Borrowed measure words: 碗/脸/手/桌子
在汉语里，某些普通名词可以借用为量词，用来生动地表达数量或状态。
常用借用量词：
- 碗 (wǎn): 一碗汤 — the bowl as a container measure
- 脸 (liǎn): 一脸汗 / 满脸笑容 — face covered with
- 手 (shǒu): 一手好字 — a skilled hand at
- 桌子 (zhuō zi): 一桌子菜 — a table full of
结构: 数量 / 满 + 借用量词 + (的) + 名词
✅ 他满脸通红。(His face was all red.)
✅ 她做得一手好菜。(She's skilled at cooking.)
❌ 他有脸汗。(Missing the measure structure)
Worked examples
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| 她进来时满脸微笑，让大家心情都好了起来。 | Tā jìn lái shí mǎn liǎn wēi xiào, ràng dà jiā xīn qíng dōu hǎo le qǐ lái. | When she came in, her face was full of smiles, lifting everyone's mood. | 满脸 borrowed from 脸 (face) to express 'face covered with'; describes facial expression |
| 这个大厨有一手厉害的厨艺，什么菜都做得很好。 | Zhè ge dà chú yǒu yī shǒu lì hai de chú yì, shén me cài dōu zuò de hěn hǎo. | This chef has a skilled hand in the kitchen — every dish turns out great. | 一手 borrowed from 手 (hand) in the set pattern 有一手 + skill = 'is skilled at' |
| 过年的时候，奶奶总会准备一桌子菜，大家吃得非常开心。 | Guò nián de shí hou, nǎi nai zǒng huì zhǔn bèi yī zhuō zi cài, dà jiā chī de fēi cháng kāi xīn. | During the New Year, grandma always prepares a table full of dishes; everyone eats very happily. | 一桌子 borrowed from 桌子 (table) to mean 'a table covered with / a tableful of' |
What you need first
Every topic in GraphChinese names its own prerequisites, and these are the grammar points this one is built on. If a sentence here will not parse, one of them is why.
What this opens up
These patterns list Borrowed measure words among their own prerequisites, so they become readable once this one holds.
Borrowed measure words is one topic of 829. GraphChinese teaches them in prerequisite order, so this pattern reaches you on the day everything it rests on is proven. The whole course, HSK 0 through HSK 6, is $49 once for lifetime access.
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