双 shuāng — two; double; pair; both
她给我买了一双新鞋。Tā gěi wǒ mǎi le yì shuāng xīn xié.She bought me a new pair of shoes.
Common words: 双方 (shuāng fāng)、双手 (shuāng shǒu)、双胞胎 (shuāng bāo tāi)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "double"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "double", including 双 (shuāng), 倍 (bèi), 兼 (jiān). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "double" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 双 (shuāng), 倍 (bèi), 兼 (jiān) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span shuāng, bèi, jiān — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 双 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 双 shuāngtwo; double; pair; bothUseful words: 双方, 双手
- 倍 bèi(two; three; etc) -fold; times (multiplier); double; to increase or multiplyUseful words: 成倍, 十倍
- 兼 jiāndouble; twice; simultaneous; holding two or more (official) posts at the same timeUseful words: 兼职, 统筹兼顾
Common words for these 3 "double" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 双 (shuāng) — so "double" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
双方shuāng fāngbilateral; both sides; both parties involved双手shuāng shǒuboth hands双胞胎shuāng bāo tāitwin成倍chéng bèitwofold; manyfold; exponentially十倍shí bèitenfold; ten times (sth)三倍sān bèitriple; three times as much; threefold兼职jiān zhíto hold concurrent posts; concurrent job; moonlighting统筹兼顾tǒng chóu jiān gùan overall plan taking into account all factors兼顾jiān gùto handle two or more responsibilities at the same time; to balance (career and family, or work and studies etc)
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 3 ways to say "double".
倍 bèi — (two; three; etc) -fold; times (multiplier); double; to increase or multiply
这本书的价钱是那本的两倍。Zhè běn shū de jià qián shì nà běn de liǎng bèi.The price of this book is twice that of that one.
Common words: 成倍 (chéng bèi)、十倍 (shí bèi)、三倍 (sān bèi)
兼 jiān — double; twice; simultaneous; holding two or more (official) posts at the same time
他一个人兼做好几份工作。Tā yí ge rén jiān zuò hǎo jǐ fèn gōng zuò.He does several jobs at the same time by himself.
Common words: 兼职 (jiān zhí)、统筹兼顾 (tǒng chóu jiān gù)、兼顾 (jiān gù)
All 3 characters
Open 双、倍、兼 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.