number (in a series)
HSK level
号码 (hàomǎ) is a noun meaning a number used as an identifier or label — a phone number (电话号码), an ID number (身份证号码), a seat number, a jersey number, a shoe size.
Crucially, it is not the number you count or calculate with; that is 数字 (shùzì) or 数 (shù). 号码 always tags or identifies a specific item within a series, the way English 'number' works in 'phone number' or 'room number' but not in 'the number three.' So you dial a 号码 and wear a jersey 号码, but you do math with 数字.
This distinction trips up English speakers who use one word 'number' for both. Register is neutral and everyday. Compare 数字 (a numeral/figure for counting or data) and 编号 (a serial/reference number, more formal, for cataloguing).
Character by character
Memory hook: 号 (designation) + 码 (code/numeral) — a coded designation, i.e. an ID number.
号码 appears in 1 Fluentide podcast episode at natural native speed — each with the full Chinese script, pinyin, and line-by-line English translation.
Browse the full episode library请告诉我你的电话号码。
Qǐng gàosu wǒ nǐ de diànhuà hàomǎ.
Please tell me your phone number.
polite
我忘了他的手机号码。
Wǒ wàng le tā de shǒujī hàomǎ.
I forgot his cell phone number.
spoken
填表时要写上身份证号码。
Tián biǎo shí yào xiě shàng shēnfènzhèng hàomǎ.
When filling out the form, write your ID number.
neutral
请核对一下您的座位号码。
Qǐng héduì yíxià nín de zuòwèi hàomǎ.
Please check your seat number.
formal
号码 is written with 13 strokes (号: 5, 码: 8). Tap replay to watch each character drawn again.
编号 is a serial or reference number assigned for cataloguing (product 编号, case 编号), and is more formal/administrative. 号码 is the everyday identifier like a phone or seat number.
Acquire it by listening
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