<p>No. It is not omitted.</p>

<p>In Mandarin, "一寸半, 一尺半, 一磅半, 一噸半" cannot be said as "寸半, 尺半, 磅半, 噸半".</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-08T01:01:34.127Z
Thanks for the clarification. BTW, now people who read this post also know  寸半, 尺半, 磅半 and  噸半 are all valid terms in Cantonese
Tang Ho
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-08T00:11:07.093Z
2017-09-08T00:11:07.093Z
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<p>The other day I went to a Chinese supermarket in Toronto to buy one and a half pound of minced meat. I told the meat department operator that I want "磅半碎肉" in Cantonese. That guy gave me half a pound instead. I repeated my request in English, but he didn't seem to understand it. Then I said "磅半" in Mandarin. He still thought I was asking for 'half a pound' instead of 'one and a half pound'. </p>

<p>Until a Mandarin speaking lady beside me said to him: "他想要一磅半的碎肉", then he gave me the correct amount of minced meat. </p>

<p>I am wondering, in Cantonese, omitting the counting word '一' before a measurement classifier followed by '半' is a common practice. We usually say "寸半, 尺半, 磅半, 噸半" instead of "一寸半, 一尺半, 一磅半, 一噸半"</p>

<p>My question : 'Is 一 not omitted in Mandarin when it comes to measurement classifiers followed by '半'?</p>

<p>(I don't think I pronounced my order so badly that he didn't know what I wanted, because he did give me half a pound of minced meat at first)</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-08T00:52:41.433Z
磅半, these 2 characters' pronunciations are close, so he assumes that your pronunciation is not too exact, and thought you were pronucing 半磅, ^_^.
Daniel Yang
<grammar><mandarin>
Is 一 not omitted in Mandarin when it comes to measurement classifiers followed by '半'?
# Is 一 not omitted in Mandarin when it comes to measurement classifiers followed by '半'?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2017-09-08)

The other day I went to a Chinese supermarket in Toronto to buy one and a half pound of minced meat. I told the meat department operator that I want "磅半碎肉" in Cantonese. That guy gave me half a pound instead. I repeated my request in English, but he didn't seem to understand it. Then I said "磅半" in Mandarin. He still thought I was asking for 'half a pound' instead of 'one and a half pound'.

Until a Mandarin speaking lady beside me said to him: "他想要一磅半的碎肉", then he gave me the correct amount of minced meat.

I am wondering, in Cantonese, omitting the counting word '一' before a measurement classifier followed by '半' is a common practice. We usually say "寸半, 尺半, 磅半, 噸半" instead of "一寸半, 一尺半, 一磅半, 一噸半"

My question : 'Is 一 not omitted in Mandarin when it comes to measurement classifiers followed by '半'?

(I don't think I pronounced my order so badly that he didn't know what I wanted, because he did give me half a pound of minced meat at first)

**Tags:** grammar, mandarin

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: 磅半, these 2 characters' pronunciations are close, so he assumes that your pronunciation is not too exact, and thought you were pronucing 半磅, ^_^.  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2017-09-08. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

No. It is not omitted.

In Mandarin, "一寸半, 一尺半, 一磅半, 一噸半" cannot be said as "寸半, 尺半, 磅半, 噸半".

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Thanks for the clarification. BTW, now people who read this post also know  寸半, 尺半, 磅半 and  噸半 are all valid terms in Cantonese  

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