French Numbers

French Cardinal Numbers

French Numbers are easy to learn, cardinal numbers are a piece of cake if you understand the logic behind them, from 0 to 16 you will find unique words, that you just need to memorize as is. 17-18-19 are composed words meaning (10-7) (10-8) (10-9).(check the table above). So now you can easily count to 20.

The logic that number from 20- 100 follow is just like English, for example {23= twenty (vingt)- three (trois) note that there is a hyphen (-) in between… there are only some exceptions:

Numbers 21, 31, 41, 51...should have an extra “et” in between, it’s like saying (20 et 1) or (twenty and one) (thirty and one). It happens only when you add the number “1”.

Another exception is that if you want to say 70 or 90 in French you would say it like: 60-10 for 70, and 80-10 for 90, all the numbers from 70 to 79 and from 90 to 99 are formed that way, so to say 73 you will need to think of what the number 60 is in French, then think of what 13 is in French put them together and that’s it.

Same thing with 90 …99, to say 92 you need to think of what is 80 in French then 12 as well, in other words we don’t say: Soixante-dix-trois for 73, but Soixante-treize.

Finally when the numbers 5, 6, 8, and 10 are used before a number beginning with a consonant, their final consonants are not pronounced, for example Cinq cent (500) is pronounced as if the “q” doesn’t exist.

It’s easy to master this your first day if you look at the table above and read the notes following it carefully.

French Ordinal Numbers

Once you have mastered the cardinal numbers, you will have no problem at all learning ordinal numbers, because they simply add -ième to the cardinal numbers. Some small exceptions are: numbers ending in an “e” must drop it and add -ième, for example quatre = 4, quatrième = 4^th. Also for pronunciation reasons you have to add a “u” after numbers ending in “q” like cinq = 5, cinquième = 5^th. Finally numbers ending in “f” take a “v” instead like: 9 = neuf. Neuvième = 9^th.

Note that first has two forms, masculine (premier), and feminine (première) with an extra “e” as you have noticed.

Don’t confuse 2^nd = deuxième with 12^th = douzième.