Your Complete Guide to Chinese Measure Words

Quick answer: Chinese measure words (量词 liàngcí) are classifiers placed between a number (or demonstrative like 这/那) and a noun. The formula is always Number + Measure Word + Noun, for example 三本书 (sān běn shū) = ‘three books’.

Every countable noun in Mandarin requires one, and 个 (gè) is the safest general-purpose fallback while you learn the specific ones.

What Are Chinese Measure Words (量词 liàngcí)?

In Chinese grammar, a measure word is called 量词 (liàngcí). It sits between a number (or a demonstrative like 这/那) and a noun. You cannot count or point to most nouns in Chinese without one.

Think of English phrases like a slice of bread, a sheet of paper, a flock of birds. In English these only appear for certain nouns. In Chinese, every countable noun needs one, every single time.

So instead of saying ‘three books’, you say:

三 (sān) + 本 (běn) + 书 (shū) = three [volume] books

The formula is always: Number + Measure Word + Noun. Once 量词 (liàngcí) clicks, the rest is just vocabulary, and that’s exactly what this guide gives you. 💡

When learning Chinese, one thing that often surprises beginners is just how important, and unavoidable measure words are.

Whether you’re ordering two cups of tea, buying three books, or spotting five people in a room, Chinese requires a specific measure word to go between the number and the noun.

This guide covers the most commonly used Chinese measure words, the ones you’ll actually need in classrooms, restaurants, markets, and everywhere in between. Work through them category by category and you’ll speak more naturally, faster.

New to Chinese characters? Before working through the full list below, it helps to understand how Chinese characters combine. Many measure word characters contain visual clues (radicals) that hint at their meaning. 木 (mù / wood) appears in measure words for trees and wooden objects, for example. Spotting these patterns makes memorisation much faster.

You’ll get familiar with essentials like

个 (gè) for general items

本 (běn) for books

杯 (bēi) for drinks, plus dozens more you’ll encounter in everyday conversations!

Mastering measure words may seem tricky at first, but they do click, we promise. When Lilia first introduced measure words to a group of beginners at our Beijing school, she put it simply: ‘Don’t try to memorise them all at once. Learn the noun, learn its measure word at the same time, like a pair.’ That advice has stayed with hundreds of our students.

Maxime from France told us after his first month in Beijing: ‘I thought 个 was enough for everything. Then I tried to order a glass of wine and got blank stares, because there’s a different measure word for one glass and one bottle. That’s when I realised I needed to actually learn these.’ He had a point. 🤔

With the right framework, it becomes second nature.

You’ll notice that some measure words appear in more than one category as some can be used for a variety of objects.

Chinese Measure Words – 12 of the Most Common

Chinese Measure Words – People and Animals

Chinese Measure Words – Body Parts

Chinese Measure Words – Food

Chinese Measure Words – Plants, Fruit and Vegetables

Chinese Measure Words – Vehicles and Buildings

Chinese Measure Words – Household Items

Chinese Measure Words – Clothing and Jewellery

Chinese Measure Words – Time

Chinese Measure Words – Units of Measure

Chinese Measure Words – Pairs, Collections and Groups

FREE DOWNLOAD – Measure Words PDF

TEST YOURSELF – Chinese Measure Words Quiz

How to Use Chinese Measure Words // The Grammar Formula

Every time you want to say how many of something there is in Chinese, you follow one pattern:

Number + Measure Word + Noun

It also works with demonstratives, 这 (zhè / this) and 那 (nà / that), in place of a number:

这/那 + Measure Word + Noun

TIP💡 You’ll also see 两 (liǎng) used instead of 二 (èr) when it precedes a measure word. ‘两本书’ (two books), not ‘二本书’. This trips up a lot of beginners, you’re not alone if it catches you out.

TIP💡 Numbers are the other half of this formula. If you want to practice counting and numeral measure words for counting together, our Chinese numbers guide walks you through 一, 两, 三 and the tonal rules that affect them when paired with measure words.

