🇹🇼 Traditional Chinese grammar guides

Chinese measure words

You cannot say "three book" in Chinese; you need a measure word between the number and the noun. 个 covers a great deal, but using it for everything marks you out immediately. Below is every measure word worth knowing, with what it counts and phrases you can copy.

Start with these

個 gè

General — people and most things

一個人 yí ge rén one person
兩個蘋果 liǎng ge píngguǒ two apples
三個問題 sān ge wèntí three questions
五個孩子 wǔ ge háizi five children
十個餃子 shí ge jiǎozi ten dumplings

隻 zhī

Animals; one of a pair (hands, shoes)

一隻貓 yì zhī māo one cat
兩隻鳥 liǎng zhī niǎo two birds
一隻狗 yì zhī gǒu one dog
一隻手 yì zhī shǒu one hand
一隻鞋 yì zhī xié one shoe (of a pair)

條 tiáo

Long, bendy things: fish, pants, roads, rivers

一條魚 yì tiáo yú one fish
兩條褲子 liǎng tiáo kùzi two pairs of pants
一條路 yì tiáo lù a road
一條河 yì tiáo hé a river

張 zhāng

Flat things: paper, tickets, tables, beds

一張紙 yì zhāng zhǐ a sheet of paper
兩張票 liǎng zhāng piào two tickets
一張桌子 yì zhāng zhuōzi a table
一張床 yì zhāng chuáng a bed
三張照片 sān zhāng zhàopiàn three photos

本 běn

Bound volumes: books, magazines

一本書 yì běn shū one book
兩本雜誌 liǎng běn zázhì two magazines
三本小說 sān běn xiǎoshuō three novels
一本詞典 yì běn cídiǎn a dictionary

杯 bēi

Cups and glasses of drinks

一杯水 yì bēi shuǐ a glass of water
兩杯咖啡 liǎng bēi kāfēi two cups of coffee
一杯茶 yì bēi chá a cup of tea
三杯果汁 sān bēi guǒzhī three glasses of juice

瓶 píng

Bottles

一瓶水 yì píng shuǐ a bottle of water
兩瓶啤酒 liǎng píng píjiǔ two bottles of beer
一瓶牛奶 yì píng niúnǎi a bottle of milk
三瓶可樂 sān píng kělè three bottles of cola

件 jiàn

Clothing (tops) and matters

一件衣服 yí jiàn yīfu a piece of clothing
兩件襯衫 liǎng jiàn chènshān two shirts
一件毛衣 yí jiàn máoyī a sweater
一件事 yí jiàn shì one matter

雙 shuāng

Pairs: shoes, socks, chopsticks

一雙鞋 yì shuāng xié a pair of shoes
兩雙襪子 liǎng shuāng wàzi two pairs of socks
一雙筷子 yì shuāng kuàizi a pair of chopsticks
一雙手 yì shuāng shǒu a pair of hands

位 wèi

People, politely: teachers, guests

一位老師 yí wèi lǎoshī one teacher (polite)
兩位客人 liǎng wèi kèrén two guests
三位醫生 sān wèi yīshēng three doctors
一位先生 yí wèi xiānsheng a gentleman

Then these

輛 liàng

Vehicles: cars, bikes

一輛車 yí liàng chē one car
兩輛自行車 liǎng liàng zìxíngchē two bicycles
一輛摩托車 yí liàng mótuōchē a motorcycle
一輛卡車 yí liàng kǎchē a truck

家 jiā

Businesses: restaurants, companies, shops

一家飯店 yì jiā fàndiàn a restaurant
兩家公司 liǎng jiā gōngsī two companies
一家商店 yì jiā shāngdiàn a shop
一家銀行 yì jiā yínháng a bank

口 kǒu

Family members; wells, mouthfuls

三口人 sān kǒu rén a family of three
五口人 wǔ kǒu rén a family of five
一口井 yì kǒu jǐng a well
一口水 yì kǒu shuǐ a sip of water

把 bǎ

Things with a handle: umbrellas, chairs, knives

一把傘 yì bǎ sǎn an umbrella
兩把椅子 liǎng bǎ yǐzi two chairs
一把刀 yì bǎ dāo a knife
一把鑰匙 yì bǎ yàoshi a key

