多少【duōshao】

多少 asks "how many" or "how much", with no limit on the size of the answer. It goes straight before the noun.

多少 or 几

几 expects a small number, under about ten, and always takes a measure word. 多少 expects anything. Asking 你有多少个哥哥 sounds like the family is enormous.

• × 你有几哥哥？ → 你有几个哥哥？

The measure word is optional

Unlike 几, 多少 can go straight onto the noun. Adding the measure word is also correct.

Prices and numbers

多少钱 is the standard way to ask a price. A number that is read out digit by digit – a phone number, a room number – is asked with 是多少.

Without a question, 多少 means "however much": 有多少给多少, "give however much there is".