Burmese numerical classifiers

In Burmese, classifiers or measure words, in the form of particles, are used when counting or measuring nouns. They immediately follow the number, unless the number is a round number (ends in a zero), in which case, the measure word precedes the number. Nouns to which the classifiers refer to can be omitted if the context allows, because many classifiers have implicit meanings.

The only exceptions to this rule are measurements of time or age (minutes, hours, days, years, etc.), where a preceding noun is not required, as the time measurement acts as a measure word.

Classifiers

See IPA/Burmese for an explanation of the phonetic symbols used in this section.

Burmese	IPA	Transliteration	Main usage
People and animals
		kaung	animals
		pa	sacred persons (such as Buddhist monks and nuns)
		yauk	persons (general classifier)
		shin	pairs of draught cattle
		u	people, monks and nuns
Other measure words
		koun	garlands, necklaces, stringed items
		kyaik	draughts gulped down
		kyeik	items in 'tens'
		kha	number of times
		khu	items (general classifier)
		khet	branches, sprays of flowers
		khin	skeins of wool or cotton
		khaung	skeins of yarn
		khaing	bunches of flowers, fruits
		khauk	trips
		khway	rings, coils
		khun	words
		chi	performances or shows
		cho	components of a ratio
		chet	strokes, blows, hits, points strokes of clocks, drums, gongs, etc.
		chaung	thin, long items (like pencils, sticks)
		chat	flat items (like tables)
		chi	rings, bangles
		si	vehicles and transport animals
		si	bundles
		sin	long-shaped items (like arrows, boats, cars)
		saung	literary pieces, documents, letters, etc.
		soun	sets or pairs
		Template:Not a typo	number of times per equal amount
		hsu	sacred objects and parabaik (Pali manuscripts)
		hsaung	buildings (like houses, monasteries and royal buildings)
		hsaing	work shifts, work teams, packets of gold foil
		tan	different legs of a journey, component parts of abstract concepts
		tan	bars, stripes, etc.
		touk	carcasses of hares
		twe	items in pairs, bunches or clusters
		twet	snapping of fingers
		htat	layers, strata, storeys of buildings, etc.
		htan	loads carried with a shoulder pole (yoke)
		htauk	stages of a journey, width of a point or tip of something
		Template:Not a typo	articles of clothing
		htout	packages
		htoun	knots, coils, etc.
		htwa	number of hand spans
		htwei	varied items; melds of playing cards
		nat	meals
		pa	sacred persons or objects (such as Buddhist monks)
		paw	bundles of seedlings
		pauk	dots or drops
		paing	monk's robe; piece of silk used as headdress
		paing	part or division of something
		pat	weeks
		pin	tall upright things (trees, plants, poles, etc.); long strands (hair, thread, etc.).
		paik	paragraphs
		poud	pieces of writing (such as articles,verse, songs, etc.)
		poun	piles of material
		pyit	mats of palm thatching
		pyu	items in twos or pairs.
		pyaik	frequency of rain and snow
		pyin	doctrines, concepts, dictums, etc.
		pyan	number of times
		pwe	dishes; offertories
		hpi	hands of bananas or plantains
		hpaung	height or depth equal to the height of a person standing with upraised hands (i.e. from the soles of his feet to the tips of his upraised hands)
		hpoun	things in heaps, batches or packs
		hpan	denotes frequency
		hpya	denotes variety, diversity
		hpwa	number of puffs (from cigarettes, etc.)
		myi	ingredients of a drug; kinds of dishes served
		myu	pots of toddy wine
		myet	bundles of loops in a skein of cotton
		hmout	number of scoops with a dipper or ladle
		hmwa	segments of fruit (such as cloves of garlic); parts of a multiparous birth (such as twins)
		hmyaung	longitudinally divided segments (such as cloves of garlic)
		ya	betel quids
		shek	thin slices of food (such as pancake, waffle, etc.)
		yan	objects in pairs
		yat	itemisation; expressing things in terms of a man's height
		yei	periods of sleep
		yei zi	leaves in a parabaik (Pali manuscripts)
		yaik	lengths measured with a bamboo pole
		yit	instalments, stages, chevrons, stripes, etc.
		ywet	counting sheets
		la	races in a contest consisting of a series of cart or boat races
		li	multiples, frequencies
		lei	used in connection with multiples or in replicate, parts of a ratio
		law	number of times
		lek	elongated items; turns in the game of dice
		lout	mouthfuls of food
		loun	round, globular items
		hlaing	sheaves of paddy
		hlwa	layers, strata, etc.
		wa	handsbreadth
		tha	number of ticals or fractions of a tical or viss
		thouk	movements in groups or operations in shifts
		thwe	long, sinuous things (such as strands of pearls, garlands of flowers); paths, ways, methods, means, etc.

See also

• Burmese units of measurement
• Burmese language
• Burmese numerals
• Measure word