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他们

tā men
HSK 3.0 Level 1 Pronoun Very common

Definitions

  1. 1. they

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Word relationships

Counterparts

1 item
她们
tā men

they

她们 explicitly indicates an all-female group, while 他们 is generic or male-majority.

Related words

3 items
她们
tā men

they

她们 is specifically for a group of females, while 他们 can be all male or mixed gender.
我们
wǒ men

we

我们 means 'we' or 'us', contrasting with 他们 'they'.
你们
nǐ men

you (plural)

你们 means 'you (plural)', as part of the personal pronoun set with 他们.

Usage notes

Common mistakes

Don't confuse 他们 (tāmen, they) with 它们 (tāmen, they for animals/objects). The characters differ in meaning and usage.

Formality

他们 is neutral in formality and used in both spoken and written Chinese.

Example Sentences

5 shown
他们 要我马上付钱。
They demanded that I pay immediately.
他们 要我立刻回答。
They demanded that I answer immediately.
他们 一家人过着快活的日子。
Their whole family lives a happy life.
他们 两家一直很友好。
Their two families have always been very friendly.
他们 一直伺机逃跑。
They have been waiting for a chance to escape.

AI-generated examples are marked with this icon.

Child Words of 他们

他
tā

he; him (used for either sex when the sex is unknown or unimportant)

们
men

plural marker for pronouns, and nouns referring to individuals