Numbers in French
Learning to count in French is one of the first things you should do when you start studying the language. Numbers are used in a variety of contexts, such as telling the time, giving your phone number, shopping, and so on. Here's a basic guide to help you get started.
Numbers from 0 to 10
Let's start with the numbers 0 to 10. In French, they are:
- 0 - Zero
- 1 - One
- 2 - Deux
- 3 - Three
- 4 - Quatre
- 5 - Five
- 6 - Six
- 7 - Sept
- 8 - Huit
- 9 - Neuf
- 10 - Dix
Numbers from 11 to 20
Numbers 11 to 20 are a bit more complex, but still pretty straightforward. They are:
- 11 - Eleven
- 12 - Douze
- 13 - Treize
- 14 - Fourteen
- 15 - Fifteen
- 16 - Seize
- 17 - Dix-sept
- 18 - Dix-huit
- 19 - Dix-neuf
- 20 - Vingt
Numbers from 21 to 100
The numbers 21 to 100 in French follow a more or less regular pattern. For the numbers 21 to 69, you use the base (twenty, thirty, forty, etc.) followed by the conjunction 'et' (and) and the number one to nine. For example, 21 is 'vingt et un' (twenty-one), 35 is 'trente-cinq' (thirty-five), and so on. From 70, the count follows a different pattern. Instead of a base seventy, eighty and ninety, the French use sixty-ten (soixante-dix), four-twenties (quatre-vingts) and four-twenties and tens (quatre-vingt-dix). For example, 75 is 'soixante-quinze' (sixty-fifteen), 82 is 'quatre-vingt-deux' (four twenty-two), and 97 is 'quatre-vingt-dix-sept' (four twenty-seventeen).
Numbers greater than 100
Numbers greater than 100 also follow a pattern. One hundred is 'cent', one thousand is 'mille', million is 'million' and billion is 'milliard'. Note that, unlike English, French uses the long-scale system, where a billion is a million million.
I hope this basic guide will help you get started with counting in French. Remember, practice is the key to fluency, so keep practicing these numbers until you can count them without thinking.
