Topics
BeginnerNumbers & Counting
How cardinal and ordinal numbers work in Spanish, English and Chinese.
Compare languages
English and Spanish number systems are similar but differ in teens formation. Chinese has a completely logical system with no irregular teens or tens. All three require classifiers or agreement when counting nouns.
Overview
Numbers seem universal, but each language has quirks in formation, counting, and agreement.
- Spanish: Numbers 1-15 are unique. 16+ follow a pattern but have contractions. Numbers agree with nouns they precede. Ordinals are adjectives that agree.
- English: Teens are mostly regular (thir-teen, four-teen). Irregular teens: eleven, twelve. Ordinals mostly add -th. No agreement.
- Chinese: The most logical system. 11 = 10+1, 20 = 2×10, 100 = 1×100. No irregular forms. Uses 两 instead of 二 before classifiers. 万 is a separate unit (10,000).
Spanish
Cardinal numbers 1-20
| Number | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | uno / un / una | Shortened before noun |
| 2 | dos | Invariable |
| 3 | tres | Invariable |
| 4 | cuatro | Invariable |
| 5 | cinco | Invariable |
| 6 | seis | Invariable |
| 7 | siete | Invariable |
| 8 | ocho | Invariable |
| 9 | nueve | Invariable |
| 10 | diez | Invariable |
| 11 | once | Irregular |
| 12 | doce | Irregular |
| 13 | trece | Irregular |
| 14 | catorce | Irregular |
| 15 | quince | Irregular |
| 16 | dieciséis | diez + y + seis |
| 17 | diecisiete | diez + y + siete |
| 18 | dieciocho | diez + y + ocho |
| 19 | diecinueve | diez + y + nueve |
| 20 | veinte | Irregular |
21-100
| Number | Spanish | Pattern |
|---|---|---|
| 21 | veintiuno / veintiún | veinte + y + uno (contracts) |
| 22 | veintidós | veinte + y + dos |
| 30 | treinta | -enta |
| 31 | treinta y uno | treinta + y + uno |
| 40 | cuarenta | -enta |
| 50 | cincuenta | -enta |
| 60 | sesenta | -enta |
| 70 | setenta | -enta |
| 80 | ochenta | -enta |
| 90 | noventa | -enta |
| 100 | cien / ciento | cien alone; ciento before nouns |
Agreement of uno
Uno shortens before masculine nouns and changes to una before feminine:
- un libro (a book)
- una mesa (a table)
- veintiún años (twenty-one years — contracted)
- veintiuna personas (twenty-one people)
Hundreds and thousands
- doscientos, trescientos… novecientos (agree in gender: doscientas mesas)
- mil (invariable: mil libros)
- dos mil, tres mil…
- un millón / dos millones (takes de: dos millones de personas)
Ordinal numbers
| Ordinal | Spanish | Agreement |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | primero / primer / primera | primer before masc noun |
| 2nd | segundo / segunda | agrees |
| 3rd | tercero / tercer / tercera | tercer before masc noun |
| 4th | cuarto / cuarta | agrees |
| 5th | quinto / quinta | agrees |
| 6th | sexto / sexta | agrees |
| 7th | séptimo / séptima | agrees |
| 8th | octavo / octava | agrees |
| 9th | noveno / novena | agrees |
| 10th | décimo / décima | agrees |
Note: Ordinals are adjectives and agree. They shorten before masculine singular nouns (primer día, tercer libro).
English
Cardinal numbers 1-20
| Number | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | one | |
| 2 | two | |
| 3 | three | |
| 4 | four | |
| 5 | five | |
| 6 | six | |
| 7 | seven | |
| 8 | eight | |
| 9 | nine | |
| 10 | ten | |
| 11 | eleven | Irregular |
| 12 | twelve | Irregular |
| 13 | thirteen | three + teen |
| 14 | fourteen | four + teen |
| 15 | fifteen | five + teen (irregular vowel) |
| 16 | sixteen | six + teen |
| 17 | seventeen | seven + teen |
| 18 | eighteen | eight + teen |
| 19 | nineteen | nine + teen |
| 20 | twenty | Irregular |
Tens 20-100
| Number | English | Pattern |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | twenty | irregular |
| 30 | thirty | three + ty |
| 40 | forty | four + ty (spelling change!) |
| 50 | fifty | five + ty (spelling change) |
| 60 | sixty | six + ty |
| 70 | seventy | seven + ty |
| 80 | eighty | eight + ty (spelling change) |
| 90 | ninety | nine + ty (spelling change) |
| 100 | one hundred / a hundred |
Note: No agreement in English. Two books, twenty-one tables.
Large numbers
| Number | English |
|---|---|
| 1,000 | one thousand |
| 10,000 | ten thousand |
| 100,000 | one hundred thousand |
| 1,000,000 | one million |
| 1,000,000,000 | one billion |
American vs British: Both use billion = 1,000,000,000 now.
