Comparing "bian" and "ci"

Both 遍 (biàn) and 次 (cì) mean how many “times” an action is done.

Sometimes 遍 (biàn) and 次 (cì) can be used interchangeably, each with slightly different meaning.

	遍 (biàn)	次 (cì)
Meaning	doing an action from beginning to end	number of times an action occurs
Part of Speech	measure word	measure word
Formality	formal and informal	formal and informal

The key difference between these words is 遍 means doing an action all the way from the beginning to the end, whereas 次 means the total number of times an action occurs.

Similarities

Common Phrases

These phrases work with both 遍 and 次, although the meaning is slightly different.

读过多～

• 读过多 遍 dú guò duō biàn read many times from beginning to end
• 读过多 次 dú guò duō cì read many times

看过多～

• 看过多 遍 kàn guò duō biàn watched many times from beginning to end
• 看过多 次 kàn guò duō cì watched many times

Example Sentences

In the following sentences, both 遍 and 次 can be used interchangeably:

Differences

Common Phrases

These phrases only work with 遍：

• 再说一 遍 zài shuō yī biàn say again from beginning to end

• 再读一 遍 zài dú yī biàn read again from beginning to end

• 再唱一 遍 zài chàng yī biàn sing again from beginning to end

Example Sentences

In the following sentences, only 遍 can be used:

Common Phrases

These phrases work only with 次：

• 去一 次 qù yī cì go one time

• 去过多 次 qù guò cì went many times

• 参观了一 次 cānguān le yī cì visited one time

Example Sentences

In the following sentences, only 次 can be used: