Chinese word

双

Pronunciation

Pinyinshuāng

Meaning

  • measure wordpair

Example

我买了一双鞋。wǒ mǎi le yì shuāng xié

I bought a pair of shoes.

Illustration for 双 (pair)

More examples

我把一双筷子放在桌子上。wǒ bǎ yì shuāng kuài zi fàng zài zhuō zi shàng

I put a pair of chopsticks on the table.

Core concept

Two matching things counted together as one set.

Common phrases

  • 一双鞋yì shuāng xié

    a pair of shoes

  • 一双筷子yì shuāng kuài zi

    a pair of chopsticks

  • 一双手套yì shuāng shǒu tào

    a pair of gloves

Similar words

对duì: Counts two people or things that form a pair.
只zhǐ: Counts one animal, object, or one side of a pair.
套tào: Counts a complete set of related items, such as clothing or furniture.

Definition in Chinese

用于成对的两件事物的量词，表示两件互为一对的物品，如一双鞋、一双手套。yòng yú chéng duì de liǎng jiàn shì wù de liàng cí biǎo shì liǎng jiàn hù wéi yí duì de wù pǐn rú yì shuāng xié yì shuāng shǒu tào

Word origin

The character 双 (shuāng, "pair") is the simplified form of an older character whose shape shows a hand holding two birds, linking it with two things held together as one set.

Usage tips

  • The classifier follows the numeral, so a larger numeral counts complete sets rather than single pieces.

Related words

Word lists with this word