Grammar Point:
In Chinese, numbers beyond 10,000 follow a different naming pattern compared to English. Understanding how to express bigger numbers in Chinese is essential for effective communication. Let’s explore the structure and naming conventions of Chinese bigger numbers.
Thousands:
To express numbers in the thousands (e.g., 1000, 2000, 3000), the basic numerals are combined with the characters 千 qiān. For example:
1000 – 一千 yì qiān
3000 – 三千 sān qiān
5000 – 五千 wǔ qiān
4781 – 四千七百八十一 sì qiān qī bǎi bā shí yī
8400 – 八千四百 bā qiān sì bǎi
7402 – 七千四百零二 qī qiān sì bǎi líng èr
Special case: 2000
二 èr is the numerical character for “two,” while 两 liǎng is used specifically when counting or expressing a quantity of two. In the case of “2000,” it is more appropriate to use 两千 liǎng qiān as they imply a quantity of two thousand.
- “Two” in Chinese (二 èr and 两 liǎng)
2000 – 两千 liǎng qiān
2893 – 两千八百九十三 liǎng qiān bā bǎi jiǔ shí sān
2222 – 两千两百二十二 liǎng qiān liǎng bǎi èr shí èr
Note: 二千 èr qiān is also understandable and used in some contexts, but 两千 liǎng qiān is more commonly used and considered more standard.
Ten thousands:
In English, you use commas to separate thousands, millions, billions, and so on (e.g., 1,000, 1,000,000). However, in Chinese, a different system is used. Chinese numbers are grouped by ten thousand (万 wàn), similar to how English groups by thousands.
To express bigger numbers, we combine specific Chinese numerals with the word 万 wàn to indicate multiples of ten thousand. Here are some examples:
10,000 – 一万 yí wàn
100,000 – 十万 shí wàn
1,000,000 (one million) – 一百万 yì bǎi wàn
10,000,000 (ten million) – 一千万 yì qiān wàn
22,707 – 两万两千七百零七 liǎng wàn liǎng qiān qī bǎi líng qī
936,103 – 九十三万六千一百零三 jiǔ shí sān wàn liù qiān yì bǎi líng sān
1,492,750 – 一百四九万两千七百五十 yì bǎi sì shí jiǔ wàn liǎng qiān qī bǎi wǔ shí
859,000 – 八十五万九 bā shí wǔ wàn jiǔ
66,200,100 – 六千六百二十万零一百 liù qiān liù bǎi èr shí wàn líng yìbǎi
100 million
To express numbers bigger then 100 million, we combine specific Chinese numerals with the word 亿 yì to indicate multiples of hundred million. Here are some examples:
100,000,000 (one hundred million) – 一亿 yí yì
1,000,000,000 (one billion) – 十亿 shí yì
10,000,000,000 (ten billion) – 一百亿 yì bǎi yì
100,000,000,000 (one hundred billion) – 一千亿 yì qiān yì
572,008,200 五亿七千两百万八千两百
wǔ yì qī qiān liǎng bǎi wàn bā qiān liǎng bǎi
Isn’t it super difficult? Now you can understand the struggle we face when learning English numbers.😏 But don’t worry, I can offer you a trick to help. Simply place the comma every four digits instead of three.
9,200,782,000 ➡️ 92,0078,2000
九十二亿零七十八万两千
jiǔ shí èr yì líng qī shí bā wàn liǎng qiān
Chinese Bigger Numbers
