How to use 几

Q: How to use 好几 as “quite a few”?

The usage of the phrase “ 好几 ” is quite similar to “ 几 .” They have the same structures: “好几” + Measure Word + Noun The only difference is that “ 好 ” is put in front, to modify “ 几 .” This structure emphasized the number of things. Example: 苹果公司发布了好几款新产品。| píng guǒ gōng sī fā bù le hǎo jǐ kuǎn xīn chǎn pǐn | Apple has released several new products.

Home HSK 2 How to use 几

HOW TO USE 几

Today we will learn how to use 几 (jǐ) in Chinese.

It is used to express an uncertain number, which is usually smaller than ten.

It means that the person who says the character estimates the number might be less than 10.

HOW TO USE 几 AS “A FEW”

First and foremost, this is the most common and straightforward way to use “几.”

Usually it is used when you want to express the amount of something.

PATTERN

几 + Measure Word

For instance, when someone asks about a girl’s age:

^{tā jǐ suì？}

她几岁？

_{How old is she?}

So, the answer to a question with 几 should be a numeral plus a measure word:

^{bā suì}

八岁。

_{(She’s) eight.}

View More Phrases

CHINESE	PINYIN	ENGLISH
这个活动几天之前就结束了。	zhè gè huó dòng jǐ tiān zhī qián jiù jié shù le	This event ended a few days ago.
桌子上摆放了几本书。	zhuō zǐ shàng bǎi fàng le jǐ běn shū	There are several books on the table.
她收到了几支玫瑰。	tā shōu dào le jǐ zhī méi guī	She received several roses.
公园里有几个孩子在玩耍。	gōng yuán lǐ yǒu jǐ gè hái zǐ zài wán shuǎ	There are several children playing in the park.
他已经连续工作了几个小时了。	tā yǐ jīng lián xù gōng zuò le jǐ gè xiǎo shí le	He has been working for hours straight.
我每天都会喝几杯咖啡。	wǒ měi tiān dōu huì hē jǐ bēi kā fēi	I drink several cups of coffee every day.
从上海到东京坐飞机只要几个小时。	cóng shàng hǎi dào dōng jīng zuò fēi jī zhī yào jǐ gè xiǎo shí	It only takes a few hours to fly from Shanghai to Tokyo.

HOW TO USE 几 AS “A FEW TENS”

In some cases, we use “几” to express numbers bigger than 10.

More specifically, It is similar to “a few dozen” or “a couple dozen” in English.

But notice that instead of “twelves of something,” we are saying “tens of something (multiples of ten).”

PATTERN

几 + 十 + Measure Word + Noun

For example, if someone says:

^{wǒ dú le jǐ shí piān lùn wén}

我读了几十篇论文。

_{I read dozens of papers.}

Then it means he or she has read loads of pieces, probably amount 20 to 50.

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CHINESE	PINYIN	ENGLISH
我每天背几十个单词。	wǒ měi tiān bèi jǐ shí gè dān cí	I memorize dozens of words every day.
万圣节的南瓜里装了几十个糖果。	wàn shèng jiē de nán guā lǐ zhuāng le jǐ shí gè táng guǒ	Dozens of candies are packed into the halloween pumpkin.
一个班级里有几十个学生。	yī gè bān jí lǐ yǒu jǐ shí gè xué shēng	There are dozens of students in a class.
这家酒店有几十个房间。	zhè jiā jiǔ diàn yǒu jǐ shí gè fáng jiān	The hotel has dozens of rooms.
她投了几十份简历。	tā tóu le jǐ shí fèn jiǎn lì	She sent out dozens of resumes.
雨季到了，这里连续几十天下雨。	yǔjì dàole, zhèlǐ liánxù jǐ shí tiān xià yǔ.	It’s rainy season now, and it has rained for dozens of days here.
他有几十套房子。	tā yǒu jǐ shí tào fáng zǐ	He owns dozens of houses.

几 AS “A FEW HUNDREDS/THOUSANDS”

Not only we can use “几” to describe “tens of something”, we can also put it together with 百 (bǎi), 千 (qiān), or 万 (wàn).

Just like how, in English, we might say, “a few hundred” or “a few thousand.”

Apparently, this often applies in situations with larger numbers.

And it’s more commonly used when you’re unsure, and you just need a casual and general estimation.

So note that this is an informal expression.

