French I: Numbers

The French write two numbers differently than Anericans do: the number 1 has a little hook on top, which makes it look like a 7. So, to distinguish a 1 from a 7, a line is put through the 7, to look like this: .

In numerals and decimals, the French use commas where Americans use periods, and vice versa:

*English*	*French*
4,000	4.000
.95	0,95
$16.75	$16, 5

Cardinal numbers

Consult Table 1 for a list of French cardinal numbers, the numbers we use for counting: 1, 2, 3, 4, and so on.

TABLE 1

Cardinal Numbers

Number	French Translation
0	zéro
1	un
2	deux
3	trois
4	quatre
5	cinq
6	six
7	sept
8	huit
9	neuf
10	dix
11	onze
12	douze
13	treize
14	quatorze
15	quinze
16	seize
17	dix-sept
18	dix-huit
19	dix-neuf
20	vingt
21	vingt et un
22	vingt-deux
30	trente
40	quarante
50	cinquante
60	soixante
70	soixante-dix
71	soixante et onze
72	soixante-douze
73	soixante-treize
74	soixante-quatorze
75	soixante-quinze
76	soixante-seize
77	soixante-dix-sept
78	soixante-dix-huit
79	soixante-dix-neuf
80	quatre-vingts
81	quatre-vingt-un
82	quatre-vingt-deux
90	quatre-vingt-dix
91	quatre-vingt-onze
92	quatre-vingt-douze
100	cent
101	cent un
200	deux cents
201	deux cent un
1000	mille
2000	deux mille
1,000,000	un million
2,000,000	deux millions
1,000,000,000	un milliard
2,000,000,000	deux milliards

Note the following about cardinal numbers:

The conjunction et (and) is used only for the numbers 21, 31, 41, 51, 61, and 71 . In all other compound numbers through 99, et is dropped, and a hyphen is used.
Before a feminine noun un becomes une.
- vingt et un hommes (21 men)
- vingt et une femmes (21 women)
To form 70 to 79, use soixante plus 10, 11, 12, and so on.
To form 90 to 99, use quatre-vingt plus 10, 11, 12, and so on.
For quatre-vingts (80) and the plural of cent (100) for any number above 199, drop the s before another number, but not before a noun .
- quatre-vingt-quinze euros (95 euros)
- quatre-vingts euros (80 euros)
- deux cent cinquante dollars (250 dollars)
- deux cents dollars (200 dollars)
Un is not used before cent (100) and mille (1000).
- cent hommes (100 men)
- mille femmes (1, 000 women)
Mille doesn't take s in the plural .
- deux mille dollars (2, 000 dollars)
Mille becomes mil in dates .
- J'ai mille neuf cent dollars. (I have 1, 900 dollars.)
- Je suis né en mil neuf cents dix. (I was born in 1910.)
To express numbers between 1000 and 9999, where it is more convenient, you can avoid using mille and simply use cent.
- mille cent or onze cents (1, 100)
- mille neuf cents or dix-neuf cents (1, 900)
The following words are used to express common arithmetic functions.
- + (plus) is et
- − (minus) is moins
- × (times) is fois
- ÷ (divided by) is divisé par
- = (equals) is font

Nouns of number

Some numbers are used as collective nouns to express a round number, and some are followed by de (d') before another noun, as shown in Table 2 .

TABLE 2

Nouns of Number

French Nouns of Number	English Translation
une dizaine	about ten
une douzaine	a dozen
une quinzaine	about fifteen
une vingtaine	about twenty
une cinquaintaine	about fifty
une centaine	about a hundred
un millier	about a thousand
un million	a million
un milliard	a billion
une centaine de femmes	about 100 women
deux centaines ^* de femmes	about 200 women
deux douzaines ^* d'œufs	two dozen eggs
des milliers ^* de jouets	thousands of toys
un million de dollars	a million dollars
deux millions ^* de dollars	two million dollars
sept milliards ^* d'hommes	seven billion men

Ordinal numbers

Ordinal numbers allow you to express the floors in a building or numbers in a series. Most ordinal numbers are formed by adding i-ème to the cardinal number, as shown in Table 3 .

TABLE 3

Ordinal Numbers

Ordinal	French Translation
1st	premier or première
2nd	deuxième or second(e)
3rd	troisième
4th	quatrième
5th	cinquième
6th	sixième
7th	septième
8th	huitième
9th	neuvième
10th	dixième
11th	onzième
12th	douzième
20th	vingtième
21st	vingt et un(e)ième
72nd	soixante-douzième
100th	centième

Note the following about ordinal numbers:

Premier and première are abbreviated as follows:
- premier: 1^er
- première: 1^re
All others ordinals get a superscript, e, as follows:
- dixième: 10^e
- centième: 100^e
Except for premier and second, ordinal numbers are formed by adding - ième to the cardinal number. The silent e is dropped before - ième: quatrième, onzième, and so on.
- la quatrième fois (the fourth time)
A u is added in cinquième, and a v replaces the f in neuvième.
- le cinquième chapitre (the fifth chapter)
Ordinal numbers agree in number and gender with the nouns they descibe. Premier (première) and second (seconde) and numbers using unième (uneième) are the only ordinal numbers that have a feminine form.
- le premier garçon (the first boy)
- la première fille (the first girl)
- les premières années (the first years)
- les vingt et unièmes anniversaires (21st birthdays)
Premier is used only for the first in a series. For 21 to 71, unième is added after the conjunction et to express first, and it must agree in number and gender with the noun it modifies.
- le cinquante et unième match (the 51st match)
- la quarante et uneième année (the 41st year)
Second(e) is generally used in a series that goes no higher than two.
Use le or la before huit/ huitième and onze/ onzième. No elision is necessary.
- le huitième jour (the 8th day)
- le onze juillet (July 11th)
In French, cardinal numbers precede ordinal numbers.
- les quatre premières personnes (the first four people)