三sānthree; 3
三 (sān) means "three" or "3," as in 我有三个孩子 (I have three children), 他三点来 (He is coming at three o'clock) and 我买了三本书 (I bought three books). In all three, 三 means three, the number 3. This entry covers this one sense, each shown with its own examples below.
What does 三 mean?
- 1.
three; 3numeral
What does the character 三 mean?
- 三three; 3
How do you use 三?
See it in 我有三个孩子, 他三点来 and 我买了三本书.
What are some examples of 三 in a sentence?
How is 三 used in a conversation?
- Speaker A:
你有几个孩子?
Nǐ yǒu jǐ ge háizi?
How many children do you have?
- Speaker B:
我有三个孩子。
Wǒ yǒu sān ge háizi.
I have three children.
- Speaker A:
真好!
Zhēn hǎo!
How nice!
- Speaker B:
谢谢!
Xièxie!
Thanks!
Can you use 三 correctly?
0 of 3 answeredWhat should you learn next?
- Free HSK 3 level testSee which HSK 3.0 level your vocabulary matches.
- HSK 1 word listEvery word at this level, with examples.
- HSK 3.0 guideHow the nine levels and three bands work.
Related words
- 两liǎngtwoHSK 1
- 个gè(classifier used before a noun that has no specific classifier)HSK 1
- 一yīoneHSK 1
- 一半yí bànhalfHSK 1
- 七qīsevenHSK 1
- 二èrtwoHSK 1
Browse every entry in the Chinese word dictionary.
English glosses on this page are adapted from CC-CEDICT, published by MDBG (snapshot 2026-10-23), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Glosses were edited for learners.