Ordinals
| Ordinal | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | first | irregular |
| 2nd | second | irregular |
| 3rd | third | irregular |
| 4th | fourth | four + th |
| 5th | fifth | five + th (spelling change) |
| 6th | sixth | six + th |
| 7th | seventh | seven + th |
| 8th | eighth | eight + h (spelling change) |
| 9th | ninth | nine + th (spelling change) |
| 10th | tenth | ten + th |
| 11th | eleventh | eleven + th |
| 12th | twelfth | twelve + th (spelling change) |
| 20th | twentieth | twenty + eth |
| 21st | twenty-first | hyphen + ordinal |
Fractions and decimals
| Type | Example |
|---|---|
| Fractions | one half, one third, two fifths |
| Decimals | zero point five / point five (0.5) |
| Percentages | fifty percent (50%) |
Chinese
Cardinal numbers 1-10
| Number | Chinese | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 一 | yī |
| 2 | 二 / 两 | èr / liǎng |
| 3 | 三 | sān |
| 4 | 四 | sì |
| 5 | 五 | wǔ |
| 6 | 六 | liù |
| 7 | 七 | qī |
| 8 | 八 | bā |
| 9 | 九 | jiǔ |
| 10 | 十 | shí |
Teens and tens (completely regular)
| Number | Chinese | Literal |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | 十一 | ten-one |
| 12 | 十二 | ten-two |
| 20 | 二十 | two-ten |
| 21 | 二十一 | two-ten-one |
| 35 | 三十五 | three-ten-five |
| 99 | 九十九 | nine-ten-nine |
Larger numbers
| Number | Chinese | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 一百 | yì bǎi |
| 1,000 | 一千 | yì qiān |
| 10,000 | 一万 | yí wàn |
| 100,000 | 十万 | shí wàn |
| 1,000,000 | 一百万 | yì bǎi wàn |
| 100,000,000 | 一亿 | yì yì |
Important: Chinese uses 万 as a unit (10,000), so 20,000 is 两万 (2 × 10,000), not “twenty thousand.”
二 vs 两
| Context | Use |
|---|---|
| Counting 1, 2, 3… | 二 |
| Math, phone numbers, dates | 二 |
| Before classifiers (两个, 两本) | 两 |
| Before 百, 千, 万, 亿 (两百, 两千) | 两 |
| As an ordinal (第二) | 二 |
- 二加二等于四。(2 + 2 = 4)
- 两个人。(Two people.)
- 两百块钱。(Two hundred yuan.)
Ordinal numbers
Chinese ordinals use 第 before the number:
- 第一 (first)
- 第二 (second)
- 第三 (third)
- 第十 (tenth)
- 第二十一 (twenty-first)
Fractions and decimals
| Type | Chinese | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Half | 半 | 半个小时 (half an hour) |
| One third | 三分之一 | 1/3 |
| Two fifths | 五分之二 | 2/5 |
| Decimals | 零点五 | 0.5 |
| Percentage | 百分之五十 | 50% |
Comparison at a glance
| Feature | Spanish | English | Chinese |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teens (11-19) | Irregular (11-15), then regular | Irregular (11, 12), then regular | Completely regular (10+1) |
| Tens formation | -enta ending | -ty ending | number + 十 |
| Number agreement | Yes (uno shortens, ordinals agree) | No | No |
| Classifier needed | No | No | Yes |
| Separate 10,000 unit | No | No | Yes (万) |
| Ordinals | primero/segundo… | first/second… | 第 + number |
| 2 forms | No | No | Yes (二 vs 两) |
| Large number system | mil, millón | thousand, million | 万, 亿 |
Examples
In Context
| Spanish | English | Chinese |
|---|---|---|
| veintiún libros | twenty-one books | 二十一本书 |
| el primer lugar | first place | 第一名 |
| dos personas | two people | 两个人 |
| veinte mil | twenty thousand | 两万 |
Common mistakes
-
English speakers learning Chinese: Using 二 before classifiers: 二个人 → 两个人
-
Chinese speakers learning Spanish: Not shortening uno: uno libro → un libro
-
English speakers learning Spanish: Forgetting agreement in ordinals: el primera vez → la primera vez
-
English speakers learning Chinese: Translating 20,000 as 二十千 → 两万
Related topics
- Classifiers: How counting requires measure words in Chinese
- Articles: How numbers interact with articles
- Word Order: How numbers fit into noun phrases
- Adjectives: How ordinals function as adjectives
Examples
1-10 basic
uno, dos, tres... diez
11-19 (teens)
irregular (once, doce, trece...)
20, 30, 40...
veinte, treinta, cuarenta...
