Ordinal numbers with "di"

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

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. This character is simply placed in front of the number:

第 + Number

Some examples:

• 第一
• 第二
• 第三
• 第四
• 小李 是 他的 第三 个 女朋友。
• 这 是 我 今天 喝 的 第八 瓶 啤酒。
• 我 是 我们 班 第二 高的 人。

Note that some nouns can form ordinals without 第. These include:

• 月
• 楼
• 层
• 姐
• 弟

With these, the number can be used directly. For example, 七楼 is "the seventh floor"，or 二姐 "the second oldest daughter".

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
• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (pp. 183)　→buy