The two ways to ask "how many" in Mandarin: 几 for small countable numbers that always needs a measure word, and 多少 for larger or unknown amounts where the measure word is optional. Plus how to ask prices, ages, and phone numbers.
~4 min read
字源zìyuánEtymology & Structure
字源洞见 zìyuán dòngjiàn · Etymological Insight
多少 duōshao is transparent: 多 duō (many) plus 少 shǎo (few), "many-or-few," the open question of amount. Pairing an opposite-meaning pair to form a question is a classic Chinese device, like 大小 (size, "big-small") and 高矮 (height, "tall-short"). As a question word 少 takes neutral tone, duōshao.
几 jǐ (in third tone here) began as a pictograph of a small low table, the kind one leaned on while sitting, a sense it keeps in 茶几 chájī ("tea table," read jī). As a number word it means "how many" for small counts, and also "several, a few" in statements: 几个朋友 ("a few friends"). The same character thus both asks a small number and names one.
多少 / 几duōshao · jǐTwo Question Words for Quantity
几jǐhow many (small number); a few
疑问数词 yíwèn shùcí
Asks about a small, countable number, typically under ten, and must be followed by a measure word: 几个 ("how many"), 几本 ("how many volumes"), 几位 ("how many people," polite). It assumes the answer is small, so it is the word for guests, family members, hours, or days. In statements it also means "several / a few."
Asks about a larger or fully unknown quantity, with the measure word optional: 多少钱 ("how much money"), 多少人 or 多少个人 ("how many people"). It makes no assumption about size, so it is the safe choice for prices, populations, phone numbers, and anything that could be large. Use it whenever you genuinely have no idea of the count.
这个多少钱？
Zhège duōshao qián?
How much is this?
你们学校有多少学生？
Nǐmen xuéxiào yǒu duōshao xuésheng?
How many students does your school have?
用法yòngfǎPatterns — Measure Words, Price, Age
多少 / 几 in use · the core patterns几 + Measure Word + Noun , 几本书 · how many books (measure word required) 多少 ( + Measure Word) + Noun , 多少 (个) 人 · how many people (measure word optional) 多少钱 , how much money (price) 几岁 / 多大 , 几岁 for a child, 多大 for an adult (age) …是多少 , 电话号码是多少 · what's the phone number
几岁 / 多大jǐ suì / duō dàhow old (child / adult)
Age splits by who you ask. 几岁 ("how many years old") suits a young child, since the answer is a small number. For an adult, the polite question is 多大 ("how big / old"), not 几岁. For elders, 多大年纪 or 高寿 (very respectful) are used. Choosing 几 here would imply you expect a single-digit answer, which is why it is reserved for children.
你女儿几岁了？
Nǐ nǚ'ér jǐ suì le?
How old is your daughter?
多少钱duōshao qiánhow much (money); what's the price
The universal way to ask a price. Because cost can be any amount, you use 多少, never 几: 这件衣服多少钱？("how much is this piece of clothing?"). The answer uses money measure words: 块 kuài (yuan, colloquial), 毛 máo (ten cents), 分 fēn (cent). 一共多少钱 ("how much altogether") totals a bill.
一共多少钱？
Yígòng duōshao qián?
How much is it altogether?
辨析biànxīWhich One to Use
辨析 biànxī · Distinguishing the Words
The choice between 几 and 多少 turns on two things: the size you expect, and the measure word. 几 jǐ asks about a small countable number, usually under ten, and always demands a measure word between it and the noun: 几个学生 ("how many students," when you expect a handful). 多少 duōshao asks about a larger or unknown amount and lets the measure word drop: 多少学生 or 多少个学生 (both fine, when the number could be large). Ask 几口人 about a household (small); ask 多少人 about a crowd or a city (large or unknown).
This is why prices, phone numbers, and populations always take 多少, and why guests, family members, hours, and days usually take 几. When in doubt and the number might be big, 多少 is the safe default, since it carries no assumption. And remember the measure-word rule: 几 cannot stand bare before a noun (not 几书), while 多少 can. For ages, sidestep both with 多大 for adults and 几岁 for children.
成语chéngyǔSet Phrases
多多益善duō duō yì shànthe more the betterLiterally "more and more is the more beneficial," the more the merrier. From a remark attributed to the general Han Xin, who said that as a commander he could lead troops 多多益善 ("the more the better"). Built on the 多 ("many") of 多少.
寥寥无几liáo liáo wú jǐvery few; scarcely anyLiterally "sparse, sparse, not even a few," describing something so scarce it can almost be counted on one hand. Here 几 ("a few") takes its statement sense rather than its question sense. The mirror image of 多多益善.
不计其数bú jì qí shùcountless; too many to countLiterally "not to reckon their number," so many that counting is hopeless. Used for vast, uncountable quantities, the far end of the scale that 多少 stretches toward. The answer to 多少 when the true reply is "beyond counting."
相关xiāngguānRelated
Related entries — pages and vocabulary in the neighbourhood of this one
Both ask 'how many / how much,' but they split by expected size. 几 jǐ asks about small countable numbers, usually under ten, and always takes a measure word: 几个人？('how many people?'). 多少 duōshao asks about larger or fully unknown amounts and the measure word is optional: 多少钱？('how much money?'), 多少 (个) 学生？('how many students?'). Use 几 when you expect a small number, 多少 when the number could be big or you have no idea.
Does 几 need a measure word?
Yes. 几 must be followed by a measure word before the noun: 几本书 ('how many books', 本 is the measure word for books), 几个 ('how many', general measure word). You cannot say 几书. 多少, by contrast, can take a measure word or drop it: 多少书 and 多少本书 are both fine.
How do you ask the price in Chinese?
多少钱？duōshao qián? is 'how much money / how much does it cost?', the standard way to ask a price. Because a price can be any amount, you use 多少, not 几. For a single small-denomination item you might hear 几块？('how many kuai?'), but 多少钱 is the safe, universal question.
Which question word do I use for age?
It depends on who you are asking. For a young child, 几岁？('how old?', literally 'how many years') uses 几 because the answer is a small number. For an adult, the polite form is 多大？('how big / how old') rather than 几岁. 多少 is used for things counted in larger numbers, like 多少号 for a date or 电话号码是多少 ('what's the phone number').