Chinese Measure Words – 12 of The Most Common

Firstly, don’t let yourself be too overwhelmed by the concept of measure words. They do actually exist in other languages like English for certain nouns such as three glasses, or a bar of chocolate.

The only difference in Chinese is that all nouns must have a measure word before them

It may take a little bit of getting used to at first, but after a little while, including a measure word will just seem like second nature!

#1 – 个 gè

The safety-net measure word, and your best friend as a beginner.

个 (gè) is the most frequently used measure word in Mandarin and, crucially, it works as a fallback when you’re not sure which specific measure word to use. Native speakers will understand you, even if it sounds slightly informal.

However, it’s not a true universal. Overusing it does sound unnatural in certain contexts. You would not use 个 for books (use 本 běn), animals (use 只 zhī or 条 tiáo), or bound volumes. Use it freely while you’re learning, but aim to replace it as you build confidence.

TIP💡 Think of 个 as your training wheels. Every learner at LTL leans on it hard in the first few weeks, that’s completely normal. The goal is to swap it out progressively as you meet each noun category.

In general, 个 (gè) is the correct measure word for people and unspecified items:

In general, 个 (gè) is the standard measure word for people in everyday speech. However, Mandarin also has 位 (wèi), a polite, formal classifier used when you want to show respect.

TIP💡 In a restaurant, a host will ask ‘几位?’ (jǐ wèi? — how many in your party?) rather than ‘几个人?’. Using 位 in professional or hospitality settings immediately signals a higher level of Mandarin, it’s worth knowing early.

#2 – 张 zhāng

This is an important measure word to learn for anyone living or travelling in China as it is used for flat things such as pieces of paper.

For instance it would be used when buying train or plane tickets, something you’ll do a lot when travelling between LTL school cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Xi’an, and Chengdu:

This measure word is also used for other flat objects like certain furniture:

#3 – 本 běn

This is another important one to learn, because here 个 really can’t be used as a replacement, or you’re going to get some strange looks!

本 běn is used for when you are talking about books, magazines, notebooks etc.

#4 – 杯 bēi

If you want to advance your Chinese ordering beyond pointing at the menu and saying 这个 zhège, then this is a good word to start with.

杯 bēi is the measure word used for glasses or cups. This is an easy one to get used to as we use glass as a measure word in other languages.

To ask for a physical glass you need to add 子 zi at the end (杯子 bēizi).

#5 – 瓶 píng

Similar to 杯 bēi, 瓶 píng is a good measure word to learn for when ordering drinks in bars or restaurants.

瓶 píng is the quantifier for bottles, it’s helpful to learn so that you can distinguish between ordering a bottle or glass of something.

#6 – 条 tiáo

Now, we’ve come onto a slightly more tricky and obscure measure word because the connection between words it’s used for doesn’t seem immediately obvious.

It may seem strange to have the same measure word for fish and road. What do they have in common?

However, it actually makes sense, in general this measure word is used for long, narrow or skinny objects and animals.

You’ll see that this measure word appears in quite a few different categories.

#7 – 件 jiàn

This is a measure word that has quite a few broad uses. 件 jiàn is used for some items of clothing, presents or problems/matters.

👕 一件 T 恤 Yī jiàn T xù A T-shirt

🎁 三件礼物 sān jiàn lǐ wù Three presents

❗[一件事] yī jiàn shì One matter or problem

Unlike 条 tiáo, it isn’t clear how these words are all connected!

#8 – 块 kuài

Most people will be familiar with the measure word 块 kuài which is used as the colloquial classifier for 元 yuán. However, it is also used for big pieces of something, portions and wristwatches.

#9 – 家 jiā

This is another word that most people will be familiar with as it’s the word for home or family.

But, 家 jiā is also a measure word and is used for families or business establishments.

#10 – 只 zhī

In general 只 zhī is the go to measure word for animals, although not all animals. (You can have a look at the animals section to see which).

