How to use 多
Round Number + 多 + Unit / Classifier (+ Noun); Small Number + Classifier + 多 + Noun
After a quantity, 多 indicates an unspecified amount beyond the stated number. With round tens, hundreds, and larger units, it usually comes immediately after the number and before the classifier or unit. The expression gives an approximate range rather than an exact total, so it is useful for ages, page counts, and prices.
For a small whole number followed by a divisible unit, 多 commonly appears after the classifier or unit. The duration pattern places it after 个 and before 小时, indicating some additional fraction of an hour. Position depends on the quantity expression and the size of the extra amount; a simple rule based only on being above eleven is unreliable.
Examples with pinyin and English
我妈妈已经五十多岁了。
My mother is over fifty.
我们走了两个多小时。
We walked for more than two hours.
这个班有两百多个学生。
There are more than two hundred students in this class.
这个包三万多块钱。
This bag costs more than thirty thousand kuai.
What to remember
- Round-number estimates usually put 多 before the unit.
- Small durations can use Number + Classifier + 多.
- 多 leaves the exact excess unspecified.
Practise the pattern
Practise this topic with the app’s grammar exercises. Your answers and review dates are saved separately from vocabulary practice.
Practise this grammar topic ↗Look up the grammar words
Source and editorial notes
Explanation rewritten for Laowai. Examples are adapted from the Laowai English grammar curriculum, with editorial corrections where needed. The original curriculum credits AllSet Learning’s Chinese Grammar Wiki as used with permission. Read the retained source credits.
Difficulty labels describe the level of the explanation; they are not official HSK placement. Send a correction with this page’s URL.