Measure words by HSK level
In Chinese, a number can’t go straight before a noun. You need a measure word in between: 一本书 (a book), 两张票 (two tickets), 三个人 (three people). The same goes after 这, 那, 哪 and 几: 这本书, 几个人.
Each measure word goes with a group of nouns that share a shape or type: 张 for flat things, 条 for long, narrow things, 辆 for vehicles. Learn each noun together with its measure word, as a phrase, and the pairs soon sound natural. When you are not sure, 个 is the safe choice in speech, though the test will expect the specific one.
HSK 1
| Word | Counts | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 个 gè | The general measure word: people and many everyday things | 一个人 两个苹果 三个问题 |
| 本 běn | Books, magazines, notebooks | 一本书 两本杂志 |
| 件 jiàn | Clothes on the upper body; matters and events | 一件衣服 一件事 |
| 口 kǒu | People in a family | 我家有四口人 |
| 块 kuài | Pieces or lumps; yuan in speech | 一块蛋糕 十块钱 |
| 只 zhī | Many animals; one of a pair | 一只猫 一只手 |
| 家 jiā | Shops, restaurants, companies | 一家饭店 一家公司 |
| 岁 suì | Years of age | 他十岁了 |
HSK 2
| Word | Counts | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 条 tiáo | Long, narrow things: roads, rivers, fish, trousers; news items | 一条路 一条鱼 一条裤子 |
| 位 wèi | People, politely | 一位老师 三位客人 |
| 次 cì | Times something happens | 去过两次 第一次 |
| 间 jiān | Rooms | 一间教室 两间房间 |
| 名 míng | People in a role (formal) | 一名学生 三名医生 |
| 头 tóu | Large animals such as cows and pigs | 一头牛 |
| 包 bāo | Packets and bags of something | 一包茶 一包东西 |
HSK 3
| Word | Counts | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 把 bǎ | Things with a handle; chairs | 一把伞 一把椅子 一把钥匙 |
| 张 zhāng | Flat things: paper, tickets, tables, beds, photos | 一张纸 两张票 一张桌子 |
| 双 shuāng | Pairs | 一双鞋 一双筷子 |
| 辆 liàng | Vehicles with wheels | 一辆车 一辆自行车 |
| 封 fēng | Letters and emails | 一封信 一封邮件 |
| 节 jié | Lessons and class periods | 一节课 |
| 句 jù | Sentences and things said | 一句话 |
| 层 céng | Floors of a building; layers | 三层楼 住在五层 |
| 段 duàn | Sections of time, road or text | 一段时间 一段路 |
| 种 zhǒng | Kinds or types | 一种水果 很多种颜色 |
| 遍 biàn | Times through, from start to finish | 再说一遍 看了三遍 |
HSK 4
| Word | Counts | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 部 bù | Films, phones, long works | 一部电影 一部手机 |
| 场 chǎng | Games, performances, rain and snow | 一场比赛 一场大雨 |
| 道 dào | Questions on a test; dishes of food | 一道题 一道菜 |
| 顿 dùn | Meals | 一顿饭 吃了一顿 |
| 份 fèn | Portions, copies, jobs | 一份工作 一份报纸 |
| 幅 fú | Paintings and pictures | 一幅画 |
| 棵 kē | Trees and plants | 一棵树 |
| 篇 piān | Articles and essays | 一篇文章 |
| 首 shǒu | Songs and poems | 一首歌 |
| 台 tái | Machines: computers, TVs, washing machines | 一台电脑 一台空调 |
| 趟 tàng | Trips somewhere and back | 去一趟超市 |
| 座 zuò | Large fixed things: mountains, bridges, buildings, cities | 一座山 一座桥 |
HSK 5
| Word | Counts | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 朵 duǒ | Flowers and clouds | 一朵花 一朵云 |
| 副 fù | Sets of things that go together, such as glasses | 一副眼镜 |
| 根 gēn | Thin, long things | 一根头发 一根香蕉 |
| 架 jià | Planes and pianos | 一架飞机 |
| 颗 kē | Small round things: stars, teeth, hearts | 一颗星星 一颗牙 |
| 群 qún | Groups and crowds | 一群人 一群羊 |
| 套 tào | Sets; flats and houses | 一套房子 一套衣服 |
| 支 zhī | Pens; teams and songs | 一支笔 一支球队 |
| 匹 pǐ | Horses | 一匹马 |
HSK 6
| Word | Counts | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 扇 shàn | Doors and windows | 一扇门 一扇窗户 |
| 栋 dòng | Buildings | 一栋楼 |
| 艘 sōu | Ships and boats | 一艘船 |
| 顶 dǐng | Hats and tents | 一顶帽子 |
| 串 chuàn | Bunches and strings of things | 一串葡萄 一串钥匙 |
| 滴 dī | Drops | 一滴水 |
| 粒 lì | Grains and small pieces | 一粒米 |
| 盘 pán | Plates of food; games of chess | 一盘菜 |
How measure words come up on the HSK
- Listening (HSK 1–3): the measure word often tells you which picture is right. 一条 points to something long, 一张 to something flat.
