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Using 数词 + 量词 + 多 to Give an Approximate Number
The pattern 数词 + 量词 + 多 gives an approximate quantity a little above the stated number. Learn where 多 goes, how to use the pattern with or without a following noun, and when another word order is more natural.
我在市场买了一斤多苹果。
斤 is the weight unit before 多. The expression gives one jin plus part of another jin, not a count of one-and-a-fraction apples.
× 他买了十本多书。
Incorrect for the intended meaning “more than ten books.” Replace 十本多书 with 十多本书.
Corrected example: 他买了十多本书。
Read the full explanation and examples
What the pattern means
This pattern places 多 after the unit or classifier: 一斤多苹果, 两公里多, 一个多小时. It gives the stated amount plus a smaller part of the next unit. The quantity must make sense as divisible in the situation: extra weight, distance or part of an hour is possible. It is not an instruction to place 多 after every classifier for whole counted objects.
我在市场买了一斤多苹果。
斤 is the weight unit before 多. The expression gives one jin plus part of another jin, not a count of one-and-a-fraction apples.
In the market example, the weight is above one jin but below two jin. The apples are measured by weight, so a fractional weight is natural even though an apple is a countable item. Identify the dimension being measured before choosing the form.
Where 多 goes
Two useful shapes are number + measurement unit + 多, as in 两公里多, and number + 个 + 多 + time noun, as in 一个多小时. A noun can follow a measurement expression: 一斤多苹果. This is different from 三十多个人, where 多 comes before 个 and belongs to the neighboring numeral-before-多 pattern.
我们开了一个多小时的会。
Correct: 一个多小时 is a natural expression for a duration over one hour.
“We had a meeting for more than an hour.” Here, 一个多小时 expresses a duration above one hour. With familiar time expressions, this order is natural: 一个多小时, “over an hour”; 两个多月, “over two months.” The measure word 个 precedes 多, while 小时 or 月 names the time unit.
When the noun is left out
两公里多 can stand on its own because 公里 already identifies distance. In 一个多小时, however, 小时 normally remains part of the full expression; 个 alone does not tell you the time unit. Omit material only if the specific conversation makes it recoverable.
从学校到车站有两公里多。
Correct: 公里 is the distance unit; no following noun is needed here.
两公里多 is more than two but less than three kilometers in its ordinary reading. 一个多小时 is more than one but less than two hours. In the first, 公里 comes before 多; in the second, 个 comes before 多 and the time noun 小时 follows.
A useful word-order contrast
Keep this lesson’s pattern distinct from 数词 + 多 + 量词, a neighboring outline point. Compare 十多本书 and 十本多书. 十多本书 is the natural way to say “more than ten books”: 多 comes after the number and before the measure word 本. 十本多书 is unsuitable for this intended meaning. Replace it with 十多本书. Do not treat every different order as impossible in every context; the important point is to use the order that expresses the intended quantity naturally.
× 他买了十本多书。
Incorrect for the intended meaning “more than ten books.” Replace 十本多书 with 十多本书.
Corrected example: 他买了十多本书。
他买了十多本书。
Correct replacement for the intended meaning above ten books: 多 comes between 十 and 本.
The corrected sentence means “He bought more than ten books.” This contrast is about a particular intended meaning: an approximate count above ten books. If you mean a different amount, choose an expression that says that amount clearly instead of calling a different meaning incorrect.
Frequently asked questions
Does 多 mean an exact number?
No. It leaves the exact fractional excess unstated. In an ordinary reading, 一个多小时 gives one hour plus less than another full hour, not any duration above one hour.
Can I leave out the noun after 多?
Sometimes, if the conversation supplies what is omitted. 两公里多 already includes its distance unit before 多. In 一个多小时, keep 小时 unless the conversation clearly supports omitting it; 个 does not itself mean “hour.”
How do I remember the order for “more than ten books”?
Say 十多本书: number, 多, measure word, noun. This is a neighboring pattern and a useful contrast with the focus here, 数词 + 量词 + 多.
