Chinese word

块

Pronunciation

Pinyinkuài

Meaning

  • measure wordyuan

Example

这件衣服要一百块钱。zhè jiàn yī fú yào yì bǎi kuài qián

This item of clothing costs 100 yuan.

Illustration for 块 (yuan)

More examples

我有一块钱。wǒ yǒu yí kuài qián

I have one yuan.

Core concept

One bounded portion, whether a small lump, a broken fragment, or a single unit in a price.

Common phrases

  • 一块钱yí kuài qián

    one yuan

  • 两块钱liǎng kuài qián

    two yuan

Similar words

个gè: A basic measure word used after a number for many kinds of things.
件jiàn: A measure word used after a number for clothes and certain matters.
张zhāng: A measure word used after a number for paper, tickets, and other flat, thin items.
块儿kuàir: A spoken form for giving a money amount in yuan, pronounced with an added r sound.

Definition in Chinese

用作量词，表示一小块实体或一片的单位；口语中也常用来指代人民币的一元。yòng zuò liàng cí biǎo shì yì xiǎo kuài shí tǐ huò yí piàn de dān wèi kóu yǔ zhōng yě cháng yòng lái zhǐ dài rén mín bì de yì yuán

Word origin

块 (kuài, "lump") comes from the traditional character 塊 (kuài, "lump"), whose concrete meaning of a separated mass naturally developed into counting pieces and naming one piece-like unit of money.

Usage tips

  • Shop signs and formal writing may use a more formal currency term, but casual speech often uses 块 (kuài, "piece") after the number, so both styles can refer to the same price.

Other meanings

  • lumpnoun
  • fragmentnoun

Word lists with this word