点 and 些 (A Bit / Some) | Chinese (Mandarin) Grammar

When you want to say "a little water" or "some books," Chinese hands you two compact quantity words that do the whole job by themselves: (一)点儿 (yìdiǎnr, "a little / a bit") and (一)些 (yìxiē, "some / several"). The thing to understand from day one is that 点 and 些 are themselves measure words — indefinite ones. That is why 一点儿水 and 一些书 are already complete, and why adding the general measure word 个 to them is simply wrong. There is no 一些个书. Think of 点儿 and 些 as sitting in exactly the same slot as 本 or 张, just meaning "an unspecified small/plural amount" instead of "one volume" or "one flat sheet."

点儿: a little, a small amount

(一)点儿 means "a little," a small or slight quantity. It pairs most naturally with uncountable / mass things — water, time, money, salt — where you are not counting units but taking a modest portion.

给我一点儿时间，好吗？

gěi wǒ yìdiǎnr shíjiān, hǎo ma?

Give me a little time, okay? (informal)

菜太淡了，加点儿盐吧。

cài tài dàn le, jiā diǎnr yán ba

The dish is too bland — add a bit of salt. (informal) — the 一 is dropped after the verb 加.

我会说一点儿中文。

wǒ huì shuō yìdiǎnr Zhōngwén

I can speak a little Chinese. (informal) — 一点儿 modestly downplays the amount.

A note on the 儿 ending: 点儿 (diǎnr) carries the northern "erhua" 儿 suffix, standard in Beijing Mandarin and in the pinyin you'll see in textbooks. In much southern-Mainland and Taiwan speech it is simply 点 (diǎn), no 儿 (regional). Both are correct; the meaning is identical.

些: some, several

(一)些 means "some / several / a number of" — an unspecified plural. It pairs naturally with countable things (books, people, questions) and with larger, vaguer masses than 点儿 suggests.

冰箱里还有一些牛奶。

bīngxiāng lǐ hái yǒu yìxiē niúnǎi

There's still some milk in the fridge. (informal)

我买了一些水果，你尝尝。

wǒ mǎi le yìxiē shuǐguǒ, nǐ chángchang

I bought some fruit — have a taste. (informal)

还有一些问题需要讨论。

hái yǒu yìxiē wèntí xūyào tǎolùn

There are still some issues to discuss. (neutral)

The difference in one line: how much

Both translate loosely as "some," so how do you choose? 点儿 = a small amount (and leans uncountable); 些 = an unspecified plural, generally more than 点儿 (and leans countable). If you can picture distinct items you can count, reach for 些; if you mean a bit of a substance, reach for 点儿.

喝点儿茶还是喝些咖啡？

hē diǎnr chá háishì hē xiē kāfēi?

Have a little tea, or some coffee? (informal) — both are drinks, so both work; 点儿 frames it as a small serving.

桌子上有些饼干，你拿点儿吧。

zhuōzi shàng yǒu xiē bǐnggān, nǐ ná diǎnr ba

There are some biscuits on the table — take a few. (informal) — 些 for the pile of biscuits, 点儿 for the modest amount you take.

A tiny bit and quite a few: 一点点 and 好些

Two colloquial variants are worth having ready. Reduplicating 点 into 一点点 (yìdiǎndiǎn) shrinks the amount even further — "a tiny little bit," often with a note of "only that much." And 好些 (hǎoxiē, "a good many / quite a few") pushes 些 in the opposite direction, up to a sizeable number.

我只喝了一点点，真的不多。

wǒ zhǐ hē le yìdiǎndiǎn, zhēn de bù duō

I only drank a tiny bit, really not much. (informal) — reduplicated 一点点 emphasizes how little.

他去过好些国家。

tā qù guo hǎoxiē guójiā

He's been to quite a few countries. (informal) — 好些 = a good many.

One structural limit to remember: 些 pairs only with 一 (or with a demonstrative, as in 这些). You cannot put another number in front of it — there is no 三些 for "three-some." When you want a definite count, you leave 些 behind and switch to a number plus the noun's proper measure word: 三本书 ("three books"), not 三些书.

They already contain the measure — never add 个

Because 点 and 些 occupy the measure-word slot, you attach them directly to the noun, with nothing extra in between. This is the single most important structural fact on this page. You would never insert a second measure word after 三本 (you don't say 三本个书), and the same holds here: 一些 and 一点儿 are complete quantifiers.

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Slot logic: 一 + 些/点儿 + noun is parallel to 一 + 本/张 + noun. The 些 and 点儿 are the measure word, so 个 has no place: 一些书 ✓, 一些个书 ✗.

