RealHSK

HSK 3Lesson 3 of 15 · 4 grammar points

Specific objects and repeated units

Classifier choice helps specify the shape or kind of a noun. Action classifiers distinguish complete passes from occurrences or small acts. Repeated classifiers distribute a property across every relevant member instead of merely increasing a number.

Learning goals (4)
  • Specialized classifiers and units.
  • Bowls and plates.
  • Action measure words.
  • Repeated classifiers.

张

Specialized classifiers and units

Match classifiers to nouns: 一把伞、一双鞋、一辆车、一封信. Units such as 米、斤、公斤 directly measure an amount.

我买了两张票。

Wǒ mǎi le liǎng zhāng piào.

I bought two tickets.

More

一把伞、一双鞋、一张纸、一种办法、一层楼、一封信、一页书、一辆车、一节课、一所学校、一个班、一段话、一头牛、一句话. Units: 一公斤、一斤、一角钱、一毛钱、一刻钟、一米. In mainland everyday measurement 一斤 is 500 grams; keep the regional convention explicit. The source's 句公斤 boundary should be checked against the original table.

Pitfall: The source string 句公斤 needs separator verification; do not teach it as one classifier.

碗

Bowls and plates

碗 and 盘 measure servings or contents. They can also be nouns when discussing the containers themselves.

我们点了两碗面。

Wǒ men diǎn le liǎng wǎn miàn.

We ordered two bowls of noodles.

More

Pitfall: 两碗面 counts servings; 两个碗 counts bowls.

口、回、遍、声

Action measure words

遍 counts complete passes, 回 occurrences, 口 mouthfuls and 声 vocal emissions. Select by the event being measured.

请把课文读一遍。

Qǐng bǎ kè wén dú yī biàn.

Please read the text through once.

More

喝一口 take a sip; 来一回 come once; 看一遍 read/watch through once; 叫一声 call once. Replacing 遍 with 次 removes the explicit full-pass meaning.

Pitfall: 一次 does not necessarily specify a complete pass; 一遍 does.

个个、张张

Repeated classifiers

Reduplicated classifiers such as 个个 and 张张 distribute a statement over each member.

这些学生个个都很认真。

Zhè xiē xué shēng gè gè dōu hěn rèn zhēn.

Every one of these students is conscientious.

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Pitfall: The construction emphasizes each member, not a larger number of members.

Source details (official syllabus)

  • Specialized classifiers and units

    Syllabus item
    （1）专用名量词：把、双、张、种、层、封、页、辆、节、所、班、段、头、句公斤、斤、角、毛、刻、米
    Category
    名量词
    Grammar ID
    grammar-L3-012
    PDF page
    392 (printed 389)

  • Bowls and plates

    Syllabus item
    （2）借用名量词：碗、盘
    Category
    名量词
    Grammar ID
    grammar-L3-013
    PDF page
    392 (printed 389)

  • Action measure words

    Syllabus item
    口、回、遍、声
    Category
    动量词
    Grammar ID
    grammar-L3-014
    PDF page
    392 (printed 389)

  • Repeated classifiers

    Syllabus item
    个个、张张
    Category
    量词重叠
    Grammar ID
    grammar-L3-015
    PDF page
    392 (printed 389)