Understanding numbers, dates, and time is essential for daily communication in Chinese. Whether you are shopping, booking a ticket at the Airport (机场, jī chǎng), checking into a Hotel (酒店, jiǔ diàn), or meeting a friend, these expressions come up constantly.
The good news is that Chinese is very logical and beginner-friendly when it comes to numbers and time. In this guide, you’ll learn how to use them naturally with clear examples you can start using right away.
Chinese Numbers 0–10: The Foundation
Chinese numbers are simple and consistent. Once you learn the basics, you can build almost any number easily.
零 (líng) – zero
一 (yī) – one
二 (èr) – two
三 (sān) – three
四 (sì) – four
五 (wǔ) – five
六 (liù) – six
七 (qī) – seven
八 (bā) – eight
九 (jiǔ) – nine
十 (shí) – ten
Example sentences:
我有三个朋友 (wǒ yǒu sān ge péng yǒu) – I have three friends
他有五本书 (tā yǒu wǔ běn shū) – He has five books
我们有十个学生 (wǒ men yǒu shí ge xué shēng) – We have ten students
Building Bigger Numbers Easily
Chinese numbers follow a clear pattern. Once you know 1–10, you can form larger numbers.
十一 (shí yī) – eleven
二十 (èr shí) – twenty
二十五 (èr shí wǔ) – twenty-five
一百 (yì bǎi) – one hundred
Example sentences:
这个二十块 (zhè ge èr shí kuài) – This is 20 yuan
我有二十五块钱 (wǒ yǒu èr shí wǔ kuài qián) – I have 25 yuan
他有一百个学生 (tā yǒu yì bǎi ge xué shēng) – He has 100 students
Using Numbers for Prices and Shopping
Numbers are extremely important when shopping in a Store (商店, shāng diàn) or ordering food in a Restaurant (餐厅, cān tīng).
多少钱 (duō shǎo qián) – how much money
块 (kuài) – yuan (informal)
Example sentences:
这个多少钱 (zhè ge duō shǎo qián) – How much is this
这个十块 (zhè ge shí kuài) – This is 10 yuan
我要两个 (wǒ yào liǎng ge) – I want two
Talking About Dates in Chinese
Dates in Chinese follow a simple structure: year + month + day.
年 (nián) – year
月 (yuè) – month
日 (rì) or 号 (hào) – day
Example sentences:
今天是三月五号 (jīn tiān shì sān yuè wǔ hào) – Today is March 5
我的生日是六月一号 (wǒ de shēng rì shì liù yuè yī hào) – My birthday is June 1
今天是二零二六年 (jīn tiān shì èr líng èr liù nián) – Today is the year 2026
Days of the Week
Days of the week in Chinese are very easy to learn. They all follow the same pattern.
星期一 (xīng qī yī) – Monday
星期二 (xīng qī èr) – Tuesday
星期三 (xīng qī sān) – Wednesday
星期四 (xīng qī sì) – Thursday
星期五 (xīng qī wǔ) – Friday
星期六 (xīng qī liù) – Saturday
星期天 (xīng qī tiān) – Sunday
Example sentences:
今天是星期一 (jīn tiān shì xīng qī yī) – Today is Monday
我星期五去工作 (wǒ xīng qī wǔ qù gōng zuò) – I go to work on Friday
我们星期天休息 (wǒ men xīng qī tiān xiū xí) – We rest on Sunday
Telling Time in Chinese
Time in Chinese is straightforward and logical.
点 (diǎn) – o’clock
分 (fēn) – minutes
Example sentences:
现在三点 (xiàn zài sān diǎn) – It is 3 o’clock now
现在三点十分 (xiàn zài sān diǎn shí fēn) – It is 3:10 now
现在五点半 (xiàn zài wǔ diǎn bàn) – It is 5:30 now
Talking About Daily Schedule
Time expressions are often used to describe your daily routine.
早上 (zǎo shang) – morning
下午 (xià wǔ) – afternoon
晚上 (wǎn shang) – evening
Example sentences:
我早上七点起床 (wǒ zǎo shang qī diǎn qǐ chuáng) – I wake up at 7 in the morning
我下午三点学习 (wǒ xià wǔ sān diǎn xué xí) – I study at 3 in the afternoon
我晚上八点吃饭 (wǒ wǎn shang bā diǎn chī fàn) – I eat at 8 in the evening
Useful Time Expressions
These simple words help you talk about time naturally.
现在 (xiàn zài) – now
今天 (jīn tiān) – today
明天 (míng tiān) – tomorrow
昨天 (zuó tiān) – yesterday
Example sentences:
我现在很忙 (wǒ xiàn zài hěn máng) – I am busy now
我今天学习中文 (wǒ jīn tiān xué xí zhōng wén) – I study Chinese today
我明天去学校 (wǒ míng tiān qù xué xiào) – I go to school tomorrow
我昨天很累 (wǒ zuó tiān hěn lèi) – I was tired yesterday
Combining Numbers, Dates, and Time
Once you understand all parts, you can combine them into full, natural sentences.
今天是星期三，三月十号 (jīn tiān shì xīng qī sān, sān yuè shí hào) – Today is Wednesday, March 10
我明天早上八点去机场 (wǒ míng tiān zǎo shang bā diǎn qù jī chǎng) – I will go to the airport at 8 tomorrow morning
我们下午三点见 (wǒ men xià wǔ sān diǎn jiàn) – We meet at 3 in the afternoon
New Words from This Blog Post
零 (líng) – zero
百 (bǎi) – hundred
块 (kuài) – yuan
年 (nián) – year
月 (yuè) – month
号 (hào) – day (date)
星期 (xīng qī) – week
点 (diǎn) – hour
分 (fēn) – minute
半 (bàn) – half
起床 (qǐ chuáng) – wake up
休息 (xiū xí) – rest
昨天 (zuó tiān) – yesterday
学习 (xué xí) – study
时间 (shí jiān) – time