台 tái

Machines: computers, TVs, appliances

一台電腦 yì tái diànnǎo one computer
兩台電視 liǎng tái diànshì two TVs
一台洗衣機 yì tái xǐyījī a washing machine
一台冰箱 yì tái bīngxiāng a fridge

部 bù

Phones, films, novels

一部手機 yí bù shǒujī one phone
兩部電影 liǎng bù diànyǐng two films
一部小說 yí bù xiǎoshuō a novel
一部電視劇 yí bù diànshìjù a TV series

場 chǎng

Events: matches, films, shows

一場比賽 yì chǎng bǐsài a match
兩場電影 liǎng chǎng diànyǐng two film screenings
一場音樂會 yì chǎng yīnyuèhuì a concert
一場演出 yì chǎng yǎnchū a performance

頓 dùn

Meals — and scoldings

一頓飯 yí dùn fàn a meal
三頓飯 sān dùn fàn three meals
一頓大餐 yí dùn dàcān a big feast
一頓罵 yí dùn mà a scolding

支 zhī

Slim sticks: pens, toothpaste; songs too

一支筆 yì zhī bǐ one pen
兩支鉛筆 liǎng zhī qiānbǐ two pencils
一支牙膏 yì zhī yágāo a tube of toothpaste
一支歌 yì zhī gē a song

座 zuò

Big fixed things: mountains, bridges, cities

一座山 yí zuò shān a mountain
一座橋 yí zuò qiáo a bridge
一座城市 yí zuò chéngshì a city
兩座大樓 liǎng zuò dàlóu two tall buildings

Then the specific ones

匹 pǐ

Horses and wolves; bolts of cloth

一匹馬 yì pǐ mǎ one horse
兩匹馬 liǎng pǐ mǎ two horses
一匹狼 yì pǐ láng a wolf
一匹布 yì pǐ bù a bolt of cloth

頭 tóu

Livestock and big animals: cattle, pigs, elephants

一頭牛 yì tóu niú one cow
兩頭豬 liǎng tóu zhū two pigs
一頭大象 yì tóu dàxiàng an elephant
一頭獅子 yì tóu shīzi a lion

棵 kē

Plants: trees, cabbages

一棵樹 yì kē shù one tree
兩棵松樹 liǎng kē sōngshù two pine trees
一棵草 yì kē cǎo a blade of grass
一棵白菜 yì kē báicài a head of cabbage

顆 kē

Small round things: stars, teeth, hearts

一顆星星 yì kē xīngxing one star
一顆牙齒 yì kē yáchǐ one tooth
一顆心 yì kē xīn one heart
兩顆糖 liǎng kē táng two candies

封 fēng

Letters and mail

一封信 yì fēng xìn one letter
兩封信 liǎng fēng xìn two letters
一封郵件 yì fēng yóujiàn an email
一封情書 yì fēng qíngshū a love letter

幅 fú

Paintings and maps

一幅畫 yì fú huà one painting
兩幅油畫 liǎng fú yóuhuà two oil paintings
一幅地圖 yì fú dìtú a map
一幅山水畫 yì fú shānshuǐhuà a landscape painting

陣 zhèn

Bursts: wind, rain, applause

一陣風 yí zhèn fēng a gust of wind
一陣雨 yí zhèn yǔ a shower of rain
一陣掌聲 yí zhèn zhǎngshēng a burst of applause
一陣笑聲 yí zhèn xiàoshēng a burst of laughter

群 qún

Groups and flocks: people, sheep, birds

一群人 yì qún rén a crowd of people
一群羊 yì qún yáng a flock of sheep
一群孩子 yì qún háizi a group of kids
一群鳥 yì qún niǎo a flock of birds

套 tào

Sets: apartments, outfits, tableware

一套房子 yí tào fángzi an apartment
一套衣服 yí tào yīfu an outfit
兩套西裝 liǎng tào xīzhuāng two suits
一套餐具 yí tào cānjù a set of tableware

篇 piān

Pieces of writing: articles, essays

一篇文章 yì piān wénzhāng one article
兩篇論文 liǎng piān lùnwén two academic papers
一篇日記 yì piān rìjì a diary entry
一篇作文 yì piān zuòwén an essay

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