After 这 / 那 / 哪: 这些, 那些, 哪些

When you want "these / those / which" as plurals, you drop the 一 and attach 些 straight to the demonstrative: 这些 (zhèxiē, these), 那些 (nàxiē, those), 哪些 (nǎxiē, which ones). This is the plural counterpart to the singular 这个 / 那个 / 哪个 you met on the demonstratives + measure word page — 些 is doing the measure-word job there too.

这些照片是去年拍的。

zhèxiē zhàopiàn shì qùnián pāi de

These photos were taken last year. (informal)

那些人我一个都不认识。

nàxiē rén wǒ yí ge dōu bú rènshi

Those people — I don't know a single one of them. (informal)

哪些是你要的？

nǎxiē shì nǐ yào de?

Which ones are the ones you want? (informal) — 哪些 asks about a plural set; 哪个 would ask about one.

Dropping the 一 after a verb

In everyday speech the 一 in front of 点儿 / 些 is regularly dropped once a verb comes right before it — 买点儿, 喝点儿, 吃些, 加点儿. The quantity meaning survives untouched; dropping 一 just makes the phrase lighter and more colloquial. You will hear this constantly.

你多吃点儿，别客气。

nǐ duō chī diǎnr, bié kèqi

Have some more to eat, don't be shy. (informal) — 一 dropped after 吃.

周末我想买点儿东西。

zhōumò wǒ xiǎng mǎi diǎnr dōngxi

I want to buy a few things this weekend. (informal) — 买点儿东西, 一 dropped.

Don't confuse 一点儿 (noun) with 有点儿 (adjective)

Here is the trap that catches almost every learner. 一点儿 + noun means "a little (of a thing)": 一点儿水. But 有点儿 + adjective means "somewhat / a bit too," usually with a mild note of complaint: 有点儿贵 ("a bit expensive"), 有点儿累 ("a bit tired"). They look similar and both translate as "a bit," but 一点儿 quantifies a noun while 有点儿 grades an adjective.

这件衣服有点儿贵。

zhè jiàn yīfu yǒudiǎnr guì

This piece of clothing is a bit (too) expensive. (informal) — 有点儿 + adjective, with a hint of complaint.

There is a mirror-image pattern where 一点儿 sits after an adjective to mean "a bit more X" — 便宜一点儿 (piányi yìdiǎnr, "a bit cheaper"). That comparative use, and the full 有点儿 vs 一点儿 contrast, are handled on the choosing 一点儿 vs 有点儿 page; keep them separate in your mind from the "a little + noun" use taught here.

Common Mistakes

1. Adding 个 (or any measure word) after 一些 / 一点儿. They already are the measure word.

❌ 我买了一些个书。

Wrong — 些 is itself the measure word, so 个 is redundant and ungrammatical.

✅ 我买了一些书。

wǒ mǎi le yìxiē shū

I bought some books. (informal)

2. Using 这点儿 / 那点儿 to mean "these / those." For a plural set, "these/those" is 这些 / 那些. 这点儿 means "this little bit (this small amount)," a quantity, not a plural group.

❌ 这点儿人都是我的同事。

Wrong for 'these people' — 这点儿 means 'this small amount', not a plural group of people.

✅ 这些人都是我的同事。

zhèxiē rén dōu shì wǒ de tóngshì

These people are all my colleagues. (informal)

3. Using 一点儿 before an adjective for "a bit too." For "somewhat + adjective," you need 有点儿, not 一点儿.

❌ 这个菜一点儿咸。

Wrong for 'a bit too salty' — 一点儿 quantifies nouns, not adjectives.

✅ 这个菜有点儿咸。

zhège cài yǒudiǎnr xián

This dish is a bit too salty. (informal) — 有点儿 + adjective.

4. Using 点儿 for a set of countable items. For distinct countable things, prefer 些 (or a number + measure word); 点儿 implies a mere trace and sounds off with count nouns like "friends."

❌ 我有一点儿朋友。

Off — 点儿 suggests a tiny undifferentiated amount, which clashes with countable people.

✅ 我有一些朋友。

wǒ yǒu yìxiē péngyou

I have some friends. (informal) — 些 (or 几个) for countable people.

Key Takeaways

点儿 = "a little" (small amount, leans uncountable); 些 = "some/several" (unspecified plural, leans countable).
Both are measure words — attach them straight to the noun and never add 个.
Plural "these/those/which" = 这些 / 那些 / 哪些 (些 as the measure word), versus singular 这个/那个/哪个.
The 一 commonly drops after a verb: 买点儿东西, 吃点儿.
Keep 一点儿 + noun ("a little water") apart from 有点儿 + adjective ("a bit too expensive").

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