Chinese grammar - More counters - 本 (běn), 张 (zhāng) and 支 (zhī)

More counters - 本 (běn), 张 (zhāng) and 支 (zhī)

In Chinese, three more very common counters are 本 (běn), 张 (zhāng) and 支 (zhī).

• 本 (běn) is used with bound items like books and notebooks.

• 张 (zhāng) is used for flat objects like paper, beds, or tables.

• 支 (zhī) is used for long, thin objects like pens or trees.

Examples:
	我有一个苹果。 wǒ yǒu yí gè píngguǒ. I have an apple. 个 used for round fruit the tone changes from yī (1st tone) to yí (2nd tone) when 一 is followed by a 4th tone, as in 一个 (yí gè)
	他有两本书吗？ tā yǒu liǎng běn shū ma? Does he have two books? 本 used for bound items
	她吃三个橙子。 tā chī sān gè chéngzi. She eats three oranges. 个 used for round fruit
	有三个中国人。 yǒu sān gè zhōngguó rén. There are three Chinese people. 个 used for people
	没有五个美国人。 méi yǒu wǔ gè měiguó rén. There are not five Americans. 个 used for people
	那些是五个柠檬。 nà xiē shì wǔ gè níngméng. Those are five lemons. 个 used for round fruit
	没有一张床。 méi yǒu yì zhāng chuáng. There is not a bed. 张 used for flat objects 一 (yī) changes to the fourth tone (yì) when followed by a non-fourth tone, as in 一张 (yì zhāng) 床 (chuáng) means 'bed'
	你没有一张纸吗？ nǐ méi yǒu yì zhāng zhǐ ma? Don't you have a/one sheet of paper? 张 used for flat objects 一 (yī) changes to the fourth tone (yì) when followed by a non-fourth tone, as in 一张 (yì zhāng) 纸 (zhǐ) means 'paper'
	我有一支筷子。 wǒ yǒu yì zhī kuàizi. I have one chopstick. 支 used for long, thin objects 筷子 (kuàizi) means 'chopsticks
	他看一张地图。 tā kàn yì zhāng dìtú. He is looking at a map. 张 used for flat objects 地图 (dìtú) means 'map'
	她有没有二十张纸？ tā yǒu méi yǒu èrshí zhāng zhǐ? Does she have 20 sheets of paper?