Plural Pronouns with '们'

01

Basic Plural Pronouns

The structure is straightforward: simply place 们 (men˙ㄇㄣmên) immediately after the singular pronoun.

• 我 (wǒㄨㄛˇwo3) (I) becomes 我们 (wǒ·menㄨㄛˇ·˙ㄇㄣwo3·mên) (we / us)
• 你 (nǐㄋㄧˇni3) (you) becomes 你们 (nǐ·menㄋㄧˇ·˙ㄇㄣni3·mên) (you all / y'all)
• 他 (tāㄊㄚt'a1) (he) becomes 他们 (tā·menㄊㄚ·˙ㄇㄣt'a1·mên) (they / them)

• 我们是朋友。

  wǒ·men shì péng·you.ㄨㄛˇ·˙ㄇㄣ ㄕˋ ㄆㄥˊ·˙ㄧㄡ.wo3·mên shih4 p'êng2·yu.

  We are friends.

• 你们喜欢喝茶吗？

  nǐ·men xǐ·huan hē chá ma?ㄋㄧˇ·˙ㄇㄣ ㄒㄧˇ·˙ㄏㄨㄢ ㄏㄜ ㄔㄚˊ ˙ㄇㄚ?ni3·mên shi3·huan ho1 ch'a2 ma?

  Do you (all) like drinking tea?

02

Gender Distinctions in Writing

In spoken Mandarin, "he", "she", and "it" all sound exactly the same 他 (tāㄊㄚt'a1). Consequently, the plural forms "they" 他们 (tā·menㄊㄚ·˙ㄇㄣt'a1·mên) also sound identical. However, in written Chinese, different characters are used to distinguish the gender of the group.

• Masculine or Mixed Group: Use 他们 (tā·menㄊㄚ·˙ㄇㄣt'a1·mên). This is the default form used for a group of men or a mixed group containing at least one male.
• Feminine Group: Use 她们 (tā·menㄊㄚ·˙ㄇㄣt'a1·mên). This is used exclusively for a group consisting entirely of females.
• Inanimate/Animals: Use 它们 (tā·menㄊㄚ·˙ㄇㄣt'a1·mên). This is used for objects or animals.

• 他们是我的同学。

  tā·men shì wǒ de tóng·xué.ㄊㄚ·˙ㄇㄣ ㄕˋ ㄨㄛˇ ˙ㄉㄜ ㄊㄨㄥˊ·ㄒㄩㄝˊ.t'a1·mên shih4 wo3 tê t'ung2·shüeh2.

  They (mixed group or males) are my classmates.

• 她们都很高兴。

  tā·men dōu hěn gāo·xìng.ㄊㄚ·˙ㄇㄣ ㄉㄡ ㄏㄣˇ ㄍㄠ·ㄒㄧㄥˋ.t'a1·mên tou1 hên3 kao1·shing4.

  They (females) are all very happy.

03

Using 'Men' with Nouns

You can also attach 们 (men˙ㄇㄣmên) to nouns referring to people to indicate a group, such as "students" or "teachers". However, this usage has a specific restriction: you cannot use 们 (men˙ㄇㄣmên) if a specific number or quantity word is present in the sentence.

If you say "three students", the number "three" already indicates plurality, so adding 们 (men˙ㄇㄣmên) would be redundant and grammatically incorrect.

• Correct: 学生们 (xué·sheng·menㄒㄩㄝˊ·˙ㄕㄥ·˙ㄇㄣshüeh2·shêng·mên) (The students)
• Incorrect: 三个学生们 (sān ge xué·sheng·menㄙㄢ ˙ㄍㄜ ㄒㄩㄝˊ·˙ㄕㄥ·˙ㄇㄣssan1 ko shüeh2·shêng·mên) (Three students) → You should just say 三个学生 (sān ge xué·shengㄙㄢ ˙ㄍㄜ ㄒㄩㄝˊ·˙ㄕㄥssan1 ko shüeh2·shêng).

• 老师们在开会。

  lǎo·shī·men zài kāi huì.ㄌㄠˇ·ㄕ·˙ㄇㄣ ㄗㄞˋ ㄎㄞ ㄏㄨㄟˋ.lao3·shih1·mên tsai4 k'ai1 hui4.

  The teachers are having a meeting.

• 孩子们在玩。

  hái·zi·men zài wán.ㄏㄞˊ·˙ㄗ·˙ㄇㄣ ㄗㄞˋ ㄨㄢˊ.hai2·tsŭ·mên tsai4 wan2.

  The children are playing.

04

The Polite Form

While 您 (nínㄋㄧㄣˊnin2) is the polite singular form of "you", it is rarely used with 们 (men˙ㄇㄣmên) in standard Mandarin. To address a group of people politely, you generally revert to the standard plural 你们 (nǐ·menㄋㄧˇ·˙ㄇㄣni3·mên), or use specific polite titles like "everyone" or "ladies and gentlemen".

• 你们好！

  nǐ·men hǎo!ㄋㄧˇ·˙ㄇㄣ ㄏㄠˇ!ni3·mên hao3!

  Hello (to a group)!