Once you have mastered the pattern, all you have left is to learn the words for 40, 50, 60, 70, 80 and 90 to be able to count all the way to 99: The pronunciation is the same either way but do watch out for the difference in spelling for 16-29 for times when you have to write out the whole word. Instead of adding the two parts of the number together ( veinte + dos = veintidós), you simply add “ y” between the separate words. Spanish is the same way, but the pattern begins at 16:įairly simple, right? Starting at 30, the spelling actually becomes even easier. In English, after the number 19, we start constructing numbers with two parts: the tens value and the ones value.įor example, 20-29 all start with the same first word, “twenty.” We use that same pattern on up into the hundreds, thousands and more. Use The Natural Pattern In Spanish To Master Numbers 16-99 You'll still benefit from learning zero early on, however, because it is very common in everyday communication.Īlthough zero is regularly used as a nominal number (as part of a telephone number or address, for example) instead of to denote quantity, it's easy to learn with the rest of the first 15.Īfter 15, a pattern emerges that makes it very easy to learn your numbers all the way up to 99. Unlike numbers 1-15, zero is rarely used for anything other than itself. If you glanced ahead, you may have noticed that I've actually listed 16 numbers below. Once you can count to 15, you will be able to master the rest fairly quickly because 1-15 are the foundation for every other number. In Spanish, the most important numbers to learn are the first 15. Or in other words, the words you use to count. If you are just starting out with learning numbers in Spanish, you'll want to start with the cardinal numbers-numbers that denote quantity. In Spanish (as in English), cardinal and nominal numbers use the same word (for example, “one” or “nine”), whereas ordinal numbers have a completely different vocabulary (“first” or “ninth”). El equipo quiere ganar el primer lugar.En dos meses, celebraremos nuestro tercer aniversario de bodas. (In two months, we will celebrate our third wedding anniversary.).Ordinal numbers are the numbers used to put things in orders or ranks:
(You probably recognized that the “nom–” beginning of the word is very similar to “ nombre.”) Instead, nominal numbers are used on their own as a name or category. Nominal numbers don't actually represent a quantity or measurement of any kind. In other words, cardinal numbers are those that can answer the question “How many?”:
Say numbers in spanish how to#
While you probably won't need to know the names of number types in your day-to-day conversations, it can be helpful to understand the difference as you learn how to use numbers in Spanish.Ĭardinal numbers are numbers that describe quantity.
Ordinal NumbersĪs with English, Spanish has both “cardinal,” “nominal” and “ordinal” numbers ( numeros cardinales, nominales y ordinales). It's my story-based course that will get you to conversational fluency fast, without getting bogged down in grammar. Numbers are also useful in telling time and giving specific dates-all things you will want to be able to do as you immerse yourself in this new language.īefore we jump in with the actual Spanish numbers, it will help to know a little bit about the different kinds of numbers used in English so that you have the right understanding moving forward.īy the way, if you're getting started in Spanish and want to go from beginner to intermediate fast, I recommend Spanish Uncovered. Pretty early on in the process, you will want to be able to use numbers in conjunction with the words you are learning to specify how many of something you have, need, or see. The same concept is true when you are learning a second, or third, language. That's because being able to use numbers is a vital part of describing our lives and world. In fact, counting is one of the first things most of us learned in our native language as well. When you learn Spanish, or any other language, one of the first things you learn is how to count to 10.
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