1 · Nouns, numbers and measure words
The suffix men: a plural for people
plural pronouns and groups of people
Men makes the pronouns plural and can follow a noun for people — and nothing else.
Chinese nouns have no plural. 书 is “book” or “books”, and a number, a word like 很多 or simply the situation tells which. The one ending that looks like a plural is 们, in the neutral tone. With the personal pronouns it is obligatory: 我们 we, 你们 you, 他们 they.
After a noun, 们 is possible only with people, and even there it is optional: 朋友们, 孩子们, 老师们. It points to a definite group — the friends, the children we are talking about — and it is common when you address a group: 同学们, “everyone” to a class, 女士们, 先生们, “ladies and gentlemen”.
Two things 们 never does. It never stands together with a number or another word of quantity — “three students” is 三个学生, because the number has already said that there are several. And it does not go on things: books, tables and cars stay as they are.
Spoken Chinese has one word for “they”: tāmen. Writing distinguishes 他们 for men or mixed groups, 她们 for women only, and 它们 for animals and things. And in the north there is a second “we”, 咱们, which always includes the person you are talking to.
The form
| we, you, they | 我们、你们、他们 |
| a group of people | 朋友们 |
| speaking to a group | 同学们，早上好！ |
| with a number: no men | 三个学生 |
| things: no men | 很多书 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
Personal pronouns take 们 in the plural.
我们明天一起去吧。Let's go together tomorrow.
A noun for people can take 们 when it means a definite group.
孩子们在外面玩儿。The children are playing outside.
们 never stands together with a number.
我在北京有三个朋友。I have three friends in Beijing.
Things take no 们.
桌子上有很多书。There are a lot of books on the table.
A closer look
Wǒmen and zánmen
我们 can mean “we, including you” or “we, but not you”. 咱们 can only mean the first: a guide who says 咱们走吧 is taking the whole group along, while 我们明天走，你们呢？ leaves the listeners out.
咱们 is typical of the north and of relaxed speech, and it sounds warm and inclusive. Speakers from the south often use only 我们, for both meanings, and so does formal writing. You will be understood with 我们 everywhere.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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animals or things are treated like people — in stories, songs, or talking to pets
们 can appear on them: 小鸟们, the little birds.
小鸟们在树上唱歌。The little birds are singing in the trees.
The ending gives them a personality, much as English stories give animals names.
How to spot it
- 们
- 我们
- 同学们
- 咱们
Example sentences
他们都是我的同事。They are all my colleagues.
同学们，请打开书。Open your books, everyone.
老师们在开会。The teachers are in a meeting.
你们是哪儿人？Where are you all from?
我买了三本书。I bought three books.
咱们走吧！Let's go!
8 more example sentences
朋友们，欢迎来我家！Friends, welcome to my home!
她们是姐妹。They are sisters.
学生们下课了。The students have finished their lesson.
我们班有二十个人。There are twenty people in our class.
这些孩子都很可爱。These children are all lovely.
你的朋友都来了吗？Have all your friends come?
女士们、先生们，晚上好！Good evening, ladies and gentlemen!
它们是我的猫。They are my cats.
Worth knowing (1)
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A name and “they”: Xiǎo Wáng and the others
To say “someone and the people with them”, Chinese puts 他们 straight after a name or a title: 小王他们 is “Xiao Wang and the others”. It is the natural way to refer to a group by the one member everybody knows.
小王他们已经到了。Xiao Wang and the others have already arrived.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
English marks the plural twice — “two sisters” — and so learners add 们 to be safe. Chinese marks it once: the number already says how many, and 们 next to it is one plural too many.
Men is for people, and never next to a number.
Your turn
10 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.