Money and prices
8.5
8.5 Money and prices
In Chinese, money and prices are expressed as noun phrases. The units of money, dollars, dimes,
and cents are expressed by classifiers. The word for money, 钱/錢 qián, is a noun, and may
occur at the end of the noun phrase.
In informal and spoken contexts, the classifiers for money are as follows:
块/塊 kuài dollar
毛 máo dime
分 fēn cent
分 fēn represents 1 cent to 9 cents. Multiples of 10 cents are represented by 毛 máo.
五块/五塊 三毛 八分 钱/錢 = $5.38
wǔ kuài sān máo bā fēn qián
四十八块/塊 九毛 六分 钱/錢 = $48.96
sìshíbā kuài jiǔ máo liù fēn qián
The number 2 in the phrases ‘2 dollars,’ ‘2 dimes’ (20 cents), or ‘2 cents’ may be either 二 èr
or 两/兩 liǎng.
三块/三塊 四毛 二分 钱/錢 = $3.42
sān kuài sì máo èr fēn qián
or
两分/兩分
liǎng fēn
The noun 钱/錢 qián ‘money’ need not occur in a money phrase. If it is absent, the classifier
that immediately precedes it may also be absent.
四十八块/塊 九毛 六 = $48.96
sìshíbā kuài jiǔ máo liù
If the classifier is absent, the number 2 can only be represented as 二 èr and not as 两/兩 liǎng.
三块/三塊 四毛 二 = $3.42
sān kuài sì máo èr
Chinese also has the following formal written classifiers for dollars and dimes.
元/圓 yuán dollar
角 jiǎo dime
These are the classifiers used on currency and in formal financial transactions.
For the formal characters for numbers, see
C6.3
When 元/圓 yuán and 角 jiǎo are used, the noun 钱/錢 qián does not occur in the money
phrase. 元/圓 yuán and 角 jiǎo are often not used together in the same price. 角 jiǎo tends to
occur only when the denomination is smaller than one 元/圓 yuán.
Formal/written
$3.00 三元/圓 sān yuán
$0.60 六角 liù jiǎo
To ask ‘how much money?’ say 多少钱？/多少錢？duōshao qián?
这两本书多少钱？
這兩本書多少錢？
Zhè liǎng běn shū duōshao qián?
How much (money) are these two books?
