二 vs 两 — Chinese has two words for "two"
Use 两 when counting things — before a measure word: 两个人, 两本书. Use 二 for the number itself: in digits, dates, ordinals, phone numbers and any number over 100 (二月, 第二, 二十二).
Structure
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两 + measure word + noun
Counting real things: 两个人, 两杯咖啡.
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二 in digits, dates, ordinals
二月, 第二, 二十二, 二零二六.
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两 with 百/千/万 at the front
两百 (also 二百), 两千, 两万.
How it works
The rule most learners can carry: if a measure word follows, use 两. 两个人, 两本书, 两杯咖啡, 两点 (two o'clock — 点 is a measure word here).
二 is the number as a symbol. It appears in counting sequences (一、二、三), dates (二月 February, 二号 the 2nd), ordinals (第二 second), digit strings (二零二六), and inside larger numbers (十二, 二十二).
Large round numbers split the difference. At the front of the number both are heard, with 两 more common in speech: 两百 / 二百, 两千, 两万. Inside a number, 二 always wins: 一百二十二.
Time uses both, in the same clock: 两点 is 2 o'clock (counting hours) but 二十分 is twenty minutes past (a number).
Examples
Quick drill — 5 questions
Five fill-in-the-gap questions built from the example sentences above. No sign-up, no score kept — just a check that the pattern has actually landed.
Choose the word that belongs in the gap:
Common mistakes
| ✗ Wrong | ✓ Right | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 二个人 | 两个人 | A measure word follows, so 两 is required. |
| 两月 | 二月 | 月 in a date is not a measure word — it names February. (两个月 = two months is correct.) |
| 第两 | 第二 | Ordinals always take 二. |
二 vs 两 — two ways to say two — frequently asked questions
When do you use 两 instead of 二 in Chinese?
Whenever a measure word follows and you are counting things: 两个人 (two people), 两本书 (two books), 两点 (two o'clock). If there is no measure word — dates, ordinals, digits, larger numbers — use 二.
Is it 二月 or 两月?
二月 for February, the second month of the year. 两个月 means "two months" as a duration — different meaning, and it needs the measure word 个.
How do you say 200 in Chinese?
Both 两百 (liǎng bǎi) and 二百 (èr bǎi) are correct; 两百 is more common in speech in most of China. Inside a longer number, 二 is used: 一百二十二 (122).
Is it 两点二十 or 二点二十?
两点二十 — the hour counts things (two hours on the clock) so it takes 两, while the minutes are a plain number and take 二.
Next, learn
Put it to work
Drill the vocabulary for this level on the HSK 1 word list, rebuild scrambled sentences in the Sentence Builder, read graded stories that use this pattern in the story library, or follow a step-by-step route through the whole site in Guided Learning Paths.