Ordinal numbers with "di"

Also known as: 序数 (xùshù), ordinals and sequence numbers.

We use ordinal numbers to express things like "number one" or "second," so mastering them in Chinese is important. Fortunately, they are also very easy to learn by just adding the prefix 第 (dì).

Basic Usage

In English, there are four different suffixes for ordinal numbers: -st, -nd, -rd and -th. Chinese makes things a lot simpler by using one prefix for all ordinal numbers: 第 (dì). This character is simply placed in front of the number:

Structure

第 + Number

Examples

Chinese	English
第 一 Dì yī	The first
第 二 Dì èr	The second
第 三 Dì sān	The third
第 四 Dì sì	The fourth
第 五 Dì wǔ	The fifth
第 六 Dì liù	The sixth
第 七 Dì qī	The seventh
第 八 Dì bā	The eighth
第 九 Dì jiǔ	The ninth
第 十 Dì shí	The tenth

Full Pattern

You can also add in a [measure word] (MW) and a [noun] to make the structure a bit fuller.

Structure

第 + Number （+ Measure word + Noun）

Examples

• 我 是 第 一 个 到 公司 的 人。 Wǒ shì dì yī gè dào gōngsī de rén. I'm the first person that came to the office.
• 他 要 坐 早上 第 一 �班 �地铁 去 上班。 Tā yào zuò zǎoshangdì yī bān dìtiě qù shàngbān. He needs to take the first metro to go to work in the morning.
• 小李 是 她 的 第 三 个 男朋友 。 Xiǎo Lǐ shì tā de dì sān gè nánpéngyou. Little Li is her third boyfriend.
• 我 的 第 一 个中文 老师 是 美国 人 。 Wǒ de dì yī gè Zhōngwén lǎoshī shì Měiguó rén. My first Chinese teacher was American.
• 爸爸 的 第 一 个手机 是 NOKIA。 Bàba de dì yī gè shǒujī shì NOKIA. Dad‘s first cellphone was NOKIA.
• 你 的 第 一 个工作 是 什么？Wǒ de dì yī gè gōngzuò shì fúwùyuán. My first job was a waiter.
• 我们 今天 学 第 三 课。 Wǒmen jīntiān xué dì sān kè. Today we study the third lesson.
• 第 二 行 第 五 个 汉字 怎么 读？ dì èrháng dì wǔ gè hànzi zěnme dú? How do you read the fifth character from the second line?
• 这 次 考试 ， 我 是 我们 班 第 一 。 Zhè cì kǎoshì, wǒ shì wǒmen bān dì yī. This time testing, I was the first in our class. (Meaning: I was the best in class)
• 这 次 比赛，我们 班 第 一 ， 他们 班 第 二 。 Zhè cì bǐsài, wǒmen bān dì yī, tāmen bān dì èr. In this contest, our class is the first, their class is the second. (Meaning: We are the best, they are the second best)

Note that there are some words that don't use measure words because they themselves are already measure words. For example: 天 (tiān), 年 (nián), 周 (zhōu), 次 (cì) etc.

• 第 一 天 ， 我们 在 宾馆 里 。 Dì yī tiān, wǒmen zài bīnguǎn lǐ. On the first day, we will be in the hotel.
• 第 二 天 ， 我们 去 了 长城 。 Dì èr tiān, wǒmen qù le Chángchéng. On the second day, we went to the Great Wall.
• 这 是 我 第 一 次 去 北京 。 Zhè shì wǒ dì yī cì qù Běijīng. This is my first time going to Beijing.

Exceptions

Note that some nouns can form ordinals without 第 (dì). With these, the number can be used directly. For example, 七楼 (qī lóu) is "the seventh floor," or 二姐 (Èr jiě) "the second oldest sister." A more complete list of these nouns can be found below.

Chinese	English	Example
楼 Lóu	Floor of a building	七楼 (qī lóu) Seventh floor
层 Céng	Floor of a building	一层 (Yī céng) First floor
哥 Gē	Older brother	二哥 (Èr gē) Second oldest brother
姐 Jiě	Older sister	二姐 (Èr jiě) Second oldest sister
弟 Dì	Younger brother	二弟 (Èr dì) Second (younger) brother
妹 Mèi	Younger sister	二妹 (Èr mèi) Second (younger) sister

See also

• Measure words for counting

Sources and further reading

• A Practical Chinese Grammar For Foreigners (外国人实用汉语语法) (pp. 58-73) →buy
• Chinese: An Essential Grammar, Second Edition (pp. 17-8) →buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed) (p. 183) →buy