项 / 则 / 桩 / 起【xiàng / zé / zhuāng / qǐ】

A measure word is the counting word between a number and a noun. Speech gets by with 个 and 条 for most abstract things; reports, notices and essays pick a more exact one. These four are the ones you meet in that register.

项 – tasks, rules, projects

项 counts items on a list: tasks, regulations, studies, technologies, results. Anything you could number in a report takes 项.

则 – short pieces of writing

则 counts short texts: a news item, a notice, an advert, a fable, a diary entry. A novel or a long report is too big for it and takes 部 or 份.

桩 – matters and affairs

桩 counts a matter that someone has to deal with or carries on their mind: 一桩心事, 一桩买卖, 一桩婚事. It sounds a little old and storybook.

起 – incidents

起 counts things that happen and get reported: accidents, cases, fires. It is the news measure word for events.

Matching the noun

Each word only fits its own kind of noun. 项 with a physical object, or 则 with a long text, is wrong.

• × 一项桌子 → 一张桌子
• × 一则小说 → 一部小说
• × 一起事情 → 一件事情