3.08Usage: +++++
个 個
1. Representing individuality
- 个人 (gè rén) Personally
- 个性 (gè xìng) Personality Literal. Individual characteristic(s)
2. Basic-unit of Classifier.
Used for people, time and basic things in general
- 一个问题 (yī gè wèn tí) One problem/question Literal. One basic-unit of problem/question
- 两个故事 (liǎng gè gù shì) Two stories Literal. Two basic-units of story
- 三个人 (sān gè rén) Three people Literal. Three basic-units of person
- 怀孕五个月 (huái yùn wǔ gè yuè) Five months pregnant Literal. Pregnant for five basic-units of a month
+ PERSONAL NOTE +
In Chinese, there are more than two hundred Measuring Words - 量词 (liàng cí) – often translated to English as Classifiers. They are used to classify and quantify. The concept is similar to collective nouns in English (Eg. A pack of wolves, A flock of birds) except each Classifier is a single unit of its own. Since there are no plurals in Chinese, the quantity is indicated before the Classifier.
Other Classifiers in this handbook include: