Classifier / Measure Word
What kind of unit are we counting?
معنا
A word or marker used with numbers or quantity to classify the noun by shape, type, animacy, function, or measurement unit.
چطور آن را تشخیص دهید
Notice whether numbers require an extra word before the noun.
نمونهها
piece|cup|sheet|person|classifier
three cups of water|one piece of paper
I bought three cups of coffee.
Visual guide
counting a noun: number -> unit/class -> noun 3 -> cups -> coffee 1 -> piece -> paper classifier answers: "count as what kind/unit?"
Counting patterns: A) 3 books number + noun B) 3 CL book number + class + noun C) 3 cups of water number + measure + of + noun Ask: required? which class?
نمای زبان
در زبان مادری شما
Measure and classifier-like words such as تا are common, especially colloquially, but not always required.
دو تا کتاب خریدم.
two CL book bought-I.
در زبانی که یاد میگیرید
English has measure expressions, but classifiers are not generally obligatory for ordinary nouns.
a piece of advice
piece of = measure expression
Learners from classifier languages may overuse measure words, while others may struggle with uncountable nouns.
Good transfer potential
This block behaves relatively similarly, so you can transfer intuition more safely between the two languages.