皿 and 茶碗: serving food on plates and in bowls
Distinguish vessels, serving actions, item counts, and amounts of food.
Serving on a plate
皿, read さら, means plate. 皿に魚をのせました。 means putting fish on a plate.
白い皿を二枚出しました。 says that someone took out two white plates. 二枚 counts the plates, not the fish.
Serving in a bowl
茶碗, read ちゃわん, is a bowl used for tea or rice, among other uses. 茶碗にご飯をよそいました。 means serving rice into a rice bowl.
茶碗を一つ洗いました。 means washing one bowl. The number of bowls washed is separate from the amount of rice eaten beforehand.
Vessels and food quantities
ご飯を茶碗に半分だけよそいました。 says that someone filled a rice bowl only halfway with rice. Do not turn 半分だけ into filling it completely.
皿も茶碗も棚に戻しました。 says that both the plates and the bowls were put back on the shelf. Repeated も includes both types.
What does 二枚 count in 白い皿を二枚出しました?
Show the answer and why
Two white plates, not an amount or number of food items.