🔢Numbers
Zero to ten, twenty, hundred, thousand — enough to shop, count and bargain.
14 concepts
Columns follow the languages switched on at the top. Gender after the word (m/f/n); IPA beneath; notes, alternatives and origins underneath — nothing is hidden.
| Concept | English | Français | Español |
|---|---|---|---|
zero noun | zero ˈzɪəɹəʊ also: nought, oh (phone numbers), nil (football) English has a zoo of zeros: oh, nought, nil, love (tennis). | zéro zeʁo | cero ˈθeɾo /ˈseɾo/ in Latin America (seseo). |
one noun | one wʌn The spelling hides a w-sound: rhymes with fun. | un œ̃ The only number that agrees: un livre / une maison. Same word as the article 'a'. | uno ˈuno Uno counts; before nouns it becomes un / una: un libro, una casa. |
two noun | two tuː Silent w; homophone of to and too. | deux dø Final x silent — until liaison: deux ans /døzɑ̃/. | dos dos |
three noun | three θɹiː The th learners dread — not tree, not free. | trois tʁwa Liaison: trois ans /tʁwazɑ̃/. | tres tɾes |
four noun | four fɔː Homophone of 'for'. Forty drops the u that four keeps. | quatre katʁ | cuatro ˈkwatɾo |
five noun | five faɪv | cinq sɛ̃k Final q sounds as /k/ — often dropped before a consonant: cinq cents /sɛ̃sɑ̃/. | cinco ˈθiŋko |
six noun | six sɪks | six sis Three sounds, one number: /sis/ alone, /si/ before a consonant (six mois), /siz/ before a vowel (six ans). | seis seis |
seven noun | seven ˈsɛvən | sept sɛt The p is silent. | siete ˈsjete |
eight noun | eight eɪt Silent gh; homophone of ate. | huit ɥit The h blocks elision (le huit) but not much else. /ɥi/ before a consonant: huit jours. | ocho ˈot͡ʃo |
nine noun | nine naɪn | neuf nœf Also 'new'. The f turns to /v/ before ans and heures: neuf ans /nœvɑ̃/. | nueve ˈnweβe |
ten noun | ten tɛn | dix dis Behaves like six: /dis/ alone, /di/ before a consonant, /diz/ before a vowel (dix ans). | diez djeθ |
twenty noun | twenty ˈtwɛnti Stress splits teens from tens: thirTEEN vs THIRty — mishear it and you're 43 years off. | vingt vɛ̃ Past 69 French does maths: 70 = soixante-dix (60+10), 80 = quatre-vingts (4×20), 90 = quatre-vingt-dix. Belgium and Switzerland just say septante and nonante. | veinte ˈbeinte 21–29 fuse into single words: veintiuno, veintidós… (from 31 they split again: treinta y uno). |
hundred noun | hundred ˈhʌndɹəd Needs a or one: a hundred people, never bare 'hundred people'. | cent sɑ̃ Plural -s only when nothing follows: deux cents, but deux cent un. Same rule hits quatre-vingts. | cien θjen also: ciento (101–199) Cien = exactly 100; ciento uno = 101. The hundreds agree: doscientas casas. |
thousand noun | thousand ˈθaʊzənd Needs a or one, like hundred. Thousands separator: comma in English, dot or space on the continent. | mille mil Invariable: deux mille, never 'deux milles'. Un millier = about a thousand. | mil mil No un: mil euros = a thousand euros. Miles de = thousands of. |