Approximate Amounts: 左右, 多, 来, 大约, 几

Real life is full of rough numbers. You don't always know the exact count, and often you don't need it. "About thirty," "more than a hundred," "a few people." Chinese has a small set of words for this, and each one has its own spot in the sentence. Let's go through them.

左右: "around," after the number

左右 zuǒyòu means "around" or "more or less." It goes after the amount, like a little tag on the end. It literally means "left right," which is a nice image: somewhere on either side of the number.

number + measure word + 左右

• 三十岁左右 sān shí suì zuǒyòu (around thirty years old)
• 五个左右 wǔ ge zuǒyòu (about five)
• 一百块左右 yì bǎi kuài zuǒyòu (around a hundred yuan)

This is the easiest one to use, because you just say the number and stick 左右 on the back. It works with all kinds of amounts: ages, money, time, and counts.

大约 and 大概: "about," before the number

大约 dàyuē and 大概 dàgài both mean "about" or "approximately," and they go in front of the number. They're nearly the same in meaning, so you can treat them as a pair.

大约/大概 + number

• 大约二十个人 dàyuē èr shí ge rén (about twenty people)
• 大概三点 dàgài sān diǎn (around three o'clock)

You can even combine these front and back words for extra softness: 大约三十岁左右 (somewhere around thirty). That's fine and you'll hear it.

A small difference: 大概 also carries a "probably" feeling and can talk about likelihood, not just numbers (大概会下雨, it'll probably rain). 大约 sticks more to amounts. But for rough numbers, either works.

多: "more than," attached to the number

多 duō means "and more" or "-odd." It attaches right to a number to say the real amount is a bit higher. Where you put it depends on the number.

For round numbers (ten, hundred, etc.), 多 goes after the round number and before the measure word:

• 三十多个 sān shí duō ge (thirty-something, 30+)
• 一百多块 yì bǎi duō kuài (a hundred-odd yuan)
• 二十多年 èr shí duō nián (twenty-some years)

So 三十多 means "thirty-plus," somewhere between 31 and 39. It's a handy way to be roughly right when you don't know the exact figure.

来: "about," a rounder cousin of 多

来 lái works a lot like 多 but feels rounder and more approximate. It also attaches to round numbers, usually larger ones:

• 十来个 shí lái ge (about ten, ten or so)
• 二十来岁 èr shí lái suì (around twenty years old)

The difference from 多 is subtle. 多 leans toward "a bit more than," while 来 means "roughly, give or take." In everyday speech they often feel interchangeable, so don't lose sleep over the gap. 来 is a little more casual.

几: "a few" or "how many"

几 jǐ is special because it does two jobs.

As a question word, it asks "how many" for small numbers:

• 你要几个？Nǐ yào jǐ ge? (How many do you want?)

As an approximate, it means "a few" or "several," standing in for an unknown small number:

• 几个朋友 jǐ ge péngyou (a few friends)
• 十几个 shí jǐ ge (ten-something, 11 to 19)
• 几十个 jǐ shí ge (several tens, dozens)

That 十几 / 几十 contrast is worth a look. 十几 puts 几 after ten, meaning "ten plus a few" (11 to 19). 几十 puts 几 before ten, meaning "several tens" (twenty, thirty, forty... a vaguer, bigger range). The position flips the meaning, so keep an eye on which side 几 sits on.

Like other numbers, 几 still needs a measure word: 几本书, not 几书.

Quick recap

Each of these has a home position. 左右 tags onto the end for "around." 大约 and 大概 sit in front for "about." 多 and 来 attach to a round number to mean "and a bit more." And 几 covers "a few" or "how many," with 十几 and 几十 flipping meaning depending on where it sits. Mix and match these and you can be comfortably vague about almost any amount.