Chinese Conversation · Level 6
90 words
Chinese word
他们
Pronunciation
Pinyintā men
Meaning
- pronounthey
Example
他们在家。tā men zài jiā
They are at home.
More examples
这是他们的书。zhè shì tā men de shū
This is their book.
Core concept
A group of people outside the conversation is treated as one grammatical group.
Common phrases
他们在家tā men zài jiā
They are at home
他们的书tā men de shū
their book
他们是学生tā men shì xué shēng
They are students
Similar words
她们tā men: Means two or more other female people who are not part of the conversation.
它们tā men: Means two or more animals or things that are not people.
我们wǒ men: Means a group of two or more people that includes the speaker.
你们nǐ men: Means a group of two or more people that includes the listener.
Definition in Chinese
通常用于指人，作为第三人称复数代词表示两人或两人以上的他人，不用于单纯指物或动物。tōng cháng yòng yú zhǐ rén zuò wéi dì sān rén chēng fù shù dài cí biǎo shì liǎng rén huò liǎng rén yǐ shàng de tā rén bú yòng yú dān chún zhǐ wù huò dòng wù
Word origin
The word is built from 他 (tā, "he") and 们 (men, "plural marker for people"), with the second part extending the person reference to a group.
Usage tips
- Chinese verbs do not change form for this kind of subject, so the verb keeps the same form whether the subject is one person or a group.