Introduction
多 (duō) after a number means "and a bit more". Which side of the measure word it lands on is not a style choice — it changes what kind of "more" you mean, and it is decided by the number in front.
Overview
Structure: Number + 多 (duō) + Measure Word · Number + Measure Word + 多 (duō)
| Pattern | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Round ten: Num + 多 + MW | 二十多个人 (èrshí duō ge rén) | twenty-odd people |
| Round ten, money | 三十多块钱 (sānshí duō kuài qián) | thirty-something kuai |
| Round ten, age | 他五十多岁。(Tā wǔshí duō suì.) | He's in his fifties. |
| 1–9: Num + MW + 多 | 一个多小时 (yí ge duō xiǎoshí) | an hour and a bit |
| 1–9, money | 两块多钱 (liǎng kuài duō qián) | two kuai and change |
The number decides which side 多 (duō) goes on:
- After a round ten, hundred or thousand, 多 goes before the measure word: 二十多个人 (èrshí duō ge rén) — somewhere between twenty and thirty.
- After a single digit, 多 goes after the measure word: 一个多小时 (yí ge duō xiǎoshí) — more than one hour, less than two.
- ❌ 二十个多人 (èrshí ge duō rén) ❌ 一多个小时 (yì duō ge xiǎoshí)
- 多 (duō) here never means "many". 多人 (duō rén) on its own is not a phrase; the number has to be there.
Examples
教室里有二十多个学生。
Jiàoshì li yǒu èrshí duō ge xuésheng.
There are twenty-odd students in the classroom.
这件衣服三百多块。
Zhè jiàn yīfu sānbǎi duō kuài.
This jacket is three hundred and something kuai.
我等了一个多小时。
Wǒ děng le yí ge duō xiǎoshí.
I waited over an hour.
他爸爸五十多岁了。
Tā bàba wǔshí duō suì le.
His dad is in his fifties.
这本书十块多，不贵。
Zhè běn shū shí kuài duō, bú guì.
This book is ten-odd kuai, not expensive.
我在中国住了三年多。
Wǒ zài Zhōngguó zhù le sān nián duō.
I lived in China for over three years.
Usage Notes
- Round numbers are 十 (shí)、二十 (èrshí)、一百 (yìbǎi)、一千 (yìqiān) and so on; anything from 一 (yī) to 九 (jiǔ) takes the other order.
- 十多 (shí duō) means between ten and twenty; 十块多 (shí kuài duō) means between ten and eleven kuai. One character's difference, a very different price.
- Some measure words are also the unit itself — 年 (nián)、天 (tiān)、岁 (suì) — so they take 多 directly: 三年多 (sān nián duō)、三十多岁 (sānshí duō suì).
- For an approximate number without 多 (duō), put two digits side by side: 三四个人 (sān sì ge rén) — three or four people.
- 左右 (zuǒyòu) means "or so" in both directions and goes at the end: 二十个左右 (èrshí ge zuǒyòu) — about twenty.