PATTERN

几 + 百/千/万 + Measure Word + Noun

^{wǒ hái méi yǒu dú wán zhè běn shū ，zhè běn shū yǒu jǐ wàn zì}

我还没有读完这本书，这本书有几万字。

_{I haven’t finished reading this book, which has tens of thousands of words.}

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CHINESE	PINYIN	ENGLISH
老师说这份作业要写几百字。	lǎo shī shuō zhè fèn zuò yè yào xiě jǐ bǎi zì	The teacher said that the homework will take several hundred words.
这家公司有几千个员工。	zhè jiā gōng sī yǒu jǐ qiān gè yuán gōng	This company has several thousand of employees.
小镇里有几百个人居住。	xiǎo zhèn lǐ yǒu jǐ bǎi gè rén jū zhù	There are several hundred people living in the town.
这个月我们卖了几百件衣服。	zhè gè yuè wǒ men mài le jǐ bǎi jiàn yī fú	We sold hundreds of clothes this month.
几千人站在商场外面排队。	jǐ qiān rén zhàn zài shāng chǎng wài miàn pái duì	Thousands of people lined up outside the mall.
有的乌龟可以活几百年。	yǒu de wū guī kě yǐ huó jǐ bǎi nián	Some turtles can live for hundreds of years.

HOW TO USE 好几 AS “QUITE A FEW”

Finally, the usage of the phrase “好几” is quite similar to “几.”

PATTERN

好几 + Measure Word + Noun

The only difference is that “好” is put in front to modify “几.”

This can add a slight change to the tone of the sentence, to emphasize the number of things.

Let’s compare these two sentences:

这本书我读过几遍。	这本书我读过好几遍。
zhè běn shū wǒ dú guò jǐ biàn	zhè běn shū wǒ dú guò hǎo jǐ biàn
I’ve read the book a few times.	I’ve read the book quite a few times.

So, the first sentence is just a plain statement that he or she has read the book many times.

With the phrase “好几,” the second sentence indicates that he or she has read the book so many times that he or she probably obsesses with the author and has a good command of the book’s content.

^{tā yǒu hǎo jǐ gè xiōng dì jiě mèi}

她有好几个兄弟姐妹。

_{She has several siblings.}

^{píng guǒ gōng sī fā bù le hǎo jǐ kuǎn xīn chǎn pǐn}

苹果公司发布了好几款新产品。

_{Apple has released several new products.}

View More Phrases

CHINESE	PINYIN	ENGLISH
已经有好几个人问过这个问题了。	yǐ jīng yǒu hǎo jǐ gè rén wèn guò zhè gè wèn tí le	This question has been asked by several people.
我去过好几次巴黎，所以我不需要地图了。	wǒ qù guò hǎo jǐ cì bā lí, suǒ yǐ wǒ bú xū yào dì tú le	I’ve been to Paris quite a few times that I don’t need map.

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FAQs

What does 几 mean in English and how to pronounce it?

In English 几 means: “several,” “a couple,” or “a few”, and it’s pronounced: jǐ.

How to use 几 as “a few tens”?

We use 几 as “a few tens”, to express numbers bigger than 10.

It is similar to “a few dozen” or “a couple dozen” in English.

But, in Chinese instead of “twelves of something,” we are saying “tens of something (multiples of ten).”

The sentence structure: 几 + 十 + Measure Word + Noun

Example:

一个班级里有几十个学生。| yī gè bān jí lǐ yǒu jǐ shí gè xué shēng | There are dozens of students in a class.

How to use 好几 as “quite a few”?

The usage of the phrase “好几” is quite similar to “几.”

They have the same structures: “好几” + Measure Word + Noun

The only difference is that “好” is put in front, to modify “几.”

This structure emphasized the number of things.

Example:

苹果公司发布了好几款新产品。| píng guǒ gōng sī fā bù le hǎo jǐ kuǎn xīn chǎn pǐn | Apple has released several new products.

How to use 几 as “a few”?

The most common way to use 几 is when you want to express the amount of something.

The sentence structure is: 几 + Measure Word

Example:

她收到了几支玫瑰。| tā shōu dào le jǐ zhī méi guī | She received several roses.

How to use 几 as “a few hundred/thousand/ten thousand?

We can also use 几 to describe “tens of something”, or we can put it together with 百 (bǎi), 千 (qiān), or 万 (wàn).

Just like how, in English, we might say, “a few hundred” or “a few thousand.”

This often applies in situations with larger numbers.

And it’s more commonly used when you’re unsure, and you just need a casual and general estimation.

So note that this is an informal expression.

The sentence structure is: 几 + 百/千/万 + Measure Word + Noun

Example:

这个月我们卖了几百件衣服。| zhè gè yuè wǒ men mài le jǐ bǎi jiàn yī fú | We sold hundreds of clothes this month.

Where can I find other Chinese grammar lessons?

You can find other Chinese grammar lessons in our Chinese Grammar Bank.

Chinese Grammar Bank

HOW TO USE 几

HOW TO USE 几 AS “A FEW”

PATTERN

HOW TO USE 几 AS “A FEW TENS”

PATTERN

几 AS “A FEW HUNDREDS/THOUSANDS”

PATTERN

HOW TO USE 好几 AS “QUITE A FEW”

PATTERN

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FAQs

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