Chinese word

件

Pronunciation

Pinyinjiàn

Meaning

  • measure wordmatter

Example

你听说那件事了吗？nǐ tīng shuō nà jiàn shì le ma

Did you hear about that matter?

Illustration for 件 (matter)

More examples

关于那件事，我们还需要再讨论。guān yú nà jiàn shì wǒ men hái xū yào zài tǎo lùn

We still need to discuss that matter again.

Core concept

Treats a whole situation or item as one separate piece rather than as an undivided topic.

Common phrases

  • 那件事nà jiàn shì

    that matter

  • 三件衣服sān jiàn yī fú

    three pieces of clothing

Similar words

个gè: Counts a person, object, or abstract thing in a general way.
封fēng: Counts one letter, email, or other written document.
次cì: Counts how many times an action or event occurs.
份fèn: Counts one complete set of documents, food, or work.

Definition in Chinese

用作量词时表示单独的一项事项或个体的事例，着重于作为可计数的独立单位；作名词时指一件事或一个案例。yòng zuò liàng cí shí biǎo shì dān dú de yí xiàng shì xiàng huò gè tǐ de shì lì zhuó zhòng yú zuò wéi kě jì shù de dú lì dān wèi zuò míng cí shí zhǐ yí jiàn shì huò yí gè àn lì

Word origin

件 (jiàn, "matter; item") combines 亻 (rén, "person") + 牛 (niú, "ox"), with the first linking it to human affairs and the second supplying the sound; it later became a measure word for separate items.

Usage tips

  • A physical object is not required when this word counts something, so it is useful for nonphysical cases, events, and other matters as well as for items.

Other meanings

  • itemmeasure word

Word lists with this word