Chinese measure word
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In the modern Chinese languages, measure words or classifiers (traditional Chinese: 量詞; simplified Chinese: 量词; pinyin: liàngcí; Cantonese (Yale): leung4 chi4) are used along with numerals to define the quantity of a given object or objects, or with "this"/"that" to identify specific objects.
In Chinese, a simple numeral cannot quantify a noun by itself; instead, the language relies on what are known as measure words or, to a lesser extent, classifiers. There are two types of such classifiers, nominal and verbal, with the latter being used in quantifying verbs and the amount of time which they take precedence. English also has its share of classifiers, however these are generally understood to be extraneous and ultimately construe the object in question with greater detail. As an example, in the English phrase "a stretch of sand", the word "stretch" is needed to disambiguate whether the sand is actually one grain or an entire beach's worth. Therefore, "stretch" serves to further specify the quantity of sand. We can also speak of "a bucketful of sand", "a grain of sand" or "a ton of sand". Other examples are the word "slice" as in "a slice of bread" and "glass" as in "a glass of water". Contrast these phrases with "a sand", "a bread", and "a water".
It should be noted that the usage of measure words in Chinese is strictly mandatory, that is, they must be used so long as a quantifying numeral or a pronoun is present (a definite article like English "the" does not exist as such in Chinese). In contrast with the English language wherein "a flock of birds" is roughly equivalent to "some birds", in Chinese only "一群鳥" (一群鸟) is possible. Likewise, "a bird" should be translated into "一隻鳥" (一只鸟); it is as though English speakers were forced to say "a specimen of a bird".
Usage also depends on personal preference and dialects. For example, some people use 三部車; (三部车) and others use 三台車 (三台车) to mean three cars. Still others use 三輛車 (三辆车) or in Cantonese 三架車 (三架车), with all of these measure words serving the same purpose.
Some measure words are true units, which all languages must have in order to measure things, e.g. kilometres. These are displayed first, then other nominal classifiers, and finally verbal classifiers.
In the following tables, the first column contains the traditional version of the classifier's character, the second contains the simplified version where it differs, the third contains the pronunciation given in Hanyu Pinyin, the fourth contains the pronunciation given in Cantonese romanization (Yale), and the fifth explains the word's principal uses. Quotation marks surround the literal meaning of the measure word.
Contents |
[edit] Nominal Classifiers
[edit] True units
Column key:
- Trad. is Traditional
- Simp. shows changes made for the simplified variant (if any)
| Trad. | Simp. | Pinyin | Cantonese | Main uses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | ||||
| 秒 | miǎo | miu5 | "second" | |
| 分 | fēn | fan1 | "minute" | |
| 刻 | kè | hak1 haak1 | "quarter","15 minutes" (mainly in some dialects, such as Shanghainese, and translations) | |
| 小時 | 小时 | xiǎoshí | siu2 si4 | "hour" (not itself a measure word, must be used with 個/个) |
| 鐘 | 钟 | zhōng | jung1 | "hour" (found in southern Chinese, not a measure word, must be used with 個/个) |
| 時辰 | 时辰 | shíchén | si4 san4 | "2 hours" (ancient, not a measure word, must be used with 個/个) |
| 天 | tiān | tin1 | "day" | |
| 日 | rì | yat6 | "day" | |
| 年 | nián | nin4 | "year" | |
| 載 | 载 | zǎi | joi2 joi3 | "year" (ancient) |