It is also used for body parts that come in pairs, to mean “one of a pair”.

#11 – 辆 liàng

The measure word 辆 liàng is used for vehicles with wheels, although not for trains (check out the transport section).

#12 – 双 shuāng

This is the measure word for pairs. However, 双 shuāng is not used for all things you would say pair for in English. For example as we saw earlier the measure word for a pair of trousers is actually 条 tiáo.

PRO TIP: If you select a word in Pleco many words will have the appropriate measure word at the bottom of the page

Chinese Measure Words – People and Animals

First up in our categories is people and animals. Some of these measure words we’ve already covered in the most common measure words section.

People

Animals

There are four different measure words used for animals in Chinese.

🐦🐕🐘 只 zhī – Used for most animals including birds

🐖🐄 头 tóu – Bigger animals, normally livestock

🐎 匹 pǐ – Horses, mules etc.

🐟🐍🐉 条 tiáo – Fish, snakes

Chinese Measure Words – Body Parts

Here are the six Chinese measure words used for classifying body parts in Chinese.

😀👄 张 zhāng – Measure word for face, mouth

👆🏼 根 gēn – Thin, slender body parts e.g. finger, a hair

➡️🖐🏼🤚🏼只 zhī – For body parts, this means “one of a pair”.

🦵🏼 条 tiáo – Long, narrow body parts

👀 双 shuāng – A pair of body parts

🦷❤️ 颗 kē – Small, normally round body parts

Chinese Measure Words – Food

This is the must read category for anyone who wants to improve their restaurant ordering skills.

碗 wǎn – For food in bowl

份 fèn – For one portion of a fixed menu in a restaurant

串 chuàn – Skewer

盘 pán – dish, and can be used for a plate of food

锅 guō – Pot, pan, boiler

笼 lóng – Bamboo or wooden utensil for steaming food

碟 dié – Small plate

顿 dùn – Meal

片 piàn – Thin slice of food

块 kuài – A portion, piece or thick slice of food

包 bāo – Pack, packet or bag

盒 hé – Box or carton

In our most common measure words we already saw the words for bottle (瓶 píng) and glass (杯 bēi), here are a couple more…

听 tīng – Can

罐 guàn – Jar, pot, tin

Make sure to have a look at guide to reading a Chinese menu, for more tips on ordering food at restaurants.

Chinese Measure Words – Plants, Fruit and Vegetables

Plants

There are three Chinese measure words used for plants.

Fruit and Vegetables

The measure words for fruit and vegetables tend to describe the size and shape of them. There are also some fruit or vegetables such as apples or aubergines, where you can just use 个 gè.

根 gēn – Long slender objects; thin, flexible strands

颗 kē – Small objects, objects appearing small (hearts, pearls, diamonds, teeth, satellites, etc.)

粒 lì – Grain; classifier for small round things (seeds, peas, bullets, peanuts, pills, grains etc.)

头 tóu – Bulb

瓣 bàn – For segment, section, clove (normally 儿 is added)

把 bǎ – For a quantity of things that can be held in one hand

Chinese Measure Words – Vehicles and Buildings

Vehicles

We already saw the measure word for most wheeled vehicles in our most common measure words sections.

But what about the measure words for other modes of transport in Chinese?

Buildings

If you’ve ever written put your address in Chinese for a food delivery app or Taobao, then you may have seen some of these measure words for buildings included in your address.

座 zuò – Measure word for big buildings, mountains, bridges

栋 dòng – Measure word for buildings

间 jiān – Room

所 suǒ – For buildings whose purposes are explicitly stated

家 jiā – As seen in our most common words this is the measure word for families or businesses

Chinese Measure Words – Household Items

Appliances/Electronics

台 tái – Heavy objects (TVs, computers, etc.)

部 bù – Measure word for small devices, films, machines, dictionaries, etc.