100
cien / ciento
1,000
mil
10,000
diez mil
Ordinal (1st)
primero / primer (before masc noun)
Counting nouns
number + noun (agrees in gender/number)
Examples
1-10 basic
one, two, three... ten
11-19 (teens)
ten + number (eleven, twelve, thirteen...)
20, 30, 40...
twenty, thirty, forty...
100
one hundred / a hundred
1,000
one thousand
10,000
ten thousand
Ordinal (1st)
first
Counting nouns
number + plural noun
Examples
1-10 basic
一, 二, 三... 十
11-19 (teens)
十 + number (十一, 十二...)
20, 30, 40...
二 + 十, 三 + 十, 四 + 十...
100
一百
1,000
一千
10,000
一万 (separate unit)
Ordinal (1st)
第一
Counting nouns
number + classifier + noun
Comparison at a glance
| Grammar concepts | Spanish | English | Chinese |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-10 basic | uno, dos, tres... diez | one, two, three... ten | 一, 二, 三... 十 |
| 11-19 (teens) | irregular (once, doce, trece...) | ten + number (eleven, twelve, thirteen...) | 十 + number (十一, 十二...) |
| 20, 30, 40... | veinte, treinta, cuarenta... | twenty, thirty, forty... | 二 + 十, 三 + 十, 四 + 十... |
| 100 | cien / ciento | one hundred / a hundred | 一百 |
| 1,000 | mil | one thousand | 一千 |
| 10,000 | diez mil | ten thousand | 一万 (separate unit) |
| Ordinal (1st) | primero / primer (before masc noun) | first | 第一 |
| Counting nouns | number + noun (agrees in gender/number) | number + plural noun | number + classifier + noun |
Select at least one language to view comparisons
Side-by-side comparison
| Grammar concepts | Spanish | English | Chinese |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-10 basic | uno, dos, tres... diez | one, two, three... ten | 一, 二, 三... 十 |
| 11-19 (teens) | irregular (once, doce, trece...) | ten + number (eleven, twelve, thirteen...) | 十 + number (十一, 十二...) |
| 20, 30, 40... | veinte, treinta, cuarenta... | twenty, thirty, forty... | 二 + 十, 三 + 十, 四 + 十... |
| 100 | cien / ciento | one hundred / a hundred | 一百 |
| 1,000 | mil | one thousand | 一千 |
| 10,000 | diez mil | ten thousand | 一万 (separate unit) |
| Ordinal (1st) | primero / primer (before masc noun) | first | 第一 |
| Counting nouns | number + noun (agrees in gender/number) | number + plural noun | number + classifier + noun |
Select at least one language to view comparisons
Examples in context
1-10 basic
Spanish
uno, dos, tres... diez
English
one, two, three... ten
Chinese
一, 二, 三... 十
11-19 (teens)
Spanish
irregular (once, doce, trece...)
English
ten + number (eleven, twelve, thirteen...)
Chinese
十 + number (十一, 十二...)
20, 30, 40...
Spanish
veinte, treinta, cuarenta...
English
twenty, thirty, forty...
Chinese
二 + 十, 三 + 十, 四 + 十...
100
Spanish
cien / ciento
English
one hundred / a hundred
Chinese
一百
1,000
Spanish
mil
English
one thousand
Chinese
一千
10,000
Spanish
diez mil
English
ten thousand
Chinese
一万 (separate unit)
Ordinal (1st)
Spanish
primero / primer (before masc noun)
English
first
Chinese
第一
Counting nouns
Spanish
number + noun (agrees in gender/number)
English
number + plural noun
Chinese
number + classifier + noun
Select at least one language to view comparisons
Key Takeaways
Spanish: Numbers 1-15 are unique. 16+ follow a pattern but have contractions. Numbers agree with nouns they precede. Ordinals are adjectives that agr.
English: Teens are mostly regular (thir-teen, four-teen). Irregular teens: eleven, twelve. Ordinals mostly add -th. No agreement.
Chinese: The most logical system. 11 = 10+1, 20 = 2×10, 100 = 1×100. No irregular forms. Uses 两 instead of 二 before classifiers. 万 is a sep.
Key concepts compared: 1-10 basic, 11-19 (teens), 20, 30, 40... , 100, 1,000.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the Chinese number system considered more logical than English and Spanish?
How does the Chinese distinction between 二 (èr) and 两 (liǎng) affect counting in ways that English and Spanish do not?
Why do Spanish numbers undergo phonological changes before nouns while English numbers do not?
References
- Nueva gramática de la lengua española — Real Academia Española / Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española, 2010
- The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language — Huddleston & Pullum, Cambridge University Press, 2002
- A Comprehensive Grammar of the Modern Chinese Language — Li & Thompson, 1981
Last updated: June 4, 2026