| 世紀 | 世纪 | shìjì | sai3 gei2 | "century" (not a measure word, must used with 個/个 to express a number of centuries) |
| Weight/mass | ||||
| 克 | kè | hak1 haak1 | "gram" | |
| 兩 | 两 | liǎng | 50 grams | |
| 斤 | jīn | gan1 | "catty", "pound", 1/2 kilograms | |
| 公斤 | gōngjīn | gung1 gan1 | "kilogram" | |
| 千克 | qiānkè | chin1 hak1/haak1 | "kilogram" | |
| 噸 | 吨 | dūn | deun1 | "ton" |
| Length/distance | ||||
| 公分 | gōngfēn | gung1 fan1 | "centimetre" | |
| 厘米 | límǐ | lei4 mai5 | "centimetre" (More common in Mainland China) | |
| 寸 | cùn | chyun3 | Chinese "inch" (⅓ of a decimetre) | |
| 吋 | cùn | chyun3 |
British inch |
|
| 尺 | chǐ | che2/chek3 | Chinese "foot" (⅓ of a metre) | |
| 呎 | chǐ | chek3 | British foot | |
| 英尺 | yīngchǐ | ying1 chek3 | British foot | |
| 公尺 | gōngchǐ | gung1 chek3 | "metre" | |
| 米 | mǐ | mai5 | "metre" | |
| 里 | lǐ | lei5 | "lǐ", (500 metres) | |
| 哩 | lǐ | le1/lei5/li1 | British mile | |
| 英里 | yīnglǐ | ying1 lei5 | British mile | |
| 公里 | gōnglǐ | gung1 lei5 | "kilometre" | |
| 天文單位 | 天文单位 | tiānwéndānwèi | tin1 man4 daan1 wai2 | "astronomical unit" |
| 光年 | guāngnián | gwong1 nin4 | "light year" | |
| 秒差距 | miǎochājù | miu5 cha1 geui6 | "parsec" | |
| Money | ||||
| 圓/元 | 圆/元 | yuán | yun4 | "yuán", "¥" (main unit of currency) (either form can be used in Traditional Chinese text) |
| 塊 | 块 | kuài | faai3 | "yuán", "¥" (a slang term, like "quid" or "buck") |
| 角 | jiāo | jiāo | "jiāo", "dime", "tenpence" (either form can be used in Simplified Chinese text) |
|
| 毛 | mǎo | hou4 | "mao3", "dime", "tenpence" (slang) (either form can be used in Traditional Chinese text) |
|
| 分 | fēn | fan1/fan6 | "fēn", "cent", "penny" | |
[edit] More idiomatic
Column key: Trad. is Traditional, Simp. shows changes made for the simplified variant (if any).
| Trad. | Simp. | Pinyin | Cantonese(Yale Romanization) | Main uses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 把 | bǎ | ba2 | "handful" — objects that can be held, relatively long and flat objects (knives, scissors, swords, keys; also chairs) | |
| 班 | bān | baan1 | scheduled services (trains, etc.), group of people, a class as in pupils | |
| 包 | bāo | baau1 | "package", "bundle" | |
| 杯 | bēi | bui1 | "cup" — drinks | |
| 本 | běn | bun2 | "volume" — bound print matter (books, etc.) | |
| 筆 | 笔 | bǐ | bat1 | large quantities of money |
| 部 | bù | bou6 | novels, movies | |
| 冊/册 | 冊/册 | cè | chaak3 | volumes of books (冊 is more common in Traditional Chinese, 册 vice versa) |
| 層 | 层 | céng | chaang4 | "story", "layer" — buildings, etc |
| 場 | 场 | chǎng | cheung4 | public spectacles, games |
| 床 | chuáng | chong4 | "bed" — blankets, sheets | |
| 次 | cì | chi3 | "time" — opportunities, accidents | |
| 齣 | 出 | chū | acts in a play | |
| 袋 | dài | doi6 | sackfuls, pouchfuls, bagfuls, pocketfuls | |
| 道 | dào | dou6 | linear projections (light rays, etc.), orders given by an authority figure, courses (of food) | |
| 滴 | dī | dik6 | "droplet" water, blood, other such fluids | |
| 點 | 点 | diǎn | dim2 | ideas, suggestions, can also mean "a bit" (often used to denote amount) |
| 頂 | 顶 | dǐng | deng2 | objects with protruding top (hats, etc.) |
| 棟 | 栋 | dòng | dung6 | lit. pillars, used for buildings |
| 堵 | dǔ | dou6 | walls and encompassing fixtures | |
| 段 | duàn | dyun6 | "adjoining length" — cables, roadways, etc. | |
| 對 | 对 | duì | deui3 | "couple" — people, "pair" (for certain things only) earrings, couplets, |
| 頓 | 顿 | dùn | deun6 | meals |
| 朵 | duǒ | do2/deu2 | flowers, clouds | |
| 份 | fèn | fan6 | portions, also sometimes used for newspapers | |
| 封 | fēng | fung1 | letters, mail | |
| 幅 | fú | fuk1 | works of art (paintings, etc.) | |