- Reading gap fills (HSK 2–4): a gap before a noun after a number almost always needs a measure word. Check that it matches the noun.
- Writing (HSK 3–4): when you write a sentence with a given noun, adding the right measure word is an easy way to show accuracy.
Common mistakes
- Leaving it out: 三书 is wrong; say 三本书.
- Using 二 before a measure word: say 两个人, not 二个人. See 两 and 二.
- Words that already count: 天, 年 and 岁 take no measure word (三天, 两年), but 星期 and 月 do (三个星期, 两个月).
- 次 and 遍: 次 counts how many times something happens; 遍 means from start to finish (看了三遍 = read it three times through).
For the basic pattern with numbers and 这/那, see the HSK 1 grammar point on measure words.
All measure words on the HSK 1–6 lists
The 2025 syllabus marks 153 words at HSK 1–6 as measure words, including units such as 公斤 and 米. Those not covered above:
- 点 diǎn HSK 1
- 对 duì HSK 1
- 分 fēn HSK 1
- 分钟 fēnzhōng HSK 1
- 号 hào HSK 1
- 回 huí HSK 1
- 年 nián HSK 1
- 日 rì HSK 1
- 天 tiān HSK 1
- 下 xià HSK 1
- 些 xiē HSK 1
- 一下 yíxià HSK 1
- 一点儿 yìdiǎnr HSK 1
- 一些 yìxiē HSK 1
- 元 yuán HSK 1
- 班 bān HSK 2
- 笔 bǐ HSK 2
- 点 diǎn HSK 2
- 面 miàn HSK 2
- 时 shí HSK 2
- 一会儿 yíhuìr HSK 2
- 周 zhōu HSK 2
- 半天 bàntiān HSK 3
- 公斤 gōngjīn HSK 3
- 角 jiǎo HSK 3
- 斤 jīn HSK 3
- 刻 kè HSK 3
- 毛 máo HSK 3
- 米 mǐ HSK 3
- 起 qǐ HSK 3
- 声 shēng HSK 3
- 页 yè HSK 3
- 倍 bèi HSK 4
- 等 děng HSK 4
- 队 duì HSK 4
- 公里 gōnglǐ HSK 4
- 管 guǎn HSK 4
- 克 kè HSK 4
- 俩 liǎ HSK 4
- 两 liǎng HSK 4
- 列 liè HSK 4
- 秒 miǎo HSK 4
- 排 pái HSK 4
- 片 piàn HSK 4
- 期 qī HSK 4
- 千克 qiānkè HSK 4
- 摄氏度 shèshìdù HSK 4
- 身 shēn HSK 4
- 通 tōng HSK 4
- 项 xiàng HSK 4
- 夜 yè HSK 4
- 组 zǔ HSK 4
- 半夜 bànyè HSK 5
- 册 cè HSK 5
- 单 dān HSK 5
- 堵 dǔ HSK 5
- 度 dù HSK 5
- 堆 duī HSK 5
- 吨 dūn HSK 5
- 行 háng HSK 5
- 伙 huǒ HSK 5
- 级 jí HSK 5
- 集 jí HSK 5
- 届 jiè HSK 5
- 类 lèi HSK 5
- 厘米 límǐ HSK 5
- 派 pài HSK 5
- 批 pī HSK 5
- 首次 shǒucì HSK 5
- 束 shù HSK 5
- 所 suǒ HSK 5
- 团 tuán HSK 5
- 眼 yǎn HSK 5
- 阵 zhèn HSK 5
- 版 bǎn HSK 6
- 成 chéng HSK 6
- 尺 chǐ HSK 6
- 寸 cùn HSK 6
- 番 fān HSK 6
- 毫米 háomǐ HSK 6
- 毫升 háoshēng HSK 6
- 户 hù HSK 6
- 环 huán HSK 6
- 局 jú HSK 6
- 卷 juǎn HSK 6
- 卷 juàn HSK 6
- 款 kuǎn HSK 6
- 轮 lún HSK 6
- 捧 pěng HSK 6
- 平方 píngfāng HSK 6
- 平方米 píngfāngmǐ HSK 6
- 升 shēng HSK 6
- 线 xiàn HSK 6
- 样 yàng HSK 6
- 一阵 yízhèn HSK 6
- 章 zhāng HSK 6
- 枝 zhī HSK 6
- 株 zhū HSK 6