(gè) - general measure word for people and things in Mandarin
gèTraditional: 個
Translation
general measure word for people and things
Word origin
The general measure word 个 (ge). The full form 個 is a phono-semantic compound with the 亻 'person' radical and 固 phonetic; 个 is the common simplified graphic.
- Origin
- phono-semantic compound
- Root
- 个 (simplified); full form 個 = 亻(person radical) + 固 (phonetic)
Stroke order
个
Examples
。
I have three younger brothers.
。
Please give me a bag.
。
That person is my teacher.
。
There are two cups on the table.
苹。
I ate three apples.
Where this fits
Appears in 10 words
Multi-character compounds in the corpus that contain 个.
Used in
Stories
(10)Grammar articles
(48)Mandarin Adjectives as Stative Verbs: Why 'I Am Cold' Is 我冷, Not 我是冷
Mandarin Advanced Grammar (C1-C2 / HSK 6+): Chengyu, Classical Remnants, and Register
Approximation and Rounding in Mandarin: 左右, 大概, 差不多, 几 and 来 for About, Around and Roughly
Mandarin Aspect Markers: 了, 在/正在, 过 - the System That Replaces Tense
The Mandarin 把 (bǎ) Construction: Fronting the Object to Say What You Did To It
不但...而且 in Mandarin: Not Only A But Also B (不仅, 还, 也, 并且)
Mandarin Causatives 使 (shǐ), 令 (lìng) and 让 (ràng): Making Someone Feel or Do Something
Mandarin Grammar Cheatsheet: The Essentials, One Page
Mandarin 除了...以外: One Frame, Two Opposite Meanings
Chinese Measure Words (Mandarin Classifiers): The Core Dozen, Which One Your Noun Takes, and the Safe Default
Mandarin Comparatives: 比, 比较, 最, 跟…一样 and How to Say 'More', 'Most', 'Same As'
Mandarin Verb Conjugation: Why It Doesn't Exist and What Replaces It
The Mandarin Copula 是 (shì): To Be, and When to Leave It Out
Asking How + Adjective in Mandarin with 多: 多高, 多远, 多长, 多大
Mandarin Demonstratives: 这 (zhè) and 那 (nà), One Form Each, No Agreement
Figurative Directional Complements in Mandarin: 起来, 下去 and 出来 Beyond Up, Down and Out
The Double 了 Sentence in Mandarin: 我学了三年中文了 and the Continuing-Action Pattern
Duration Complements in Mandarin (时量补语): How to Say How Long an Action Lasts
The Mandarin Durative 着 (zhe): Marking a State That Continues (门开着, 拿着书, 笑着说)
Mandarin Existential and Presentative Sentences: 有, 出现, 发生 and Why New Things Go After the Verb
Formal Mandarin Connectives: 然而, 因此, 于是 and 尽管 (The Written Register)
Mandarin Question Words: 什么 (shénme), 谁 (shéi), 哪 (nǎ) and Friends Stay Where the Answer Goes
就 (jiù) vs 才 (cái) in Mandarin: Sooner Than Expected, Later Than Expected
The Two 了 in Mandarin: Completion 了 After the Verb vs Change-of-State 了 at the End
The Mandarin 连...都/也 Construction: How to Say 'Even', and Why the Word Has to Move
Mandarin Location and Existence: 在 for Where, 有 for There Is, and the 上/下/里/外 Position Words
Mandarin Modal Verbs: 会, 想, 要, 应该, 可以, 能 and the Future-Intent Words 打算, 准备
Mandarin Negation: 不 (bù) vs 没 (méi), and Why 不有 Does Not Exist
Mandarin Numbers, Time, Dates, and Currency: From 1 to 1,000,000, the 二/两 Split, and Time-Before-Verb
Mandarin Possession with 有 (yǒu): To Have
Mandarin Potential Complements: Can You Reach the Result? (吃得完, 听不懂, 买不起)
Mandarin Question Formation: 吗, V-Not-V, 还是, and the In-Situ Wh-Word System
Mandarin Relative Clauses with 的 (de): How the Modifier Goes Before the Noun
Mandarin Requests and Imperatives: 请, 别, 不要, the Softening Particles 吧/啊, and Verb Reduplication
Mandarin Resultative Complements: Fusing a Result onto the Verb (看见, 吃完, 找到)
Mandarin Sentence-Final Particles: 吧, 呢, 啊, 嘛, 吗 and the Final 了
The Mandarin 是…的 (shì...de) Construction: Highlighting When, Where, and How Something Happened
The Mandarin 所 (suǒ) Family: 所有, 所谓, 所 + Verb, and the 为...所 Passive
Topic-Comment Structure in Mandarin: Fronting 这本书我看过 and Why Word Order Bends
Mandarin Verb-Object Verbs: Why 'To Eat' Is 吃饭 and How It Splits Apart
Mandarin Sentence Structure: Word Order, Topic-Comment and the 把 Construction
Mandarin 性 (xìng) and 化 (huà): Building Abstract Nouns and '-ise' Verbs
Yes-No Questions in Mandarin: 吗 (ma), Echo Answers, and the Bounce-Back 呢 (ne)
The Mandarin 以 (yǐ) Family: 以为, 以及, 以便, 以免, 以来 and 以...为...
又 (yòu) vs 再 (zài) vs 还 (hái) in Mandarin: The Three Ways to Say 'Again'
The Mandarin 于 (yú) Family: 对于, 关于, 由于, 至于, 属于, 位于, 终于
The Mandarin 者 (zhě) Suffix: 作者, 读者, 前者, and Naming the One Who Does It
Mandarin 之 (zhī): 之一, 之间, 之后, 之中, 总之 and the Written Ancestor of 的
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个: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "个" (general measure word for people and things): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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