多少"

We always ask people " what is your phone number?" instead of "how many is your phone number"

The correct answer is "你的电话号码是什么" /Nide dianhua haoma shi shenme/

Also, Can I just say, "Nide dianhua shi duoshao?"

No, it means "你的电话是多少" (your telephone is how many), which doesn't make sense; If you say "你的电话是什么" people would understand you meant "你的电话号码是什么" (omitted 号码). But, grammatically 电话 /dianhua/ only means "telephone" , you need to add 号码 and say "电话号码" if you meant to ask "what is someone's phone number" instead of "what brand someone's telephone is"

Tang Ho
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    No, 电话是多少 is very common within mainland. – dan Jun 09 '18 at 22:38
  • A telephone number is not an amount or quantity, It is a specific code made up of numbers, not unlike an serial number made up of numbers . If you don't say "你手机的 serial number 是多少", then you shouldn't say "你的电话是多少" – Tang Ho Jun 09 '18 at 23:20
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    interestingly enough, in fact, we do say 你手机的序列号(SN)是多少！ – dan Jun 09 '18 at 23:31
  • If someone ask me - "你的电话是多少", I might think he or she wants to buy my phone. :) – Wayne Cheah Feb 21 '20 at 07:32