Chinese word

三

Pronunciation

Pinyinsān

Meaning

  • numberthree

Example

他买了三个苹果。tā mǎi le sān gè píng guǒ

He bought three apples.

Illustration for 三 (three)

More examples

现在是三点。xiàn zài shì sān diǎn

It is three o'clock now.

Core concept

Three parallel strokes turn the idea of a quantity into a visible sign.

Common phrases

  • 三个sān gè

    three

  • 三点sān diǎn

    three o'clock

  • 三月sān yuè

    March

Similar words

一yī: A numeral meaning one, showing that there is one person or thing.
二èr: A numeral meaning two, showing that there are two people or things.
四sì: A numeral meaning four, showing that there are four people or things.
五wǔ: A numeral meaning five, showing that there are five people or things.

Definition in Chinese

表示数量“三”的数词，用于计数或与量词连用，如“三个苹果”。biǎo shì shù liàng sān de shù cí yòng yú jì shù huò yǔ liàng cí lián yòng rú sān gè píng guǒ

Word origin

The character 三 (sān, "three") comes from ancient writing that represented the number with three horizontal marks, a shape still easy to recognize today.

Usage tips

  • In Chinese, counting nouns usually requires a measure word after the number, unlike English, where the noun can follow the number directly.

Word lists with this word