Table of Contents

Grammar Point · HSK 3

8 Measure Words — 公斤公斤 gōngjīn, 斤斤 jīn, 角角 jiǎo, 毛毛 máo, 刻刻 kè, 米米 mǐ, 碗碗 wǎn, 盤盘 pán

This set covers units of weight, money, time, and length, plus two food-serving measure words — the ones you’ll actually need at the market, the cash register, and the dinner table.

The pattern is always Number + Measure Word + Noun. Some of these — like 斤 jīn and 角 jiǎo / 毛 máo — are units specific to Chinese-speaking regions, so they’re worth learning as their own concepts rather than translating literally.

1 Quick Reference

A cheat sheet before diving into examples.

Word	Used For	Example Nouns
公斤公斤 gōngjīn	Weight — kilogram	fruit, luggage, body weight
斤斤 jīn	Weight — jin (about 600g)	meat, vegetables at the market
角角 jiǎo	Money — one-tenth of a yuan (formal)	prices, receipts, change
毛毛 máo	Money — one-tenth of a yuan (casual)	everyday spoken prices
刻刻 kè	Time — a quarter hour	telling time
米米 mǐ	Length — meter	distance, height, width
碗碗 wǎn	Container — bowl	rice, soup, noodles
盤盘 pán	Container — plate or dish	stir-fries, side dishes

2 Usage

公斤公斤 gōngjīn — Kilogram

这箱zhè xiāng苹果píngguǒ重zhòng五公斤wǔ gōngjīn

This box of apples weighs five kilograms.

医生yīshēng建议jiànyì我wǒ减少jiǎnshǎo三公斤sān gōngjīn

The doctor suggested I lose three kilograms.

斤斤 jīn — The “Jin”

老板lǎobǎn，我wǒ要yào两斤liǎngjīn牛肉niúròu

Boss, I’d like two jin of beef.

一斤yìjīn大概dàgài等于děngyú十二两shí’èr liǎng

One jin is roughly equal to twelve liǎng.

Good to Know

How much a 斤斤 jīn actually weighs depends on where you are: in Taiwan, one 斤 is 600g. In mainland China, one 斤 is 500g. Same character, different real-world weight — worth knowing if you’re doing math at the market.

角角 jiǎo — One-Tenth of a Yuan (Formal)

这枝zhè zhī笔bǐ五块wǔ kuài三角sān jiǎo

This pen costs five yuan and three jiao.

找zhǎo您nín两角liǎng jiǎo

Here’s your two jiao in change.

Good to Know

角角 jiǎo and 毛毛 máo are the exact same unit — one-tenth of a 塊块 kuài / 元元 yuán. 角角 jiǎo is the formal, written form you’ll see printed on receipts and price tags, while 毛毛 máo is what people actually say out loud.

毛毛 máo — One-Tenth of a Yuan (Casual)

一杯yìbēi水shuǐ才cái五毛wǔ máo钱qián

A cup of water is only five mao.

便宜piányí一点yìdiǎn，少shǎo一毛yì máo也好yě hǎo

Cheaper is fine — even one mao less helps.

刻刻 kè — A Quarter Hour

现在xiànzài是shì三点sān diǎn一刻yíkè

It’s now a quarter past three.

请qǐng等děng我wǒ一刻钟yíkè zhōng

Please wait fifteen minutes for me.

米米 mǐ — Meter

这条zhè tiáo河hé大约dàyuē有yǒu十米shí mǐ宽kuān

This river is about ten meters wide.

他tā一百米yìbǎi mǐ跑pǎo得de很快hěnkuài

He runs the hundred meters very fast.

碗碗 wǎn — Bowl

我wǒ今天jīntiān吃chī了le两碗liǎngwǎn饭fàn

I ate two bowls of rice today.

妈妈māma煮zhǔ了le一碗yìwǎn汤tāng给gěi我wǒ

Mom made a bowl of soup for me.

盤盘 pán — Plate or Dish

服务生fúwùshēng端来duānlái一盘yìpán炒饭chǎofàn

The waiter brought over a plate of fried rice.

这盘zhèpán菜cài看起来kànqǐlái很好吃hěnhǎochī

This dish looks delicious.

3 Practice Quiz

Fill in the blank with the correct measure word.

这颗zhè kē西瓜xīguā重zhòng八bā ＿＿＿。

This watermelon weighs eight kilograms.

我wǒ买mǎi了le三sān ＿＿＿猪肉zhūròu。

I bought three jin of pork.

这个zhège包包bāobāo十二块shí’èr kuài五wǔ ＿＿＿。

This bag costs twelve yuan and five jiao.

找zhǎo我wǒ两liǎng ＿＿＿钱qián。

Give me two mao in change.

现在xiànzài十点shí diǎn一yí ＿＿＿。

It’s now a quarter past ten.

这条zhè tiáo路lù长cháng两百liǎngbǎi ＿＿＿。

This road is two hundred meters long.

我wǒ要yào一yì ＿＿＿面miàn。

I want a bowl of noodles.

这zhè ＿＿＿青菜qīngcài很好吃hěnhǎochī。

This plate of vegetables is delicious.

我的wǒde体重tǐzhòng掉diào了le两liǎng ＿＿＿。

My weight dropped two kilograms.

请qǐng给gěi我wǒ半bàn ＿＿＿葡萄pútáo。

Please give me half a jin of grapes.

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Chinese Measure Words 5

8 Measure Words — 公斤公斤 gōngjīn, 斤斤 jīn, 角角 jiǎo, 毛毛 máo, 刻刻 kè, 米米 mǐ, 碗碗 wǎn, 盤盘 pán

1 Quick Reference