栋、粒、枚、则、盏: measure words of news and written Chinese
【高04】量词 / measure words
Tone colorsā tone 1á tone 2ǎ tone 3à tone 4a neutral
Five measure words that give the noun its shape or its genre. 栋 counts buildings (一栋楼), 粒 small grains and pills (一粒药, 一粒米), 枚 small compact objects you hold between your fingers: coins, stamps, medals, badges, and also rockets and missiles (一枚硬币), 则 short, self-contained texts: a news item, an advert, an anecdote (一则新闻, 一则广告, 一则故事) and 盏 lamps and lanterns (一盏灯). Like every measure word, they stand between the number (or 这, 那, 每, 几) and the noun.
The all-purpose 个 replaces them badly, or not at all (✗ 一个灯). They are careful words, very common in the press and in writing: a news item is counted with 则 (in speech 一条新闻 is just as correct), and a newspaper says 两千多枚铜钱 rather than 两千多个铜钱. Each one follows the noun being counted: 栋 for a block or a house (for a bridge, a tower or a mountain you say 座), 盏 for anything that lights up, 粒 for what is as small as a grain.
Watch out for the homograph: this measure word 则 has nothing to do with the written conjunction 则 ("then, whereas"). Nor should you mix them up with 颗 (level 5), which is broader and also counts stars or hearts (一颗星星).
Examples
窗外亮着一盏灯，应该有人还没睡。
Chuāngwài liàngzhe yì zhǎn dēng, yīnggāi yǒu rén hái méi shuì.A light is on outside the window, so someone must still be up.
抽屉里放着五枚旧硬币和两枚纪念章。
Chōuti lǐ fàngzhe wǔ méi jiù yìngbì hé liǎng méi jìniànzhāng.In the drawer lie five old coins and two commemorative badges.
医生说，这种药每次吃三粒，饭后服用。
Yīshēng shuō, zhè zhǒng yào měicì chī sān lì, fànhòu fúyòng.The doctor says to take three pills of this medicine each time, after meals.
小区里新建了四栋楼，下个月就可以入住。
Xiǎoqū lǐ xīnjiàn le sì dòng lóu, xià ge yuè jiù kěyǐ rùzhù.Four new blocks have been built in the housing estate, and people can move in next month.
我在手机上看到一则新闻，说下周将大幅降温。
Wǒ zài shǒujī shàng kàndào yì zé xīnwén, shuō xiàzhōu jiāng dàfú jiàngwēn.I saw a news item on my phone saying temperatures will drop sharply next week.
灯会开幕后，老街上的灯笼一盏盏亮了起来，非常好看。
Dēnghuì kāimù hòu, lǎojiē shàng de dēnglong yì zhǎnzhǎn liàng le qǐlái, fēicháng hǎokàn.When the lantern fair opened, the lanterns along the old street lit up one after another, a beautiful sight.
Common mistakes
✗ 一个新闻 → ✓ 一则新闻 / 一条新闻 (a news item is counted with 则 or 条, not with the all-purpose 个).
✗ 一栋灯 → ✓ 一盏灯 (the measure word follows the noun: 栋 for a building, 盏 for a lamp).
✗ 一粒硬币 → ✓ 一枚硬币 (a coin is a small compact object, not a grain: 枚).