Mandarin · Chapter 21 · Lesson 15 · Grammar primer
Approximation and rounding
Saying about, around and roughly: 左右 (give or take) after a number, 大概 and 差不多 for an estimate, 几 for an unspecified small number, and 来 for a round figure (十来个). Which one sits where, and how they soften an exact count into a ballpark.
The short version
左右 (zuǒ yòu) trails the number, 大概 (dà gài) leads it
Each Mandarin approximator owns a fixed seat, and swapping them breaks the sentence. 左右 (zuǒ yòu) always follows the quantity it softens, 大概 (dà gài) always comes in front, and both can appear at once so long as each stays put. 左右三十个人 (zuǒ yòu sān shí gè rén) is simply wrong.
三十个人左右 sān shí gè rén zuǒ yòu
差不多 (chà bu duō) undershoots, 左右 (zuǒ yòu) straddles
三十左右 (sān shí zuǒ yòu) means roughly thirty and could well be thirty-two. 差不多三十 (chà bù duō sān shí) means you have not reached thirty yet: twenty-eight, twenty-nine. Reaching for 差不多 (chà bu duō) when you meant 'about, possibly a bit over' is not a style slip, it is a factual error.
差不多三十个 chà bu duō sān shí gè
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