Saying How Often: Frequency with 次, 遍, and 下

You've just seen how to say how long an action lasted. This article is the companion: how to say how many times it happened. Chinese counts actions the same way it counts objects, with a measure word. The three you'll use most are 次, 遍, and 下, and each counts a slightly different kind of repetition. Let's sort them out.

The basic shape: verb + number + measure

To say how many times something happened, you put a number plus a counting word after the verb, in the same slot where duration goes.

verb + number + 次/遍/下

• 我去过三次。 — I've been there three times.
• 我看了两遍。 — I read it twice (all the way through).
• 你试一下。 — Give it a try (once / a bit).

These counting words are called action measure words. They count actions the way 个 and 本 count things.

次: times (the general one)

次 (cì) is the all-purpose "times." Use it for how many times an event happens, with no special nuance. If you're not sure which to pick, 次 is almost always safe.

• 我吃过一次。 — I've eaten it once.
• 他来过两次。 — He's come twice.
• 这是我第一次来中国。 — This is my first time in China.

That last example shows 次 with 第 to make an ordinal: 第一次 ("the first time"), 第二次 ("the second time"), and so on. Very common.

遍: times, all the way through

遍 (biàn) also means "times," but with a specific flavor: it stresses doing something from start to finish. Reading a whole book, watching an entire movie, repeating a full process. The completeness is the point.

• 这本书我看了三遍。 — I've read this book three times (cover to cover).
• 请再说一遍。 — Please say it once more (the whole thing).

Compare 次 and 遍:

• 我看了两次。 — I looked twice. (two separate occasions)
• 我看了两遍。 — I read it through twice. (two complete read-throughs)

So 请再说一遍 ("say it again") asks for the whole thing repeated, which is why it's the natural phrase when you didn't catch what someone said.

下: a quick or brief action

下 (xià) counts short, light actions, often a single quick movement. You've already met it in its softening role as 一下 ("a little / briefly"), and the counting use is closely related.

• 我敲了三下门。 — I knocked on the door three times.
• 他点了两下头。 — He nodded twice.
• 你看一下。 — Take a quick look.

With a literal count (三下, "three taps"), 下 means actual repeated motions. With 一下, it softens into "just briefly," which is the use you'll hear most.

Where the object goes

When there's an object, the frequency phrase usually comes between the verb and the object:

• 我去过两次北京。 — I've been to Beijing twice.
• 我看了三遍这个电影。 — I watched this movie three times.

But if the object is a person or pronoun, the count goes after the object instead:

• 我见过他一次。 — I've met him once.
• 我找过你两次。 — I looked for you twice.

So pronouns push the count to the end, while plain noun objects let the count sit in the middle. A small split, but worth knowing.

A quick reference

Word	Counts	Example
次	times in general	去过三次 (been three times)
遍	times, start to finish	看了两遍 (read through twice)
下	quick / brief actions	敲了三下 (knocked three times)

A quick recap

To say how often, put a number plus a counting word after the verb. 次 is the general "times" and your safe default. 遍 means "times all the way through," which is why 再说一遍 asks for the whole thing again. 下 counts quick little actions and softens into 一下 ("briefly"). Put the count before a noun object (去过两次北京) but after a pronoun (见过他一次), and you can describe how often anything happens.