Ordinals and Room/Bus Numbers: 第一、302路
An ordinal number is made by putting 第 (dì) before a number, so 第一 is first and 第二名 is second place. Room and route numbers are read as digits, with 号 or 路, as in 302路.
Structure: 第 + Number (+ Measure Word optional)
- 第一名 = first place
- 第三天 = the third day
Bus/route numbers drop 第 and use the number directly + 路:
- 302路 (bus route 302)
- 五路公共汽车 (bus line 5)
Floor numbers: 楼 follows the number directly: 三楼 (3rd floor), not 第三楼 in everyday speech.
❌ 他是第一学生。(missing measure word context)
✅ 他是第一名学生。(first-place student)
Worked examples
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| 她是班上第一名。 | Tā shì bān shàng dì yī míng. | She is first in the class. | Ordinal 第一 + measure word 名 for rank |
| 我们坐302路公共汽车去学校。 | Wǒ men zuò sān líng èr lù gōng gòng qì chē qù xué xiào. | We take bus route 302 to school. | Route number: numeral + 路, no 第 |
| 我家在这栋楼的五楼，你坐电梯上来。 | Wǒ jiā zài zhè dòng lóu de wǔ lóu, nǐ zuò diàn tī shàng lái. | My home is on the 5th floor of this building; take the elevator up. | Floor number: numeral + 楼, no 第 in colloquial speech |
Word by word
Each word in this pattern on its own: what it does here, the structure, three more examples, and the mistake to avoid.
第 (dì)
Turns a number into an ordinal.
Structure: 第 + number (+ measure word)
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 这是我第二次来中国。 | Zhè shì wǒ dì èr cì lái zhōng guó. | This is my second time in China. |
| 他住在第五层。 | Tā zhù zài dì wǔ céng. | He lives on the fifth floor. |
| 请看第十页。 | Qǐng kàn dì shí yè. | Please look at page ten. |
Not: 二第课。 第 goes before the number: 第二课.
In the official HSK 3.0 grammar outline: level 1, prefixes.
第 is also explained in: Prefixes & Suffixes: 第-, 老-, 小-, -们, -子 (HSK 3).
路 (lù)
Names a bus or tram route by its number.
Structure: Number + 路 (+ 车)
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 你坐几路车？ | Nǐ zuò jǐ lù chē? | Which bus do you take? |
| 十五路公共汽车到学校。 | Shí wǔ lù gōng gòng qì chē dào xué xiào. | Bus number fifteen goes to the school. |
| 我每天坐五十八路车上班。 | Wǒ měi tiān zuò wǔ shí bā lù chē shàng bān. | I take bus fifty-eight to work every day. |
Not: 我坐第三路车。 Bus numbers are plain numbers with no 第: 三路车.
号 (hào)
Gives a room, building or house number, read digit by digit.
Structure: Digits + 号 (+ 楼 / 房间)
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 我的房间是三零五号。 | Wǒ de fáng jiān shì sān líng wǔ hào. | My room is number three-oh-five. |
| 请问，二号楼在哪儿？ | Qǐng wèn, èr hào lóu zài nǎ ér? | Excuse me, where is building number two? |
| 我住在五号楼。 | Wǒ zhù zài wǔ hào lóu. | I live in building five. |
Not: 我的房间是三百零五。 Room numbers are read digit by digit: 三零五.
In the official HSK 3.0 grammar outline: level 1, measure words (时量词).
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 Ordinals and Room/Bus Numbers among their own prerequisites, so they become readable once this one holds.
Questions about Ordinals and Room/Bus Numbers
What does 序数表示法 (Ordinals and Room/Bus Numbers) mean in Chinese?
An ordinal number is made by putting 第 (dì) before a number, so 第一 is first and 第二名 is second place. Room and route numbers are read as digits, with 号 or 路, as in 302路. It is an HSK 2 grammar point.
How do you use 序数表示法 (Ordinals and Room/Bus Numbers) in a sentence?
她是班上第一名。 — Tā shì bān shàng dì yī míng. — She is first in the class. Ordinal 第一 + measure word 名 for rank.
What do you need to know before 序数表示法 (Ordinals and Room/Bus Numbers)?
Number-Measure Phrases (HSK 1), Reading Prices and Clock Times (HSK 1). This pattern is built out of them, so a sentence here that will not parse usually means one of them has not landed yet.
What does 序数表示法 (Ordinals and Room/Bus Numbers) lead to?
Prefixes & Suffixes (HSK 3). Each of them names 序数表示法 (Ordinals and Room/Bus Numbers) among its own prerequisites.
How do you say 302 for a room or a bus?
Read it digit by digit: 三零二, and add 路 for a bus, 三零二路. In speech 一 is often said as yāo, so room 101 sounds like yāo líng yāo.
When do I use 第 and when not?
Use 第 for order, as in 第二课 and 第三次. Do not use it for bus, room or phone numbers, which are just numbers.
Ordinals and Room/Bus Numbers 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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