盏 zhǎn – Lamp

Daily use items

把 bǎ – Most commonly used to quantify objects that can be grasped or objects with a handle

床 chuáng – Used for bedsheets (床 chuáng is also the word for bed)

条 tiáo – Towel, tablecloth

Furniture

张 zhāng – Rectangular or flat objects (we saw this one earlier in the most common Chinese measure words list)

扇 shàn – Door or window: open and close on hinges

扇 shàn – Door or window: open and close on hinges

Some furniture uses the generic 个 as well

Chinese Measure Words – Clothing and Jewellery

In the most common measure word section we will have seen the word 件 jiàn which can be used for most articles of clothing. However, here are some other measure words also used for clothing.

If you have an interest in clothes or just want to know vocab for some online shopping, have a look at our guides to clothes in Chinese and jewellery in Chinese.

Clothes in Chinese 👗 The Complete Guide to 101 Different Clothing Items (with Quiz)

The Ultimate Guide For Talking About Clothes in Chinese Perhaps you’re just interested in knowing different types of clothes in Chinese, or maybe you want to know specific vocab to use when shopping for clothes on Taobao. Either way our…

Chinese Measure Words – Time

These are definitely some important measure words to learn. Be careful though, as some of them are only used in writing, and aren’t really used in spoken Chinese.

Some words that indicate an amount of time can’t be used on their own and need to have the measure word 个 gè used as part of them:

Chinese Measure Words – Units of Measure

Next, are some Chinese measure words for units of measure. The weight units of measure are especially helpful to learn for shopping for fresh ingredients such as fruit and vegetables.

Weight

Length

As you can see a Chinese inch and a Chinese foot, is not the same length as those used in the west – so be careful you don’t get confused!

Money

If you’re heading to Beijing, Shanghai, or anywhere else in China, these measure words will come up in almost every transaction.

TIP💡 In everyday speech, Chinese people almost always say 块 (kuài) and 毛 (máo) rather than the formal 元 and 角. You’ll hear ‘shí wǔ kuài’ (15 yuan) constantly. The formal versions appear on receipts, menus, and official signage.

Volume and Degree

More units of measurement can be found in our complete guide to measurements in Chinese.

Chinese Measure Words by HSK Level

If you’re studying for the HSK exam, here’s a quick breakdown of which measure words appear at each level. LTL’s teachers build these into lessons from day one, they’re the foundation of our 98% HSK pass rate.

HSK 1
个 (gè), 岁 (suì / age), 块 (kuài / money), 本 (běn / books), 杯 (bēi / cups)

HSK 2
张 (zhāng / flat objects), 条 (tiáo / long & narrow), 件 (jiàn / items & clothing), 瓶 (píng / bottles), 只 (zhī / animals & hands)

HSK 3
位 (wèi / polite people), 双 (shuāng / pairs), 层 (céng / floors & layers), 次 (cì / occurrences), 遍 (biàn / actions from start to finish)

HSK 4+
More specific classifiers: 篇 (piān / articles & essays), 幅 (fú / paintings), 架 (jià / aircraft & machines), 棵 (kē / trees), 颗 (kē / small round objects)

TIP💡 For HSK 1 and 2, focus on the 12 most common measure words in this guide. For HSK 3 and above, start learning measure words alongside the nouns they pair with, it’s much easier than memorising them in isolation.

Studying for the HSK? LTL has a 98% HSK pass rate. Our teachers know exactly which measure words examiners test at each level, and how to make sure you’re ready.

Common Mistakes with Chinese Measure Words

Every student makes these, including plenty of LTL students in their first weeks. Knowing them in advance saves you a lot of embarrassment. 🤔

1. Skipping the measure word entirely
Saying ‘三书’ (sān shū) instead of ‘三本书’ (sān běn shū) is the most common beginner error. In English, you can often get away with dropping classifiers. In Mandarin, you really can’t. The measure word is not optional.

