段 (duàn) — section; segment; paragraph (measure word)

段 (duàn)

段 is a measure word for sections or segments cut from a longer whole. It counts stretches of road (一段路), paragraphs of text (一段话 / 一段文章), periods of time (一段时间), and segments of things like rope or pipe. The key idea is a delimited portion cut from something continuous.

Meanings

1. [mw] Section; segment — a portion of something continuous (road, text, rope, timeline).
2. [mw] Paragraph; passage — used for a block of text or spoken content.

Example Sentences

请读第一段。 Qǐng dú dì yī duàn. Please read the first paragraph.

我们已经走了很长一段路了。 Wǒmen yǐjīng zǒu le hěn cháng yī duàn lù le. We have already walked a very long stretch of road.

他们在一起生活了一段时间。 Tāmen zài yīqǐ shēnghuó le yī duàn shíjiān. They lived together for a period of time.

这段话写得很好，我很喜欢。 Zhè duàn huà xiě de hěn hǎo, wǒ hěn xǐhuan. This passage is written very well; I like it a lot.

Collocations

Memory Hook

段 means a chunk cut away — imagine a segment of road or text snipped off from a longer whole, like a slice from a long baguette.