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HSK 3

双

pair; double; (measure word for things that come in twos)

measure wordneutral
双
shuāng1st tone

HSK level

1
2
3
4
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6
Pinyin
shuāng
Part of speech
measure word
Level
HSK 3
Strokes
4
Register
neutral

Stroke order for 双

双 is written with 4 strokes. The animation replays automatically.

What does 双 mean?

双 (shuāng) is the measure word for things that naturally come in matched pairs — shoes, socks, chopsticks, gloves, eyes, hands.

You say 一双鞋 'a pair of shoes,' 一双筷子 'a pair of chopsticks,' 一双眼睛 'a pair of eyes.' English speakers must learn the difference between 双 and the other 'two-things' word 对 (duì): 双 is for items that work together as one functional unit (you can't really use just one chopstick); 对 is for matched but separable items (a couple, two earrings, two vases).

双 also works as an adjective meaning 'double / dual' in compounds like 双人床 (double bed) and 双手 (both hands), and as a noun for 'even number' (单 vs 双 = odd vs even). Don't confuse with 两 (liǎng), the generic 'two' used before measure words.

Example sentences

我买了一双新鞋。

Wǒ mǎi le yì shuāng xīn xié.

I bought a new pair of shoes.

neutral

请给我一双筷子。

Qǐng gěi wǒ yì shuāng kuàizi.

Please give me a pair of chopsticks.

spoken

她有一双大眼睛。

Tā yǒu yì shuāng dà yǎnjing.

She has a pair of big eyes.

neutral

我们要一张双人床。

Wǒmen yào yì zhāng shuāngrén chuáng.

We'd like a double bed.

spoken

妈妈给我买了两双袜子。

Māma gěi wǒ mǎi le liǎng shuāng wàzi.

Mom bought me two pairs of socks.

spoken

Common phrases with 双

一双鞋yì shuāng xiéa pair of shoes
一双筷子yì shuāng kuàizia pair of chopsticks
一双袜子yì shuāng wàzia pair of socks
双人床shuāngrén chuángdouble bed
双手shuāng shǒuboth hands

Synonyms

对duì

对 is for matched pairs of separate items — 一对夫妻 'a married couple,' 一对耳环 'a pair of earrings,' 一对花瓶 'a pair of vases.' 双 is for items that function as one unit: shoes, chopsticks, socks, gloves.

Don't confuse 双 with

两liǎng

两 means 'two' before a measure word: 两双鞋 = 'two pairs of shoes.' 双 is itself the measure word for one pair. They appear together but do different jobs.

对duì

对 = pair of two separate items (a couple, earrings). 双 = pair that works as a single unit (shoes, chopsticks). Saying 一对鞋 sounds wrong; the correct form is 一双鞋.

二èr

二 is the number 'two' for counting and digits (二楼 'second floor'). 双 is not a number — it's specifically 'a pair.' Don't say 二鞋.

FAQ

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