哪儿

nǎ r

where?

wherever; anywhere; somewhere; (used in rhetorical questions) how can ...?; how could ...?

哪

nǎ

how

儿

r

non-syllabic diminutive suffix

which (哪) + place suffix (儿) = where?

哪 uses 口 (mouth, asking) while 那 gives the sound. The suffix 儿 softens and localizes the question, turning 'which' into 'where' in spoken Mandarin.

你的书包在哪儿?

nǐ de shū bāo zài nǎ r?

Where is your school bag?

他哪儿都去过,经验很丰富。

tā nǎ r dōu qù guò,jīng yàn hěn fēng fù。

He has been everywhere, so he has a lot of experience.