Chinese word

一番

Pronunciation

Pinyinyī fān

Meaning

  • measure wordonce

Example

他试了一番才明白。tā shì le yì fān cái míng bái

He tried it once, and only then did he understand.

Illustration for 一番 (once)

More examples

他想了一番，决定接受这个提议。tā xiǎng le yì fān jué dìng jiē shòu zhè ge tí yì

He thought for a while and decided to accept the proposal.

Core concept

A single bounded stretch of an action, talk, or activity, treated as one complete round.

Common phrases

  • 试了一番shì le yì fān

    try once

  • 想了一番xiǎng le yì fān

    think for a while

Similar words

一遍yí biàn: Counts one time of carrying out an action or procedure from start to finish.
一次yí cì: Counts one time that an event happens or an action is done.
一趟yí tàng: Counts one trip or outing, including a journey away and back.
一阵yí zhèn: Describes a short period during which an action or state continues.

Definition in Chinese

作量词，用于表示一次完整的动作、过程或言谈的整体，一般与“了”“才”“就”等结构连用，常见搭配有“说了一番”“闹了一番”“试了一番”。zuò liàng cí yòng yú biǎo shì yí cì wán zhěng de dòng zuò guò chéng huò yán tán de zhéng tǐ yì bān yǔ le cái jiù děng jié gòu lián yòng cháng jiàn dā pèi yǒu shuō le yì fān nào le yì fān shì le yì fān

Word origin

一 (yī, "one") + 番 (fān, "round") marks one round, so the measure word presents an action or speech as one complete bout.

Usage tips

  • English once can sound like one brief occurrence, but this measure word packages a whole stretch of activity, so it can describe an attempt or an argument rather than only a single instant.

Other meanings

  • a roundnoun
  • for a whileadverb

Word lists with this word