French grammar · A1 · Lesson 9
Numbers 0 to 69
French numbers 0 to 16 are learnt by heart; from 17 they are built like English: dix-sept (“ten-seven”), vingt-quatre, soixante-neuf. Numbers ending in 1 take et and no hyphen: vingt et un, trente et un. Un is the only number with a feminine form: vingt et une personnes.
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How does it work?
0 to 16 have to be learnt by heart. From 17, French starts building: 17 is dix-sept, “ten-seven”.
| 0–9 | 10–19 | tens |
|---|---|---|
| 0 zéro | 10 dix | 20 vingt |
| 1 un, une | 11 onze | 30 trente |
| 2 deux | 12 douze | 40 quarante |
| 3 trois | 13 treize | 50 cinquante |
| 4 quatre | 14 quatorze | 60 soixante |
| 5 cinq | 15 quinze | |
| 6 six | 16 seize | |
| 7 sept | 17 dix-sept | |
| 8 huit | 18 dix-huit | |
| 9 neuf | 19 dix-neuf |
21 to 69 work like English, with a hyphen: vingt-quatre (24), trente-cinq (35), soixante-neuf (69). The one exception is 1: French says “twenty and one”, vingt et un, trente et un, soixante et un, with no hyphens. (Since a spelling reform in 1990, hyphens everywhere are also accepted, but you will see the traditional spelling in most books.)
Un is the only number with a gender: un monsieur, une dame, vingt et une personnes.
Pronunciation tips. Six and dix end in an s sound on their own, go silent before a consonant (six passagers, “see”), and turn into a z before a vowel (six enfants, “see-zon-fon”). Neuf becomes “neuv” in neuf ans and neuf heures. And the -t of vingt is silent on its own but sounded from 21 to 29.
Il y a, “there is” and “there are”, never changes: il y a un nom, il y a treize noms. Grammatically it is “it has there”, so it stays singular whatever follows. Combien de + noun asks how many: combien de noms ? And seulement means “only”: seulement treize.
What does it look like in the story?
These sentences come from lesson 9, “Thirteen Mr Rs”, where the narrator is crossing the Atlantic on the liner Provence with Arsène Lupin hidden among the passengers.
| French | English |
|---|---|
| En première classe, il y a treize messieurs R. | In first class there are thirteen Mr Rs. |
| Neuf messieurs voyagent avec une femme, des enfants ou des domestiques. | Nine gentlemen are travelling with a wife, children or servants. |
| Cinq fois vingt-quatre heures avec Arsène Lupin. | Five times twenty-four hours with Arsène Lupin. |
Try it: In the first sentence, il y a looks singular, yet it introduces thirteen gentlemen. Is that a mistake? And look at vingt-quatre: how is it built, and what is that hyphen doing?
« Je note d'abord qu'il n'y a que treize personnes que leur initiale désigne à notre attention. »
I note first of all that there are only thirteen people whose initial brings them to our attention. Maurice Leblanc, L’Arrestation d’Arsène Lupin (1905).
How is it different from English?
English switches from “there is” to “there are”. French keeps il y a for one, thirteen or a thousand. A warning for later: up to 69 French counts much like English, but at 70 it does something strange (“sixty-ten”). That is for lesson 14. For now, enjoy the easy part.
What mistake do English speakers make?
The number mistake every English speaker makes once: age. English says “I am thirty”, French says “I have thirty years”: ✗ Je suis trente ans, ✓ J’ai trente ans. And for 21, 31, 41…, do not forget the et: ✗ vingt-un, ✓ vingt et un.
Where can I practise it?
- Lesson 9: Thirteen Mr Rs: the story, the rule and interactive exercises, free.
- Review 2: lessons 6 to 10: this point again, in a summary table with the other lessons of the block.
- The A1 glossary: every word of the course, French to English.
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