| 服 | fù | fuk6 | "dose" — (Chinese) medicine | |
| 副 | fù | fu3 | objects which come in pairs (gloves, etc.) also for spectacles, a pack of cards, mahjong | |
| 個 | 个 | ge (gè) | go3 | individual things, people — general, catch-all measure word (usage of this classifier in conjunction with any noun is generally accepted if the person does not know the proper classifier) |
| 根 | gēn | gan1 | thin, slender objects (needles, pillars, etc.); strands (e.g. hair) | |
| 股 | gǔ | gu2 | flows (of air, smell, influence).... | |
| 罐 | guan4 | Small to medium cans of soda, of juice, bottles of water, cans of food... | ||
| 行 | háng | hong4 | objects which form lines (words, etc.) | |
| 盒 | hé | hap6 | "small box" — e.g. tape, foods | |
| 戶 | 户 | hù | wu6 | households (户 is common in handwritten Traditional Chinese) |
| 伙 | huǒ | fo2 | generally derogatory classifier for bands of people such as gangs or hoodlums | |
| 家 | jiā | ga1 | gathering of people (families, companies, etc.) | |
| 架 | jià | ga3 | aircraft, pianos, machines | |
| 間 | 间 | jiān | gaan1 | rooms |
| 件 | jiàn | gin6 | matters (affairs), clothing, etc. | |
| 節 | 节 | jié | jit3 | "section" — of bamboo, etc.; or a class period at school |
| 屆 | 届 | jiè | gaai3 | regularly scheduled sessions or meetings, year-groups in a school (e.g. Class of 2006) |
| 句 | jù | geui3 | lines, sentences, etc. | |
| 棵 | kē | po1 | trees and other such flora | |
| 顆 | 颗 | kē | fo2 | small objects (hearts, pearls, teeth, diamonds etc.) and also objects appearing to be small (distant stars and planets) |
| 口 | kǒu | hau2 | people in villages, family members; wells | |
| 塊 | 块 | kuài | faai3 | "chunk", "lump", "piece" — land, stones, etc.; cake (piece/slic), bread (not slices) |
| 類 | 类 | lèi | leui6 | objects of the same type or category |
| 粒 | lì | lap1 | "grain", small objects such as a grain of rice | |
| 輛 | 辆 | liàng | leung2 | wheeled vehicles: automobiles, bicycles, etc. |
| 列 | liè | lit6 | trains | |
| 枚 | méi | mui4 | medals, small flat things like stamps or coins, banana peels, bomb shells, also for rings | |
| 門 | 门 | mén | mun4 | objects pertaining to academics (courses, majors, etc.), also for artillery pieces. |
| 面 | miàn | min6 | flat and smooth objects (mirrors, flags, etc.) | |
| 名 | míng | ming4 | high-ranking persons (doctors, lawyers, politicians, royalty, etc.); in formal language, can also be used for any type of person (not necessarily high-ranking) | |
| 排 | pái | paai4 | objects grouped in rows (chairs, etc) | |
| 盤 | 盘 | pán | pun4 | flat objects (video cassettes, etc.); literally means "dishes" and can be used for a plate of food |
| 批 | pī | pai1 | (a large amount of) people, goods, etc. | |
| 匹 | pǐ | pat1 | horses and other mounts; also rolls/bolts of cloth | |
| 篇 | piān | pin1 | written work: papers, articles, novels etc. | |
| 片 | piàn | pin3 | "slice" — flat objects, cards, slices of bread, etc. | |
| 瓶 | píng | ping4 | "bottle" — drinks | |
| 期 | qī | kei4 | (issues of) periodicals | |
| 群 | qún | kwan4 | "group" (incl. people), "herd" | |
| 扇 | shàn | sin3 | doors, windows. | |
| 首 | shǒu | sau2 | songs, poems, music, etc. | |
| 束 | shù | chuk1 | "bundle", for flowers, light, etc. | |
| 雙 | 双 | shuāng | seung1 | pair of objects which naturally come in pairs (e.g. chopsticks, shoes, etc.) |
| 艘 | sōu | sau2 | ships | |
| 所 | suǒ | so2 | for buildings whose purposes are explicitly stated, ex. hospitals. Otherwise can use "座" | |
| 臺/台 | 台 | tái | toi4 | heavy objects, esp. machines (TVs, computers, etc.); performances (theatre, etc.) |
| 堂 | táng | tong4 | periods of classes (e.g. "I have two classes today"), suites of furniture | |
