Measure words
Measure words (量词) indicate the idea and the shape of the items.
What is a measure word
A measure word is a specific part of speech and it should go after a numeral or a demonstrative pronoun, and before the noun indicating the item itself. It refers to the idea and the shape of the item.
In English we also use measure words when we say "one pound of bread", "two slices of bread", "three loaves of bread".
Pay attention
Measure words are also called "classifiers" or "numerative words".
There are different measure words to be used for different categories of nouns.
For example:
张 
is a measure word used for tems with a flat surface such as maps, tables, beds.
一张中国地图
支 is a measure word used for long stick-shaped items: pens, tree branches, sticks.
三支笔
本 is a measure word used for books and all book-like items with a binding: dictionaries, guidebooks, encyclopedias.
一本书
个 is a measure word used for items without a specific identity: people, copybooks, questions. In a phrase it is usually pronounced with a neutral tone.
两个人
is a measure word used for tems with a flat surface such as maps, tables, beds.
一张中国地图
支 is a measure word used for long stick-shaped items: pens, tree branches, sticks.
三支笔
本 is a measure word used for books and all book-like items with a binding: dictionaries, guidebooks, encyclopedias.
一本书
个 is a measure word used for items without a specific identity: people, copybooks, questions. In a phrase it is usually pronounced with a neutral tone.
两个人
Pay attention
If you have no idea which measure word to use, look it up in a dictionary. It is rather difficult to guess the right measure word based on one specific feature of an item. For example, the surface of the book is flat, but you cannot use 张 with this word.
There are a lot of measure words in Chinese. Once in a while, the proper one may slip from your mind or you may not be aware of it. In this case you may use the measure word 个. But you shouldn’t use it every time. Good command of Chinese requires the proper use of measure words.
Measure words with numerals
When we indicate the quantity of items, we need to put a measure word between the numeral and the noun.
Scheme
numeral
how many of the item
measure word
shape / idea
noun
the item name
Examples
一张桌子
One table
yì zhāng zhuōzi
三支笔
Three pens
sān zhī bǐ
Pay attention
When the numeral ‘two’ is used with a measure word, we should use 两 . 二 cannot be used in this case.
. 二 cannot be used in this case.Examples
两个朋友
Two friends
liǎng ge péngyou
The numeral 一 can be dropped. So, if a measure word goes without a numeral, the quantity is equal to one.
can be dropped. So, if a measure word goes without a numeral, the quantity is equal to one.Examples
我有个中国朋友
I have a Chinese friend
wǒ yǒu ge zhōngguó péngyou
Measure words should also be used after the undefined numeral 几 .
.Examples
我有几张照片
I’ve got some photos
wŏ yŏu jĭ zhāng zhàopiàn
Some nominative words in Chinese actually are measure words too. Mostly these are measurement units, and they do not require any measure words.
Examples
一天
One day
yì tiān
四公斤重
Weighs four kilograms
sì gōngjīn zhòng
两分钟
Two minutes
liǎng fēnzhōng
Pay attention
But some measurement units still need measurement words:
一个月
三个小时
几个星期
三个小时
几个星期 Measure words with pronouns
Measure words go after demonstrative pronouns, e.g., 这 and 那 , when such pronouns are followed by a noun.
and 那 , when such pronouns are followed by a noun.Examples
那双鞋
That pair of shoes
nà shuāng xié
这只猫
This cat
zhè zhī māo
Measure words should be also used after the interrogative pronouns 哪 and 几 .
and 几 .Examples
哪个国家？
Which (what) country?
nă ge guójiā
你有几张照片？
How many photos have you got?
nĭ yŏu jĭ zhāng zhàopiàn
Sometimes we don’t include a noun after the pronoun because the noun is implied, but we still need to use a measure word.
Examples
哪个学生是你的弟弟？—— 那个
Which pupil is your little brother? — That one
nǎ ge xuésheng shì nǐ de dìdi — nà ge
Measure words are not obligatory after 多少 .
.Examples
一共多少(个)人？
How many people in total?
yígòng duōshao (ge) rén
Pay attention
There are more than 100 measure words in the Chinese language. You can study the detailed classification below ↓