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HSK 1

多少

how many; how much

pronounneutral
多
duō1st tone
少
shǎo3rd tone

HSK level

1
2
3
4
5
6
Pinyin
duōshao
Part of speech
pronoun
Level
HSK 1
Strokes
10
Register
neutral

Stroke order for 多少

多少 is written with 10 strokes (多: 6, 少: 4). The animation replays automatically.

What does 多少 mean?

多少 (duōshao) is the standard question word for asking 'how many' or 'how much' when the answer could be any number — large or small, countable or uncountable.

Literally 'many-few,' it differs from 几 (jǐ) in one important way: 几 expects a small answer (under ten, usually) and almost always takes a measure word (几个人 'how many people'), while 多少 expects any number and the measure word is optional (多少人 or 多少个人). Use 多少 for prices (多少钱 'how much money'), phone numbers, ages of adults, large quantities, and anything where you have no estimate. Note: the second syllable is the neutral tone shao, NOT shǎo — duōshao together is the question word; duō shǎo as two stressed syllables means 'more or less'.

Character by character

多duōmany; much
+
少shǎofew; little
=
多少

Memory hook: 'Many-few?' — literally asking 'how far on the many-to-few scale?' i.e. how much.

Example sentences

这个多少钱？

Zhège duōshao qián?

How much does this cost?

spoken

你的电话是多少？

Nǐ de diànhuà shì duōshao?

What's your phone number?

neutral

今天有多少人？

Jīntiān yǒu duōshao rén?

How many people are there today?

neutral

你多少岁？

Nǐ duōshao suì?

How old are you? (for adults)

spoken

Common phrases with 多少

多少钱duōshao qiánhow much money; how much does it cost
多少人duōshao rénhow many people
多少号duōshao hàowhat number; what date
多少岁duōshao suìhow old (for adults)
电话多少diànhuà duōshaowhat's your phone number

Synonyms

几jǐ

Use 几 when you expect a small answer (1-9) and always with a measure word: 几个人 (how many people, expecting a few). Use 多少 for big or unknown quantities, prices, and phone numbers: 多少钱 (how much money). Wrong choice sounds odd.

Don't confuse 多少 with

多少 (duō shǎo)duō shǎo

Same characters, both tones pronounced: duō shǎo means 'more or less / to some extent' (literary). The question word is duōshao with neutral 少.

怎么zěnme

怎么 asks 'how / why', not 'how much'. 这个怎么卖 (how is this sold) vs 这个多少钱 (how much is this).

FAQ

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