2. Using 个 (gè) for everything
个 is your safety net, not your permanent solution. ‘三个书’ instead of ‘三本书’ will be understood, but it signals beginner level immediately. Aim to replace 个 with the correct measure word as you learn each category.

3. Confusing 两 (liǎng) and 二 (èr)
Before measure words, use 两 (liǎng), not 二 (èr). ‘两本书’ ✅ / ‘二本书’ ❌. The number 二 is used in other contexts (maths, phone numbers, ordinal lists) but not before measure words.

4. Using the wrong tone on 一 (yī)
一 changes tone depending on what follows: yí before 4th tone, yì before 1st/2nd/3rd tone. This doesn’t change the measure word, but it changes how natural you sound.

5. Using a Cantonese or regional measure word
If you’ve picked up some Cantonese or have family from southern China, watch out, some measure words differ. Stick to standard Mandarin classifiers in HSK contexts.

How to Memorise Chinese Measure Words // Strategies That Work

Don’t try to memorise all of them at once, that’s the fastest way to forget them all. Here’s what actually works:

1. Learn the measure word with the noun, not separately
When you learn a new noun, learn its measure word at the same time. Don’t learn 书 (shū / book) in isolation, learn 一本书 (yī běn shū / one book) as a unit. This is how LTL teachers build vocabulary from week one.

2. Use shape and function as a memory hook
Many measure words group nouns by physical shape:

• Long, narrow things → 条 (tiáo): roads, fish, rivers, trousers
• Flat things → 张 (zhāng): paper, tickets, tables, beds
• Round or small things → 颗 (kē): stars, seeds, teeth
• Bound volumes → 本 (běn): books, notebooks, magazines

Once you see the pattern, the groupings start to feel logical. 💡

3. Use flashcard apps with sentence context
Pleco and Skritter let you drill measure words in sentence context, not just in isolation. Always practise with a full Number + Measure Word + Noun sentence.

4. Immersion is the accelerant
Nothing beats hearing measure words used naturally, all day, every day. Students who spend time in Beijing or Shanghaiand ordering food, buying tickets, and shopping internalise these patterns in weeks rather than months. That’s the LTL experience.

💡 Want to learn measure words in the classroom, not just from a list?

At LTL, we teach Chinese in small groups with native-speaking teachers across Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Taipei, and more. Our students live, breathe and dream the language, and measure words become automatic far faster when you’re using them in real conversations every day.

Chinese Measure Words – Pairs, Collections and Groups

Pairs

We’ve already seen two of these in the clothes and jewellery section, but they can also be used as measure words in other situations.

Collections and Groups

In Chinese, there are also quite a few different measure words for collections and groups of people or objects.

If you made it this far, congratulations, you’ve officially mastered the measure words in Chinese!

Now let’s see how if you can hear them in conversation here. Watch this video and write down all the measure words you spot!

So what did you think? Did you enjoy our guide? Did you learn anything new?

Drop us a comment below if you have any questions or even requests for further articles or videos – we are always all ears!

Measure words can feel unnatural at first, but with regular practice, or by learning in a structured setting like a semester in a city where it’s spoken every day, they gradually become part of your everyday thinking.

If you want to push your language skills even further, why not check out our guide to Vietnamese Measure Words as well, because learning more languages is just fun!

FREE DOWNLOAD – Measure Words PDF

As that might’ve been a lot to take in (don’t worry, it gets easier)… we thought it’d be a good thing to spend some hours creating the perfect PDF for you guys to download, FREE!

Yes indeed, there is no catch, no email to hand over, no donations – we create them out of sheer love for the language, and our readers!

It took us some time to make so we really hope you like it and use it.

TEST YOURSELF – Our Measure Words Quiz

So we’ve done everything we can! We’ve held your hand until this far, but now it’s time to go it along and take on the Measure Words yourself!

Don’t worry, we believe in you!

This quiz is really simple to follow – every question has four options so just take a guess if you don’t know.

Results are immediate and if you like, why not share your score below?

Time's up

Chinese Measure Words – FAQs

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