Level 2 · Elementary
How many times: 次
Verb + (了/过) + Number + 次 · Traditional: Verb + (了/過) + Number + 次
次 (cì) counts how many times an action happens, and like duration it follows the verb: 我去过两次中国 "I've been to China twice", 这个电影我看了三次 "I've watched this movie three times".
With a place or thing, the count usually comes before it: 去过两次中国; with a person or pronoun, after: 来过我家两次.
Examples
我去过两次中国。
我去過兩次中國。
wǒ qù guò liǎng cì zhōng guó
I've been to China twice.
这个电影我看了三次。
這個電影我看了三次。
zhè ge diàn yǐng wǒ kàn le sān cì
I've seen this movie three times.
他给我打了两次电话。
他給我打了兩次電話。
tā gěi wǒ dǎ le liǎng cì diàn huà
He called me twice.
我每个星期运动三次。
我每個星期運動三次。
wǒ měi gè xīng qī yùn dòng sān cì
I exercise three times a week.
Related grammar points
See it in a story
Read this pattern in context: Grandpa's Map (Part 1) — free graded stories with tap-to-reveal pinyin and translations.
