Numbers in Spanish

The cardinal number system in Spanish is really quite simple. Let's take a look at the numbers 1 to 100 in Spanish to see this in action.

If you are worried about having to memorize all those numbers, look closer and you will start noticing some patterns:

• Numbers 16 to 19 are formed by adding the corresponding number (6 to 9) to the prefix dieci-.
• Numbers 21 to 29 are formed by adding the corresponding number (1 to 9) to the prefix veinti- (notice how spelling rules dictate that veintidós, veintitrés and veintiséis have an accent mark).
• Numbers 30 to 99 are really simple: just pair a multiple of ten (like 30, 40, 50, etc.) with the conjunction "y" and a number from 1 to 9. For instance, a number like 87 is said ochenta y siete, literally, eighty and seven.

So, what if you are looking for a three-digit number? Those are also very simple. First, you'll have to learn how to call multiples of 100:

To read the numbers in between multiples of 100, just read the multiple of 100 and then the two-digit number that follows it. When doing this, keep in mind that the number 100 (cien) will change to ciento. Here are some examples:

Let's get to even bigger figures. Just like in English, numbers in Spanish are read from left to right. This means that if a number has 9 digits, you will first read the millions, then the thousands and finally the hundreds. Let's look at some examples and vocabulary to illustrate this:

Notice how the Spanish word "billón" sounds like "billion", but is actually a different number – trillion – in English. A billion in English is mil millones in Spanish.

Finally, keep in mind that cardinal numbers can function as both adjectives and nouns. When acting as an adjective, the number uno (one) changes to un, when describing a masculine noun, and una when describing a feminine noun. You can see this in the following examples:

• Noun:
  El uno es un número impar (one is an odd number).
• Masculine adjective:
  Tengo un hermano (I have one brother).
• Feminine adjective:
  Tengo una hermana (I have one sister).

This also applies to all numbers ending in "uno" (like veintiuno, treinta y uno, cuarenta y uno, etc.).

Numbers ending in "-cientos" also change according to the gender of the noun they modify:

• Doscientos edificios (two-hundred buildings).
• Doscientas casas (two-hundred houses).

While cardinal numbers are used for things like counting or reading out telephone numbers, ordinal numbers in Spanish, just like in English, are used to indicate the position of something in a series.

You can find the most used ordinal numbers in Spanish in the following table:

When they act as adjectives, all ordinal numbers in Spanish change their ending depending on the gender and number of the noun they describe:

• Segundo puesto (second place)
• Segunda noche (second night)
• Décimos Juegos Olímpicos (tenth Olympic Games)
• Décima Olimpíada (tenth Olympic)

Now that you know the proper names for numbers in Spanish, you can move onto some other vocabulary.

Here are the names for basic math operations in Spanish:

• Sumar - To add
• Restar - To subtract
• Multiplicar - To multiply
• Dividir - to divide

Let's take a look at how you read some mathematical expressions in Spanish:

• 2 + 2 = 4 → Dos más dos es (igual a) cuatro.
• 10 - 1 = 9 → Diez menos uno es (igual a) nueve.
• 2 x 3 = 6 → Dos por tres es (igual a) seis.
• 10 / 2 = 5 → Diez dividido dos es (igual a) cinco.
• 30 % → Treinta por ciento.

Although there isn't a definitive rule as to when to write out numbers in Spanish, the general practice is to use the numerical form for numbers greater than 10.

When using the numerical form, you should keep in mind that hundreds and thousands are usually separated by points or blank spaces instead of commas. At the same time, commas are usually reserved for separating decimals, although some countries (namely those closer to the US, like Mexico) use points for decimals.

Now that you know all of this, you can start incorporating Spanish numbers into your everyday life. Try counting in Spanish instead of English and soon it will become second nature! Explore a famous Spanish number you probably already knew with some fun facts about Cinco de Mayo.