Learn Hardcore Chinese: wǒ xiǎng tīng yíxià nǐ duì zhè gè wèntí de kànfǎ. - I’d like to hear your opinion on this question.

想 is softer and often means would like to / feel like / intend to.
- 我想听一下… = I’d like to hear…
要 is stronger and more definite, sometimes close to going to / must.
- 我要听一下… can sound more forceful: I want to hear… / I’m going to hear…

In this context, 想 is chosen because the speaker is making a polite, less demanding request. Saying 我要听一下你对这个问题的看法 is grammatically fine, but noticeably stronger and less polite.

Why is 听 (“to listen”) used for “hear your opinion”? Why not use something like 问 (“to ask”)?

In Chinese, using 听 with things like 意见 / 看法 / 建议 (opinions / views / suggestions) is very common:

听你的看法 – hear/listen to your opinion
听听大家的意见 – listen to everyone’s opinions

It emphasizes that you want to listen to what the other person says, not just that you ask them.

You could say:

我想问一下你对这个问题的看法。 – I’d like to ask about your opinion on this issue.

This is also correct, but 听 focuses on the listening side (more receptive), while 问 focuses on the act of asking.

What is the function of 一下 after 听?

一下 after a verb does two main things:

It suggests the action will be brief / for a bit.
It softens the tone, making the request more polite and less direct.

So:

我想听你对这个问题的看法。 – I want to hear your opinion on this issue. (quite direct)
我想听一下你对这个问题的看法。 – I’d like to hear your opinion on this issue (for a moment). (more polite and gentle)

一下 is very common with verbs when making requests:
看一下, 问一下, 想一下, 说一下, etc.

Can I use 听听 instead of 听一下? What’s the difference?

Yes:

我想听听你对这个问题的看法。 is also very natural.

听听 is a reduplication of the verb 听 and has a similar effect to 听一下:

suggests a short, not-too-serious action
softens the tone, making it more casual and polite

Subtle nuance:

听一下 can sound a bit more neutral/polite (slightly more formal than 听听).
听听 feels a bit more casual and conversational.

Both are fine here. You can even combine them in spoken Chinese: 我想听听你对这个问题的看法一下 is less standard and usually avoided in writing; in practice, people use either 听一下 or 听听.

Why is 一下 placed after 听 and not somewhere else, like after 看法?

In Chinese, 一下 goes directly after the verb it modifies:

听一下 – listen a bit
看一下 – look a bit
想一下 – think a bit

So it must be:

我想听一下你对这个问题的看法。

Putting it after 看法 (✗ 我想听你对这个问题的看法一下) is unnatural, because 一下 is not describing 看法; it is describing the action of listening.

What does 对 mean in 你对这个问题的看法? How does 对 work here?

Here 对 is a preposition meaning towards / regarding / about.

Common pattern:

对 + noun + 的 + 看法 / 意见 / 态度 / 感觉

Examples:

你对这个问题的看法 – your view on this issue
他对工作的态度 – his attitude towards work
大家对这个政策的意见 – everyone’s opinions about this policy

So 你对这个问题的看法 literally means “the opinion that you have towards this problem.”

Why is there a 的 after 问题 and not directly after 你? Why not 你的看法?

In 你对这个问题的看法, the structure is:

你对这个问题 – a whole descriptive phrase
的 – links that phrase to the noun
看法 – the noun being described

So the entire phrase 你对这个问题 functions together as an attributive (modifier) of 看法:

“[the opinion] that you have about this issue”

If you say 你的看法, that only means “your opinion”, with no information about what it’s about.

你的看法 – your opinion (in general or understood from context)
你对这个问题的看法 – your opinion on this specific issue

Both are correct, but the original sentence needs to specify “on this issue”, so 你对这个问题的看法 is used.

Could I say 你的对这个问题的看法?

No, 你的对这个问题的看法 is not natural.

Reasons:

你对这个问题 already functions as a complete modifier of 看法.
Adding 的 after 你 (你的) and then another 的 at the end is redundant and ungrammatical in this structure.

You should use either:

你的看法 – your opinion
你对这个问题的看法 – your opinion on this issue

but not combine them as 你的对这个问题的看法.

Could I change the word order to 我想听你对这个问题有什么看法? Is that correct, and is there any difference?

Yes, this is correct and very natural:

我想听你对这个问题有什么看法。
Literally: “I’d like to hear what opinion you have on this issue.”

Differences:

我想听一下你对这个问题的看法。
– treats 你对这个问题的看法 as a thing (a noun phrase: “your opinion on this issue”)
我想听你对这个问题有什么看法。
– turns it into a question clause: “what opinion you have”

In practice, they mean almost the same. The second one feels just slightly more like you’re inviting multiple possible views or elaboration, but functionally both are fine.

What exactly does 问题 mean here: “problem,” “question,” or “issue”?

问题 can mean:

problem – something wrong, something that needs fixing
- 我们有一个严重的问题。 – We have a serious problem.
question – something you ask
- 我有一个问题想问你。 – I have a question to ask you.
issue / matter / topic – a subject under discussion
- 这个问题很复杂。 – This issue is very complicated.

In 你对这个问题的看法, context decides the nuance. Often it’s best translated as “issue” or “question”, depending on what is being discussed.

So I’d like to hear your opinion on this issue is a good, neutral translation.

Why do we need 个 in 这个问题? Could I say 这问题 instead?

这个问题 is the standard form:

这 + 个 + 问题 – this + (general measure word) + problem/question

In spoken Chinese, you can sometimes hear 这问题, but:

It’s more colloquial and less standard.
In many learning and formal contexts, 这个问题 is preferred and safer.

So:

这个问题 – always correct and natural.
这问题 – colloquial; use with caution until you’re very comfortable with style and register.

Is this sentence polite? How could I make it more or less formal?

Yes, this sentence is politely phrased:

想 instead of a stronger 要
听一下 with 一下 to soften the request

To make it more polite / formal, you could say:

我想听听您对这个问题的看法。 (use 您 instead of 你)
我想听一下您对这个问题的看法。
我想请教一下您对这个问题的看法。 – I’d like to consult you about your view on this issue.

To make it more casual, with a friend:

我想听听你对这个问题的看法。
我想听听你怎么想。 – I want to hear how you think about it.

How is 你对这个问题的看法 functioning grammatically in the whole sentence?

In the full sentence:

我 – subject
想听一下 – verb phrase (want to listen/hear briefly)
你对这个问题的看法 – object (the thing being listened to)

So 你对这个问题的看法 is a noun phrase (like “your opinion on this issue”) and serves as the direct object of 听一下.

You can think of the sentence pattern as:

我 + 想 + 听一下 + [noun phrase]
I + would like + to hear + [your opinion on this issue].