Cardinal numbers in Spanish
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In Spanish, the cardinal numbers (números cardinales) indicate quantities. They are used with countable nouns and answer the question how many.
How to write cardinal numbers in Spanish
1 | uno | 11 | once | 21 | veintiuno | 31 | treinta y uno |
2 | dos | 12 | doce | 22 | veintidós | 40 | cuarenta |
3 | tres | 13 | trece | 23 | veintitrés | 50 | cincuenta |
4 | cuatro | 14 | catorce | 24 | veinticuatro | 60 | sesenta |
5 | cinco | 15 | quince | 25 | veinticinco | 70 | setenta |
6 | seis | 16 | dieciséis | 26 | veintiséis | 80 | ochenta |
7 | siete | 17 | diecisiete | 27 | veintisiete | 90 | noventa |
8 | ocho | 18 | dieciocho | 28 | veintiocho | 100 | cien |
9 | nueve | 19 | diecinueve | 29 | veintinueve | 1000 | mil |
10 | diez | 20 | veinte | 30 | treinta | 1.000.000 | un millón |
Un or uno?
The word uno can mean one or a. Its form changes depending on the context.
- Use un before a masculine noun and una before a feminine noun (= a/an). This is the indefinite article.
- Example:
- Tengo un coche de segunda mano.I’ve got a second hand car.
- Hoy hacen una fiesta en la plaza del pueblo.They’re having a party in the town square today.
- If it is not accompanied by a noun, we use uno (= one). This is the cardinal number.
- Example:
- Yo también tengo uno.I’ve got one too.
- Vivo en la calle Mayor, en el número uno.I live on Main Street, at number one
Numbers 11 to 19
The numbers 11 to 19 have different roots to the numbers 1-5.
The numbers 16 to 19 are written as one word: dieci + number.
- Example:
- Tengo diecisiete años.I’m 17 years old.
- not:
diezisiete
Numbers 21 to 29
The numbers 21 to 29 are all written as one word: veinti + number.
- Example:
- Marco cumple veintidós años.Marco is turning 22.
- not:
veintedós
Numbers 31 to 99
The numbers 31 to 99 are not written as one word. We simply write out the tens and units connected with y: 30/40/50 … y … 1/2/3 …
- Example:
- Mi hermana tiene cuarenta y tres años.My sister is forty-three.
- not:
cuarentaytres
100 to 999
- As of 101, we use ciento(-s) not cien. The tens follow directly then the units are introduced by y.
- Examples:
- 100 – cien
- 101 – ciento uno
- 210 – doscientos diez
- 345 – trescientos cuarenta y cinco
- The hundreds 200, 300, 400, 600 and 800 are formed the same way as in English (one/two/three … + hundred)
- Example:
- 300 – trescientos
- 500, 700 and 900 are exceptions.
- Example:
- 500 – quinientos
- 700 – setecientos
- 900 – novecientos
- The hundreds from 200 to 900 change their endings depending on whether they refer to a masculine or feminine noun.
- Examples:
- 230 árboles – doscientos treinta árboles230 trees
- 950 personas – novecientas personas950 people
Separating numbers in the thousands
In general, Spanish separates the thousands and hundreds using a decimal point.
However, certain regions in Latin America also use a comma, like in English.
- Examples:
- 57.458.302
- 57,458,302
The Date
Spanish uses cardinal numbers to express the year, month and day when saying the date.
- Example:
- 2-03-2020 → dos del tres del dos mil veinte
Learn more about saying the date in Spanish.