A Simple Guide to Using English Numbers Properly
Is there anything more important than learning English numbers? Maybe, but not much. Numbers run through the language: they let you express quantities (how much you want to buy, how much someone owes you, your age) and they're essential for time, dates and prices. How would you say the year 1945 out loud, for example?
The point is that numbers matter, and that saying them correctly matters just as much, especially when you don't want people to forget your birthday. Here's a simple guide to using English numbers with confidence, plus a free ebook that puts every rule in one place.
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Every rule on this page in one printable PDF, plus extra examples and a quick-reference cheat sheet. Say years, dates, phone numbers and prices with confidence.
- Cardinal & ordinal numbers at a glance
- How to say years, dates, decades and money
- The mistakes learners make most, and how to avoid them
English numbers in a nutshell
Start with the cardinal numbers, the ones you count with.
| 1 one | 2 two | 3 three | 4 four | 5 five |
| 6 six | 7 seven | 8 eight | 9 nine | 10 ten |
| 11 eleven | 12 twelve | 13 thirteen | 14 fourteen | 15 fifteen |
| 16 sixteen | 17 seventeen | 18 eighteen | 19 nineteen | 20 twenty |
From 21 on, join the tens and the units with a hyphen: 24 = twenty-four, 57 = fifty-seven. After "teen" numbers come the "ty" numbers:
| 30 thirty | 40 forty | 50 fifty |
| 60 sixty | 70 seventy | 80 eighty |
| 90 ninety | 100 a hundred | 1,000 a thousand |
Watch the spelling: it's forty (no "u"), not "fourty".
For dates and order, you'll also need the ordinal numbers:
| 1st first | 2nd second | 3rd third | 4th fourth | 5th fifth |
| 10th tenth | 12th twelfth | 20th twentieth | 21st twenty-first | 31st thirty-first |
Giving your phone number in English
Say a phone number digit by digit, from left to right, not in pairs. The digit 0 is usually said as "oh," like the letter O. So our office number, +33 1 77 47 03 44, is read: "plus three three one, seven seven, four seven, oh three, four four." (You can also say "double seven" for 77 if you prefer.)
Talking about dates and years in English
For years, split the number into two halves rather than reading it as one long figure. 1994 isn't "one thousand nine hundred ninety-four," it's "nineteen ninety-four." For years from 2000 to 2009 say "two thousand (and) five"; from 2010 on, either "twenty ten" or "two thousand and ten" works.
For a full date like 26 October 2003, use the ordinal for the day: "the twenty-sixth of October, two thousand and three." Remember first, second and third for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd of the month (and likewise the 21st, 22nd, 23rd and 31st).
Talking about decades in English
When you talk about music, fashion or trends, you often refer to decades. A decade is a period of ten years (1980 to 1989, for example), and you put it in the plural: the nineties, the eighties. In writing, modern style usually drops the apostrophe: the 90s, the 80s.
Talking about money in English
For money, say the number normally and then the currency: $1,050 is "one thousand and fifty dollars." When there are cents, add "and" before them: $2,598.67 is "two thousand five hundred ninety-eight dollars and sixty-seven cents."
Simple vocabulary of numbers in English
Advanced vocabulary of numbers in English
Test your numbers in English with Live English
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you say years in English?
How do you say a phone number in English?
How do you say prices and money in English?
How do you say dates in English?
Is 0 said "zero" or "oh"?
Get the free Numbers in English ebook, the rules, examples and cheat sheet in one place.
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