n.
classmate; fellow student
同学
Common Usage & Traps
- 我的同学 — my classmate
- 一个同学 — one classmate
- 问同学 — to ask a classmate
- 同学们 — classmates; students (group address)
- 男同学 — male classmate
- 女同学 — female classmate
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我是同学我是学生同学 means classmate, not a general student. 我是同学 sounds incomplete because it begs 'whose classmate?' Use 我是学生 for 'I am a student'.
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三个同学们三个同学们 already marks more than one, so numbers and 们 do not stack. For three classmates, say 三个同学.
Do you call yourself 同学 when you mean 'I am a student'?
No. 同学 means classmate or fellow student, not a general student.
学生 is the general word for any student, from primary school to university. 同学 means someone in the same class or school as you. So 'I am a student' is 我是学生, and 'he is my classmate' is 他是我的同学. If you say 我是同学 alone, people may ask whose classmate you are.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| General student | 我是学生 | 我是同学 |
| Classmate | 他是我的同学 | 他是我的学生 |
| School context | 那个同学 | 那个学生? (fine, but not 'classmate') |
Do you need 一个 before 同学, as in 问一个同学?
No. 问同学 is normal; 问一个同学 just adds 'one specific classmate'.
After 问, you can put 同学 directly: 问同学. This means ask a classmate in general, with no number needed. 问一个同学 is also correct, but it points to one single classmate. If the exact person is not important, drop 一个 and keep 问同学. “问同学，你多大？” (To ask a classmate, say 'How old are you?') ── [《问问题》](/read/asking-questions-daily-life#s4)
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| General action | 问同学 | 问一个同学? (not wrong, but shifts focus) |
| Exactly one classmate | 问一个同学 | 问同学 if the number matters |
| Natural flow | 问老师，问同学 | 问一个老师，问一个同学 every time |
Can you say 三个同学们 for three classmates?
No. Use 三个同学; 们 already means more than one.
同学们 is correct when you address a group or talk about classmates as a group. But 们 already carries the idea of more than one person. So you do not add a number before it: say 三个同学, not 三个同学们. If you need a count, the number does the plural job by itself.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Group address | 同学们，早上好 | 三个同学们，早上好 |
| Counted people | 三个同学 | 三个同学们 |
| Group reference | 同学们都来了 | 三个同学们都来了 |
Appears in Stories 4 stories
Real context sentences across different daily scenarios and graded readings.
This heartwarming story shows how a small act of kindness can be passed on. Follow Gao Xianming as he learns an important lesson about generosity in his new city.
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高先明看见一个中国 同学 安小语，也是手里少五块钱，不能上车。
This playful poem helps you count and practice vocabulary about clothes, students, and pets. Enjoy the rhythm while learning new words.
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六七个男学生，七八个女 同学 ，八九个好朋友。
Follow a day from waking at six-thirty to coming home at eight, then leap across days, months, and years. This simple story helps you practice speaking about routines and life changes with clear time words.
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前天 同学 打电话。
Before you read, think about the questions you ask every day. This simple poem shows you how to ask age, price, time, and more in friendly Chinese.
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问 同学 ，你多大？
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