Measure word "ge"

The measure word 个 (ge) is the most common measure word. It can be used in a pinch for any noun if you can't think of a more precise measure word. (Although you might not sound quite as smart, you'll still get your point across.) Also, for many nouns, 个 (ge) is the only correct measure word.

General Structure

Structure

The general structure for 个 (ge)--and measure words in general--is:

Number + 个 + Noun

You can specify the quantity of any noun with this structure. Note that any time you want to state how many of a noun in Chinese, you probably need a measure word. First get used to doing it with 个 (ge).

Examples

• 一 个 球 Yī gè qiúone ball
• 两 个 人 (If you're wondering why it's 两 and not 二，see our article on "Er" and "liang")Liǎng gè réntwo people
• 三 个 苹果 Sān gè píngguǒthree apples
• 四 个 三明治 Sì gè sānmíngzhìfour sandwiches
• 五 个 星期 Wǔ gè xīngqífive weeks
• 六 个 杯子 Liù gè bēizisix cups/glasses
• 七 个 女朋友Qī gè nǚ péngyǒuseven girlfriends
• 八 十 个 小孩 Bāshí gè xiǎoháieighty children
• 一 百 个 美 女 Yībǎi gè měinǚone hundred beautiful girls
• 十 个 男人， 七 个 傻， 八 个 坏 Shí gè nánrén, qī gè shǎ, bā gè huàiten men, seven are fools, and eight are bad

Omitting the number

Structure

Verb + 个 + Noun

If the number is one (1), you can omit it and use 个 (ge) by itself. This is equivalent to a or an in English, for example in "a person" or "an idiot."

Examples

• 他 是 个 好人 。Tā shì gè hǎorén.He is a good person.
• 那 不 是 个 苹果 。Nà bùshì gè píngguǒ.That is not an apple.
• 他 是 个 法国 人 。Tā shì gè Fàguó rén.He is a French person.
• 这 是 个 手机。Zhè shì gè shǒujī.This is a cell phone.
• 我 爸爸 是 个 老板。Wǒ bàba shì gè lǎobǎn.My dad is a boss.
• 你 是 个 好 老师 。Nǐ shì gè hǎo lǎoshī.You are a good teacher.
• 我 有 个 儿子 。Wǒ yǒu gè érzi.I have a son.
• 给 我 个 面包 。Gěi wǒ gè miànbāo.Give me a bun.
• 我 想 吃 个 橙子 。Wǒ xiǎng chī gè chéngzi.I'd like to eat an orange.
• 老师 ， 我 有 个 问题 。Lǎoshī, wǒ yǒu gè wèntí.Teacher, I have a question.

See also

• Counting money
• Measure words in quantity questions
• Measure words for counting
• Measure words to differentiate

Sources and further reading

Books

• Chinese: An Essential Grammar, Second Edition (pp. 21-2) →buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed) (pp. 45-6) →buy
• Chinese: An Essential Grammar, Second Edition (p. 21) →buy

Websites

• Chinese classifier (Wikipedia)