1 · Nouns, numbers and measure words
Two kinds of two: èr and liǎng
the counting two and the two of something
Èr is the digit you count with; liǎng is the two you have of something.
Chinese has two words for “two”. 二 is the number as a number: you count 一、二、三, and you use it in maths, in ordinals (第二, second), in the names of months (二月, February) and in phone and room numbers. 两 is “two of something”: it stands before a measure word — 两个人, two people, 两本书, two books.
So the practical test is what follows. If a measure word comes next, a single two is 两. This includes the nouns that count themselves: 两天, two days, 两年, two years, and the clock, 两点, two o'clock.
At the end of a longer number the two is always 二, even before a measure word: 十二个, twelve, 二十二个, twenty-two — never “ten-liǎng”. At the front of the big place words both are heard: 两百 and 二百 are both two hundred, while 两千 and 两万 are much more common than the forms with 二.
English has one “two”, so learners tend to use the one they learned first, while counting — and say “èr ge” for two people. It is one of the first mistakes a Chinese ear notices. Prices show both words side by side: 两块二 is two yuan twenty, 两 before the measure word 块, 二 for the twenty cents at the end.
The form
| counting | 一、二、三 |
| two of something | 两个人 |
| twelve of something | 十二个人 |
| the second | 第二天 |
| two o'clock | 两点 |
| two yuan twenty | 两块二 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
Before a measure word, a two on its own is 两.
我有两个妹妹。I have two younger sisters.
At the end of a longer number it is always 二, even before a measure word.
我们班有二十二个学生。Our class has twenty-two students.
For counting, ordinals, months and dates, use 二.
她的生日是二月十四号。Her birthday is on the fourteenth of February.
Before 千 and 万, 两 is the usual choice.
这台电视两千块。This television costs two thousand yuan.
A closer look
Two in prices and weights
Prices follow the rule exactly. ¥2.20 is 两块二: 两 because the measure word 块 follows, 二 because the twenty cents stand at the end and their measure word is dropped. ¥22 is 二十二块, because there the two ends a longer number.
Markets and restaurants still weigh in two traditional units: 斤, half a kilo, and 两, a tenth of a 斤. Two 斤 is 两斤 as expected; but two of the unit 两 is 二两, because “liǎng liǎng” is avoided. In the north, dumplings and noodles are often ordered this way.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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the measure word is the old weight 两 itself
the two before it is 二: 二两, a hundred grams.
我要二两饺子。I'd like two liang of dumplings.
Two identical syllables in a row are avoided, so the counting two steps in.
How to spot it
- 两个
- 二
- 第二
- 两点
Example sentences
桌子上有两杯咖啡。There are two cups of coffee on the table.
我在北京住了两年。I lived in Beijing for two years.
我们两点见。See you at two.
我儿子今年十二岁。My son is twelve this year.
我买了两斤苹果。I bought two jin of apples.
他是我们班的第二名。He came second in our class.
8 more example sentences
我要两张票。I'd like two tickets.
这个面包两块五。This bread roll is two yuan fifty.
这部电影有两个小时。The film is two hours long.
我们在二号门见。Let's meet at gate two.
五减三等于二。Five minus three is two.
他有两个孩子，一个儿子，一个女儿。He has two children, a son and a daughter.
我等了你二十分钟。I waited twenty minutes for you.
飞机下午两点半起飞。The plane takes off at half past two in the afternoon.
Worth knowing (1)
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Two o'clock and two minutes
The clock follows the rule exactly. The hour stands before the measure word 点, so two o'clock is 两点 and twelve o'clock 十二点. Minutes below ten are read with 零, and then the two ends the number: 2:02 is 两点零二分.
现在两点零二分。It is two minutes past two.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
二 is the two you learned while counting, so it is the one that comes to mind first. But a number standing directly before a measure word is a quantity, not a digit, and a quantity of two is 两.
Count with èr; have liǎng of something — unless the two ends a longer number.
Your turn
10 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.