| 趟 | tàng | tong3 | trips (usually repetitive), scheduled transportation services | |
| 套 | tào | tou3 | "set" — books, magazines, collectibles, clothes, | |
| 題 | 题 | tí | tai4 | classifier for questions |
| 條 | 条 | tiáo | tiu4 | long, narrow, flexible objects (fish, trousers, etc.) |
| 頭 | 头 | tóu | tau4 | "head" — domesticated animals (pigs, cows, etc.), hair |
| 團 | 团 | tuán | tyun4 | "ball" — rotund and wound objects (balls of yarn, etc.) |
| 位 | wèi | wai2 | polite classifier for people (attached to positions, not names) | |
| 項 | 项 | xiàng | hong6 | projects |
| 樣 | 样 | yàng | yeung6 | general items of differing attributes |
| 扎 | zhā | ja1 | In Cantonese usage, this is used in lieu of shù (束), e.g. a bundle of flowers "jar", "jug" — drinks such as beer, soda, juice, etc. (A recent loan-word from English, it may be considered informal or slang.) |
|
| 盞 | 盏 | zhǎn | jaan2 | light fixtures (usually lamps), pot of tea etc. |
| 張 | 张 | zhāng | jeung1 | "sheet" — flat objects (paper, tables, etc.), faces, bows, paintings, tickets, constellations |
| 陣 | 阵 | zhèn | jan6 | "gust", "burst" — events with short durations (e.g. lightning storms, gusts of wind, etc.) |
| 支 | zhī | ji1 | fairly long, stick-like objects (pens, chopsticks, roses, rifles, etc.) | |
| 隻 | 只 | zhī | jek3 | one of a pair (hands); animals (birds, cats, etc.) |
| 枝 | zhī | ji1 | alternative form of 支 ("stalk"): can be used for rifles and flowers | |
| 種 | 种 | zhǒng | jung2 | types or kinds of objects |
| 組 | 组 | zǔ | jou2 | sets, rows, series, batteries (military) |
| 串 | chuàn | sets of numbers; or something that comes in a string (e.g. 一串手机号码: "a cell phone/mobile number"; 一串珍珠项链: "a pearl necklace; 一串葡萄：a bunch of grapes) | ||
| 座 | zuò | jo6 | large structures/buildings, mountains |
[edit] Verbal Classifiers
Column key: Trad. is Traditional, Simp. shows changes made for the simplified variant (if any).
| Trad. | Simp. | Pinyin | Cantonese | Main uses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 遍 | biàn | bin3 pin3 | the number of times an action has been completed | |
| 場 | 场 | chǎng | cheung4 | a length of an event taking place within another event |
| 次 | cì | chi3 | times (unlike 遍, 次 refers to the number of times regardless of whether or not it was completed) | |
| 頓 | 顿 | dùn | deun6 | actions without repetition |
| 回 | huí | wui4 | occurrences (used colloquially) | |
| 聲 | 声 | shēng | seng1/sing1 | cries, shouts, etc. |
| 趟 | tàng | tong3 | trips, visitations, etc. | |
| 下 | xià | ha5/ha6 | brief and often sudden actions (much more common in Cantonese than in North dialects). |
[edit] Informal Classifiers
In modern colloquial speech of certain Chinese dialects, 俩 (liǎ) is sometimes used instead of 两个 (liǎng ge), thereby assuming the identity of a measure word meaning "two of (such and such)". The same holds true for 仨 (sā), three (items of a general nature).
[edit] Examples
- Colour-coding
- measure words are in green and nouns are in purple.
- 去年我騎了一匹馬。(去年我骑了一匹马。)
- Last year, I rode a horse.
- 這臺電視看了一次就壞了。(这台电视看了一次就坏了。)
- This television set broke after one viewing.
- 我訂了這兩班車。(我订了这两班车。)
- I've reserved (tickets for) these two buses.
- 下完這陣雨我才會爬那座山。(下完这阵雨我才会爬那座山。)
- Only after this rain passes will I climb that mountain.
- 一根頭髮。(一根头发。)
- A hair, a strand of hair.
- 五分(鐘)。(五分(钟)。)
- Five minutes(' time).
- 十天(時間)。(十天(时间)。)
- Ten days(' time).
- 一百頭牛。(一百头牛。)
- A hundred oxen, a hundred head of cattle.
- 一個蘋果。(一个苹果。)
- An apple
- 一斤蘋果。(一斤苹果。)
- A pound of apples.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Figurative Extension of Chinese Classifiers (extensive list of Chinese classifiers in the appendix)
