Chinese Clothing and What to Wear — 衣着服饰: 衣服 / 裤子 / 裙子 / 鞋 / 帽子 / 袜子

衣服 (yīfu) means "clothes". 穿 (chuān) means "to wear" or "to put on" for clothing and shoes, while 戴 (dài) means "to wear" or "to put on" for accessories on the head, face, neck, or hands.

The general pattern is 穿 + clothing item: 穿衣服 (wear clothes), 穿裤子 (wear pants), 穿裙子 (wear a skirt), 穿鞋 (wear shoes). For accessories, use 戴: 戴帽子 (wear a hat), 戴围巾 (wear a scarf), 戴眼镜 (wear glasses), 戴手套 (wear gloves), 戴手表 (wear a watch).

A useful memory rule: things you step into or pull on use 穿, while things you place onto a specific spot (head, face, neck, wrist) use 戴.

衣服 (yīfu) — clothes. 裤子 (kùzi) — pants/trousers. 裙子 (qúnzi) — skirt. 衬衫 (chènshān) — shirt. 毛衣 (máoyī) — sweater.

外套 (wàitào) — coat/jacket. 大衣 (dàyī) — overcoat. T恤 (T xù) — T-shirt. 连衣裙 (liányīqún) — one-piece dress.

These words almost always appear as two-syllable forms in speech: 裤子, 裙子, 衬衫, 毛衣, not 裤, 裙, 衫, 毛 on their own.

鞋 (xié) — shoes. 袜子 (wàzi) — socks. 帽子 (màozi) — hat/cap. 围巾 (wéijīn) — scarf. 手套 (shǒutào) — gloves. 眼镜 (yǎnjìng) — glasses.

运动鞋 (yùndòngxié) — sneakers. 皮鞋 (píxié) — leather shoes. 靴子 (xuēzi) — boots. 凉鞋 (liángxié) — sandals. 拖鞋 (tuōxié) — slippers.

Socks and shoes come in pairs, so they take 双 (pair): 一双袜子 (a pair of socks), 一双鞋 (a pair of shoes).

件 (jiàn) is the general measure word for items of clothing: 一件衣服 (a piece of clothing), 一件衬衫 (a shirt), 一件毛衣 (a sweater), 一件外套 (a coat).

条 (tiáo) counts long, thin things: 一条裤子 (a pair of pants), 一条裙子 (a skirt), 一条围巾 (a scarf).

双 (shuāng) counts pairs: 一双鞋 (a pair of shoes), 一双袜子 (a pair of socks). 顶 (dǐng) counts hats: 一顶帽子 (a hat). To count one shoe alone, use 只: 一只鞋 (one shoe).

Put the color before the clothing word: 红色的衣服 (red clothes), 白色的衬衫 (a white shirt), 黑色的裤子 (black pants), 蓝色的裙子 (a blue skirt).

With the bare color as a modifier you can drop 色 and 的: 红衣服 (red clothes), 白衬衫 (white shirt), 黑裤子 (black pants).

Use 穿 + color + clothing to say what someone is wearing: 她穿红色的裙子 (she wears a red skirt), 他穿黑色的裤子 (he wears black pants).

试穿 (shìchuān) means "to try on": 我可以试穿吗？(can I try it on?), 我想试穿这件衬衫 (I want to try on this shirt).

号 (hào) or 尺码 (chǐmǎ) means "size": 你穿几号？(what size do you wear?), 大号/中号/小号 (large/medium/small size).

合适 (héshì) means "to fit, be suitable": 这件很合适 (this one fits well). To say something is too big or too small, use 太…了: 这件太大了 (this is too big), 这条裙子太小了 (this skirt is too small), 太贵了 (too expensive).

Do not use 穿 for accessories: it is 戴帽子 (wear a hat), 戴围巾 (wear a scarf), 戴眼镜 (wear glasses), not 穿帽子.

Use the full two-syllable words in speech: 裤子, 裙子, 袜子, 帽子, not 裤, 裙, 袜, 帽.

Match the measure word to the item: 件 for shirts/sweaters/coats, 条 for pants/skirts/scarves, 双 for shoes/socks, 顶 for hats.

Keep 太…了 complete when describing size: 这件太大了 (this is too big), not 这件太大 (which sounds incomplete).

Use 穿 + clothes and 戴 + accessories consistently: 我穿一件红色的外套 (I wear a red coat) but 我戴一顶帽子 (I wear a hat).