SkarpChapter 3 of 9
Numbers, Time, and Everyday Counting
Master numbers, basic time expressions, and counting language needed for dates, prices, and everyday situations.
New Words and Phrases: Numbers and Counting
In this step, you will learn key numbers and counting expressions used for age, time, and everyday situations like ordering drinks or talking about books.
| Word | Pronunciation | Translation | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 零 | líng (ling, rising tone) | zero | 我的电话号码有一个零。(There is one zero in my phone number.) |
| 十 | shí (shrr, rising tone) | ten | 现在十点。(It is ten o’clock now.) |
| 二十 | èr shí (are shrr, falling tone + rising tone) | twenty | 我二十岁。(I am twenty years old.) |
| 三十 | sān shí (sahn shrr, high level + rising) | thirty | 她三十岁。(She is thirty years old.) |
| 个 | gè (guh, falling tone) | general measure word (used with many nouns) | 一个人(one person) |
| 本 | běn (buhn, low falling-rising tone) | measure word for books | 三本书(three books) |
| 杯 | bēi (bay, high level tone) | cup / glass (measure word for drinks) | 两杯咖啡(two cups of coffee) |
| 几点 | jǐ diǎn (jee dyen, low tone + falling-rising) | what time? (what hour?) | 现在几点？(What time is it now?) |
Number Patterns and Measure Words
1. Building Numbers (0–99)
Mandarin builds numbers very regularly.
Basic digits 0–10 (review):
- 零 líng – zero
- 一 yī – one
- 二/两 èr / liǎng – two (èr for numbers, liǎng before measure words)
- 三 sān – three
- 四 sì – four
- 五 wǔ – five
- 六 liù – six
- 七 qī – seven
- 八 bā – eight
- 九 jiǔ – nine
- 十 shí – ten
Tens:
- Ten: 十 shí
- Twenty: 二十 èr shí (literally “two ten”)
- Thirty: 三十 sān shí (literally “three ten”)
You can say any number from 11–19 as:
> 十 + digit
Examples:
- 十一 shí yī – eleven
- 十五 shí wǔ – fifteen
For 21, 22, etc., you say:
> (digit)十(digit)
Examples:
- 二十一 èr shí yī – twenty-one
- 三十八 sān shí bā – thirty-eight
From this module’s vocabulary:
- 二十 èr shí – twenty
- 三十 sān shí – thirty
Age pattern:
> subject + number + 岁
- 我二十岁。Wǒ èr shí suì. – I am twenty years old.
- 她三十岁。Tā sān shí suì. – She is thirty years old.
2. Measure Words (个, 本, 杯)
In Mandarin, you usually cannot say “one person” or “three books” directly. You need a measure word between the number and the noun.
Pattern:
> number + measure word + noun
- 个 gè – very common, general measure word
- 一个老师 yí gè lǎoshī – one teacher
- 三个人 sān gè rén – three people
- Example from vocabulary: 一个 人 yí gè rén – one person
- 本 běn – used for books (things with pages bound together)
- 一本书 yì běn shū – one book
- 三本书 sān běn shū – three books
- 杯 bēi – used for cups/glasses of drinks
- 一杯水 yì bēi shuǐ – one cup of water
- 两杯咖啡 liǎng bēi kāfēi – two cups of coffee
Note: When saying “two” before a measure word, Mandarin usually uses 两 liǎng instead of 二 èr:
- 两个人 liǎng gè rén – two people
- 两本书 liǎng běn shū – two books
- 两杯咖啡 liǎng bēi kāfēi – two cups of coffee
3. Asking the Time with 几点 jǐ diǎn
几点 jǐ diǎn literally means “how many o’clock?” and is used to ask the time.
Pattern:
> 现在几点？
> Xiànzài jǐ diǎn?
> What time is it now?
To answer, use:
> 现在 + number + 点。
Examples:
- 现在十点。Xiànzài shí diǎn. – It is ten o’clock now.
- 现在三点。Xiànzài sān diǎn. – It is three o’clock now.
You can connect this with daily actions:
- 我三点喝咖啡。Wǒ sān diǎn hē kāfēi. – I drink coffee at three o’clock.
Practice Dialogue: Time, Age, and Ordering Drinks
In this dialogue, two friends meet in a café. They ask about the time, talk about their ages, and order drinks using numbers and measure words.
Two friends meet at a café and talk about time, age, and ordering drinks.
现在几点？
What time is it now?
现在十点。
It is ten o’clock now.
你几岁？
How old are you?
我二十岁。你呢？
I am twenty years old. And you?
我三十岁。
I am thirty years old.
你要几杯咖啡？
How many cups of coffee do you want?
我要一杯咖啡，还有两杯水。
I want one cup of coffee, and also two cups of water.
好，我们有三个人，要三杯咖啡。
Okay, we have three people, (so we) want three cups of coffee.
Check Your Understanding: Numbers and Measure Words
Choose the best answer based on what you learned about numbers, time, and measure words.
How do you correctly say “three books” in Mandarin Chinese?
- 三本书 (sān běn shū)
- 三个书 (sān gè shū)
- 三杯书 (sān bēi shū)
- 三书 (sān shū)
Show Answer
Answer: A) 三本书 (sān běn shū)
“Book” uses the measure word 本 běn. The correct pattern is number + 本 + 书, so 三本书 (sān běn shū) means “three books.” 个 gè is a general measure word, 杯 bēi is for cups/glasses, and you cannot drop the measure word and just say 三书.
Key Terms
- 个
- gè – very common general measure word used with many nouns (e.g., 一个人 – one person).
- 书
- shū – book; uses 本 běn as the measure word.
- 人
- rén – person/people; often used with 个 as a measure word (e.g., 三个人 – three people).
- 十
- shí – ten; combines with other digits to form numbers like 十一 (11), 二十 (20).
- 岁
- suì – years old; used after numbers to talk about age (e.g., 二十岁 – 20 years old).
- 本
- běn – measure word for books and similar bound volumes (e.g., 三本书 – three books).
- 杯
- bēi – measure word for cups or glasses of drinks (e.g., 两杯咖啡 – two cups of coffee).
- 水
- shuǐ – water; often used with 杯 bēi, as in 一杯水 – one cup of water.
- 零
- líng – zero; used in numbers like phone numbers or prices.
- 三十
- sān shí – thirty; literally “three ten.”
- 二十
- èr shí – twenty; literally “two ten.”
- 几岁
- jǐ suì – how old (for children and casual speech); literally “how many years (of age).”
- 几点
- jǐ diǎn – what time? literally “how many o’clock?” used to ask the hour.
- 咖啡
- kāfēi – coffee; usually counted with 杯 bēi for cups (一杯咖啡 – one cup of coffee).
- 现在
- xiànzài – now; used in time expressions like 现在十点 – it is ten o’clock now.