课程 → Level 3 · 量词与描写 → 课 7
Level 3 · Lesson 7 一杯茶
A cup of tea
一杯茶，一瓶水，一碗面条。
Container measures — 杯, 瓶, 碗 — plus the pair word 双, and 杯 vs 杯子.
听 · Listen
晚饭
Li Ming, what are you eating?
A bowl of noodles, and a cup of tea.
And Anna?
I'm not having noodles — I'll drink a bottle of milk.
Fine. Here are three cups.
Mum, are you having a cup of coffee too?
Yes, I'll have a cup of coffee.
讲解 · Explanation
一杯茶，一瓶水，一碗面条。
These measure words are easier than 张 or 条, because you can see them: the measure is the container itself. 杯 bēi is a cup or glass of something, 瓶 píng a bottle of it, 碗 wǎn a bowl of it. Nothing is fixed to one noun here — whatever fits in the container may follow: 一杯水, 一杯咖啡, 一杯牛奶, 一瓶果汁, 一碗饭, 一碗菜. Say the number, the container, then the thing inside.
一杯茶，一个杯子。
Keep these two apart. 杯 is a measure — it must have something in it, so 一杯茶 is 'a cup of tea'. 杯子 is the object on the shelf, and like other objects it is counted with 个: 一个杯子, 三个杯子 'three cups'. The same pair of ideas shows up all over the language: the container can measure, or it can simply be a thing you own.
一双鞋。
双 shuāng counts things that come in twos and are used in twos — shoes, chopsticks, socks, gloves: 一双鞋 'a pair of shoes', 两双鞋 'two pairs'. Mind the arithmetic: 一双鞋 is two shoes on your feet, while one shoe on its own is 一只鞋, with the animal measure you met for 一只猫. If a thing is naturally a pair, never count it with 个.
生词 · Vocabulary
| 词 | Meaning | 注 · Note |
|---|---|---|
| 杯 | measure word: a cup of | 一杯茶，一杯水 |
| 杯子 | cup, glass | 一个杯子 |
| 瓶 | measure word: a bottle of | 一瓶水，两瓶牛奶 |
| 碗 | measure word: a bowl of | 一碗饭，一碗面条 |
| 双 | measure word: a pair of | 一双鞋 |
练习 · Practice
用一用 · Use it
我吃一碗饭，喝一杯茶。
Order your own breakfast, lunch and dinner out loud. Every item needs a number and a container: 一碗面条, 两杯咖啡, 一瓶水, 三个苹果. Then look around the room and count what you can see, choosing between the container and the object — 一杯水 for what you are drinking, 一个杯子 for the empty glass beside it.