French numbers: from 0 to a million

Zero is zéro. From 1 to 16, every number has its own word, so learn them by heart. From 17, French says “ten-seven”, “ten-eight”, “ten-nine”, with a hyphen: dix-sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf.

Some final consonants change with the next word. On their own, six and dix end with an s sound and huit with a t sound. Before a consonant, these letters are silent: six livres sounds like “see leevr”. Before a vowel or a silent h, the s and x sound like z: six euros, dix heures. The f of neuf sounds like v before ans and heures: neuf ans. The p of sept is always silent.

Up to 69, French works like English: tens, then units, joined with a hyphen: vingt-deux (22), trente-cinq (35). For 21, 31, 41, 51 and 61, say et un (and one) with no hyphens: vingt et un. In vingt-deux to vingt-neuf, you hear the t of vingt.

From 70, France counts in twenties. 70 is “sixty-ten” (soixante-dix), so 71 to 79 are sixty plus 11 to 19. 80 is “four twenties” (quatre-vingts) and 90 is “four twenties ten” (quatre-vingt-dix). Quatre-vingts has an s only when no other number follows it, and 81 and 91 have no et: quatre-vingt-un, quatre-vingt-onze. In the eighties and nineties, the t of vingt is silent.

In Belgium and Switzerland people say septante (70) and nonante (90), and in parts of Switzerland huitante (80). You'll understand them easily, but in France always use soixante-dix, quatre-vingts and quatre-vingt-dix.

100 is cent and 1,000 is mille, with no word for “one” in front. Cent takes an s when it is multiplied and no other number follows it: deux cents, deux cents euros, but deux cent cinquante. Mille never takes an s: trois mille. Un million and un milliard (a billion) are nouns: they take an s in the plural and de before a noun: un million d'habitants.

In writing, French separates thousands with a space and uses a comma for decimals: 1 500,50 € is mille cinq cents euros cinquante.

Years are said as ordinary numbers: 1998 is mille neuf cent quatre-vingt-dix-huit, 2026 is deux mille vingt-six. You'll also hear dix-neuf cent for the 1900s, but mille neuf cent is the usual form. “In 2026” is en deux mille vingt-six.

Ordinal numbers say the order: first, second, third. Add -ième to the number: deux, deuxième. If the number ends in -e, drop it: quatre, quatrième. Two small changes: cinq becomes cinquième and neuf becomes neuvième.

“First” is premier before a masculine noun and première before a feminine one. It's written 1er and 1re; the others are written 2e, 3e and so on. Second or seconde is also used for “second”, especially when there are only two. After 20, “first” is regular: vingt et unième (21st).

Dates use ordinary numbers, except for the first of the month: le premier mai, but le deux mai, le quatorze juillet. Kings and popes too: Louis XIV is Louis Quatorze.

Prices are said as euros, then cents, usually without the word centimes: €3.50 is trois euros cinquante. At the till you'll hear Ça fait… (That comes to…).

Phone numbers have ten digits and are read in pairs: 06 12 45 78 90 is zéro six, douze, quarante-cinq, soixante-dix-huit, quatre-vingt-dix.

Time often uses the 24-hour clock: 14:30 is quatorze heures trente. Heure is feminine, so 1:00 is une heure and 21:00 is vingt et une heures. In the same way, say une before any feminine noun: vingt et une personnes.

Dates are le + number + month: le 3 mars is le trois mars. Age uses avoir + ans: J'ai trente-deux ans.