Chinese Numbers 1-1000 — From Zero to Confident Counting

Introduction

Ever wondering how to count huge Chinese numbers? Imagine: You are walking through a busy market in Beijing. You pick up three apples; you know how to say “three,” but the vendor replies “三块钱 (sān kuài qián)” — you get that. Later, you see a big sign: 一百二十五元 (yì bǎi èr shí wǔ yuán), and someone else bargaining says 三百零四 (sān bǎi líng sì). You start to feel overwhelmed: what does “零” (“líng”) do? Why isn’t “one hundred and five” always “一百五”？

Don’t worry. Chinese numbers are built with clear logic. With guidance, pattern-recognition, and practice, you’ll get them down fast. This guide will take you from 1 up to 1000, teach you how to pronounce them perfectly, give you memory tips, cultural insights, plus many practical dialogues and tiny challenges so you can check your understanding.

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Part 1: The Basics (1–10) — Pronunciation, Writing, Memory Trick

Memory Tricks:

• 四 (sì) looks like a window: four panes → “window”.
• 七 (qī) — imagine a hook (“七” shape) catching something, so “seven” “catches” or stands out.
• 八 (bā) — the bottom opens up (characters widen), symbolically “opening wide” → prosperity (this also ties in culturally).

Pronunciation Rules & Tone Sandhi Related:

• The word 一 (yī) often changes tone in compounds.   • Before a fourth tone tone it becomes yí (2nd tone) — e.g. 一把 (yí bǎ) (one handful)   • Before a first, second, or third tone it becomes yì (4th tone) — e.g. 一百 (yì bǎi), 一千 (yì qiān)
• The word 不 (bù, meaning “not”), often shows tone change depending on what follows (this matters in counting when negations appear).
• Also, when two 3rd tones occur in sequence, first one changes to 2nd tone (“nǐ hǎo” example). Less frequent in pure number counting, but helpful when numbers are embedded in speech.

Part 2: Pattern Decryption — 11-99

Chinese uses a consistent system for numbers between 11–99. Once you understand it, you can build many numbers yourself.

Rule Formula:

• 10 + [1-9] → 十 + 个位   • 11 = 十一 (shí yī)   • 14 = 十四 (shí sì)
• [2-9] × 10 → “digit” + 十   • 20 = 二十 (èr shí)   • 50 = 五十 (wǔ shí)
• [2-9] × 10 + [1-9] → “digit” + 十 + 个位   • 23 = 二十三 (èr shí sān)   • 57 = 五十七 (wǔ shí qī)   • 99 = 九十九 (jiǔ shí jiǔ)

Zero / Omission Rules in 11-99:

• No “零 (líng)” between tens and ones if ones place is zero: e.g. 30 = 三十 (sān shí), not 三十零.
• Always include the 个 (one’s place) if nonzero.

Part 3: The Hundreds (100-999) — “百” and “零” Rules, More Combinations

Once you hit 100, “百 (bǎi)” becomes the “hundreds digit” marker. You also need “零 (líng)” when there are gaps (zeros) in tens or ones place.

Basic Structure:

• 100 = 一百 (yì bǎi)
• 200, 300, …, 900 = 二百 (èr bǎi), 三百 (sān bǎi), … etc.
• 100 + remainder → e.g. 101 = 一百零一 (yì bǎi líng yī) — note: zero inserted when tens place is zero but ones place nonzero.
• Tens place not zero → 125 = 一百二十五 (yì bǎi èr shí wǔ)
• Both tens and ones non-zero → follow pattern: “digit-hundred + tens + ones.”

Zero “零” usage:

• Zero in tens place but nonzero ones → insert “零”: e.g. 205 = 二百零五 (èr bǎi líng wǔ)
• Zero in ones place (tens nonzero) → no “零” at end: e.g. 120 = 一百二十 (yì bǎi èr shí), not 一百二十零.
• Zero in both tens and ones → just “百”: e.g. 300 = 三百, not “三百零零”.

Examples Table:

Mini-Exercise:

Convert these numbers:

• 304 → 三百零四 (sān bǎi líng sì)
• 420 → 四百二十 (sì bǎi èr shí)
• 507 → 五百零七 (wǔ bǎi líng qī)
• 678 → 六百七十八 (liù bǎi qī shí bā)
• 990 → 九百九十 (jiǔ bǎi jiǔ shí)

Then try hearing someone say “一百零三 (103)”, “四百二十五 (425)”, “七百一十一 (711)” and writing them.

Part 4: Special Number Combinations & Slang

Part 5: Practice & Dialogues — Real-Life Usage

Here are dialogues and templates so you can use numbers confidently in daily life. Try reading them, recording your voice, or even role-playing.

Scenario A: Market Shopping

Dialogue:

卖家 (Vendor): “这些苹果五块钱一斤。”

Buyer: “我想买三斤。”

卖家: “好，一共十五块钱。”

• Translation: Vendor: “These apples are 5 yuan per jin (≈ 0.5 kg).” Buyer: “I want three jin.” Vendor: “Okay, altogether 15 yuan.”

Practice Variation:

• Change price per jin: 8, 12, 3 etc.
• Change quantity: 2.5 jin, 4 jin, etc. (Use decimals if you get to that later.)

Scenario B: Time & Date

• 现在几点？ (Xiànzài jǐ diǎn?) → What time is it now?
• 现在三点半。 (Xiànzài sān diǎn bàn.) → It’s 3:30.
• 今天是二零二五年九月二十六日。 (Jīntiān shì èr líng èr wǔ nián jiǔ yuè èr shí liù rì.) → Today is September 26, 2025.

Practice:

• Write your birthdate in Chinese.
• Say the date of next holiday.
• Try reading times: 7:45, 12:05, 19:30.

Scenario C: Phone Numbers / Addresses

• 电话号码：一三二 一零零 八七 六五四三 (132-100-876543)
• 地址：北京市海淀区中关村三十八号 (Zhōngguāncūn, Haidian District, Beijing; No. 38).

Practice pronouncing long strings: phone number, postal code, street numbers. Use zeros (“零”) properly.

Additional Pronunciation / Variation Notes

• In phone numbers, sometimes “一 (yī)” is read as “yāo” to avoid confusion (especially in Hong Kong, or among radio, military, or some dialects).
• Also, in some dialects or regional speech, tones shift slightly; but standard Mandarin is what you want to aim for.

More Mini-Exercise

1. Listening Challenge: Listen to audio (or find someone) saying “三百零六 (306)”, “八百八十八 (888)”, “一千零二十五 (1,025)” etc., write them down.
2. Flash-card Game: On one side, Chinese; on the other, Arabic + pronunciation. Shuffle for numbers 1–100.
3. Memory Trick Round: For each “百” number from 100-999 ending in 8 (like 108, 218, 328, …), see if the “8” gives you a feeling (lucky-ness), helps you remember faster.
4. Cultural Quiz: Which number would be best for a date of business opening? Why is 8 chosen more often than 4? etc.

Conclusion

You now have details for pronunciation (tone behavior, “零” rules, how to form tens, hundreds, thousands), many example numbers, dialogues, and cultural meanings.

To deepen:

• Practice daily with small numbers first (1-100), then gradually expand.
• Listen to native speakers — podcasts, language apps, movies — focusing on numbers.
• Use the cultural insights (lucky numbers etc.) to make associations — e.g. if you see “888” you’ll remember “prosperity” and the pronunciation more easily.

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Mao Ying | WuKong Chinese Teacher

Master’s degree in International Chinese Education from Peking University. Dedicated to the field of Chinese language education, with 7 years of experience as an international Chinese language teacher.