Difference between revisions of "Expressing "half" with "ban""

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天 (tiān) and 年 (nián) aren't the ''only'' words that take this alternate pattern, but they're the two key ones you need to learn first.
  
 
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Number + 天/年 + 半
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Revision as of 09:06, 19 March 2016

Chinese-grammar-wiki-ban.jpg

The Chinese word 半 (bàn) means "half." That's simple enough, but what can get slightly tricky is the rules for how it combines with measure words.

Standard Usage

Used alone

Structure

半 + Measure Word + Noun

Examples

The measure words are also indicated below.

  • 小时 bàn xiǎoshíhalf an hour
  • bàn yuèhalf a month
  • 米饭 bàn wǎn mǐfànhalf a bowl of rice
  • bàn píng jiǔhalf a bottle of liquor
  • 炒面 bàn fèn chǎomiànhalf a serving of chow mein

With a Number

When it's more than just a half, then 半 (bàn) comes after the measure word instead of before. It's the difference between "half an hour" and "an hour and a half." The order is actually basically the same as what we do in English (we just don't have so many pesky measure words to keep track of in English!).

Structure

Number + Measure Word + 半 + Noun

Examples

  • 小时 sān bàn xiǎoshíthree and a half hours
  • liǎng bàn yuètwo and a half months
  • 水果 jīn bàn shuǐguǒ one and a half (kilograms) of fruit
  • 白酒 píng bàn báijiǔ one and a half bottles of wine
  • 巧克力 kuài bàn qiǎokèlì four and a half pieces of chocolate

Notable Exceptions

There are some words that act as their own measure words, notably the time words 天 (tiān), meaning "day," and 年 (nián), meaning "year."

Used alone

Structure

半 + 天/年

Examples

  • bàn tiān half a day
  • bàn niánhalf a year

Note that you do not need to use 个 (ge) here; in fact, it's wrong to do so:

  • bàn tiānhalf a day
  • bàn nián half a year

With a Number

天 (tiān) and 年 (nián) aren't the only words that take this alternate pattern, but they're the two key ones you need to learn first.

Structure

Number + 天 / 年 + 半

Examples

  • liǎng tiān bàntwo and a half days
  • nián bàna year and a half
  • sān tiān bànthree and a half days
  • nián bànfour and a half years

See also