Chinese Plural

Welcome to the fourth Chinese lesson about the plural. This time we will learn about the singular form and what it looks like in the plural, followed by grammar rules, finally a list of emergency phrases. To hear the pronunciation, just click on the sound icon.

book 书 [shū]

books 书籍 [shū jí]

car 汽车 [qì chē]

cars 汽车 [qì chē]

tree 树 [shù]

trees 树 [shù]

flower 花 [huā]

flowers 花 [huā]

Plural Grammar Rules

The plural is the form which refers to more than one object or person. For example: I speak two languages the plural here is [languages] because it refers to more than one [language]. The examples below use plurals in different ways and places to demonstrate how they look when converted from their singular form.

Grammar + Rules - Chinese + Pronunciation
I speak one language [singular form] 我说一种语言 [wǒ shuì yī zhǒng yǔ yán]
we speak three languages [plural noun] 我们讲三种语言 [wǒ men jiǎng sān zhǒng yǔ yán]
he visits many countries [adverb + plural noun] 他访问了许多国家 [tā fǎng wèn liào xǔ duō guó jiā]
they are happy now [plural pronoun] 现在他们很高兴 [xiàn zài tā men hěn gāo xìng]
she has five red shoes [adjective + plural noun] 她有五只红色的鞋 [tā yǒu wǔ zhī hóng sè de xié]
I want a sandwich without onions [preposition + plural noun] 我想要一个没有洋葱的三明治 [wǒ xiǎng yào yī gè méi yǒu yáng cōng de sān míng zhì]

The following is a list of examples showing both the singular and plural form. This demonstrates how the plural is used with humans, objects and animals.

woman 女人 [nǚ rén]

women 女人 [nǚ rén]

man 男人 [nán rén]

men 男人 [nán rén]

house 房子 [fáng zi]

houses 房屋 [fáng wū]

cup 杯子 [bēi zi]

cups 杯子 [bēi zi]

cow 奶牛 [nǎi niú]

cows 奶牛 [nǎi niú]

horse 马 [mǎ]

horses 马 [mǎ]

Emergency Phrases

Now it's time to practice your Chinese by looking at these phrases which are related to emergencies. Be prepared when traveling abroad, just in case you need help or by offering help to someone else. I recommend writing these expressions down on a notebook before traveling.

English - Chinese - Pronunciation
Help 帮助 [bāng zhù]
Call the ambulance 呼叫救护车 [hū jiào jiù hù chē]
I need a doctor 我需要一个医生 [wǒ xū yào yī gè yī shēng]
Where is the closest pharmacy? 最近的药店在哪里？ [zuì jìn de yào diàn zài nǎ lǐ?]
Are you okay? 你还好吗？ [nǐ hái hǎo ma?]
I am sick 我生病了 [wǒ shēng bìng liǎo]
Call the police 报警 [bào jǐng]

Did you enjoy this lesson about the plural in Chinese? I hope so, if you have any problem with this lesson contact me with questions you have homepage. You can now check the next lesson below.