Numbers (AQA A-Level Spanish): Revision Notes
Numbers
Cardinal numbers (números cardinales)
Cardinal numbers are used for counting and expressing quantities. Understanding these forms is essential for everyday communication in Spanish.
Numbers 1-20
The numbers from one to twenty have unique forms that you need to memorise. Most are straightforward, but pay special attention to the teens (11-19), which have distinct patterns.
| Spanish | English | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| uno | one | once | eleven |
| dos | two | doce | twelve |
| tres | three | trece | thirteen |
| cuatro | four | catorce | fourteen |
| cinco | five | quince | fifteen |
| seis | six | dieciséis | sixteen |
| siete | seven | diecisiete | seventeen |
| ocho | eight | dieciocho | eighteen |
| nueve | nine | diecinueve | nineteen |
| diez | ten | veinte | twenty |
Example sentences:
- Tengo ocho hermanos. (I have eight siblings.)
- Mi hermana tiene dieciséis años. (My sister is sixteen years old.)
- Doce estudiantes llegaron tarde. (Twelve students arrived late.)
- Compré cinco libros en la librería. (I bought five books at the bookshop.)
Pronunciation tip: In "dieciséis" and "diecisiete", the stress falls on the final syllable. Listen carefully to distinguish between "seis" (six) and "dieciséis" (sixteen).
Numbers 21-99
From twenty-one onwards, numbers follow patterns that make them easier to learn. The twenties (21-29) are written as one word, whilst from thirty onwards, numbers are formed by joining tens and units with "y" (and).
| Spanish | English | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| veintiuno | twenty-one | cuarenta | forty |
| veintidós | twenty-two | cincuenta | fifty |
| treinta | thirty | sesenta | sixty |
| treinta y uno | thirty-one | setenta | seventy |
| treinta y dos | thirty-two | ochenta | eighty |
| noventa | ninety |
Example sentences:
- El examen tiene treinta y cinco preguntas. (The exam has thirty-five questions.)
- Mi abuelo tiene setenta y dos años. (My grandfather is seventy-two years old.)
- Hay cuarenta y ocho estudiantes en mi clase. (There are forty-eight students in my class.)
- La película dura noventa minutos. (The film lasts ninety minutes.)
The pattern for combining tens and units (31, 32, 42, 43, etc.) remains consistent: the tens word, followed by "y", followed by the units word (treinta y uno, cuarenta y dos).
Numbers 100-1000
The hundreds require special attention because they change form depending on the gender of the noun they describe. Additionally, some hundreds have irregular forms that don't follow the standard pattern.
| Spanish | English | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| cien | one hundred (exactly) | quinientos/as | five hundred |
| ciento uno | one hundred and one | setecientos/as | seven hundred |
| doscientos/as | two hundred | novecientos/as | nine hundred |
| trescientos/as | three hundred | mil | one thousand |
Example sentences:
- Pagué cien euros por la chaqueta. (I paid one hundred euros for the jacket.)
- Había doscientas personas en el concierto. (There were two hundred people at the concert.)
- El libro tiene quinientas páginas. (The book has five hundred pages.)
- Esta ciudad tiene más de mil habitantes. (This city has more than one thousand inhabitants.)
Important rules for cardinal numbers
Numbers ending in "uno" (one) must agree with the noun they modify. When "uno" appears before a masculine noun, the "-o" is dropped. For example, "veintiuno" becomes "veintiún" before "años" (veintiún años). This agreement rule applies throughout: treinta y uno → treinta y un días, cuarenta y uno → cuarenta y un libros.
The hundreds (200, 300, 400, etc.) also need to agree with the gender of the noun. Masculine nouns use the "-os" ending (doscientos libros), whilst feminine nouns use the "-as" ending (doscientas páginas). This gender agreement is obligatory and a common area for errors.
Three hundreds have irregular forms that don't follow the standard pattern:
- 500 is "quinientos" (not "cincocientos")
- 700 is "setecientos" (not "sietecientos")
- 900 is "novecientos" (not "nuevecientos")
These must be memorised as they don't follow the logical pattern of adding "-cientos" to the basic number.
Dates in Spanish
Expressing dates in Spanish follows a different pattern from English. You use cardinal numbers (not ordinals) for all dates except the first of the month. This is a fundamental difference that students often overlook.
Structure of dates
Dates follow this pattern: el + [number] + de + [month] + de + [year]
Example dates:
- 13th December 1978 = el trece de diciembre de mil novecientos setenta y ocho
- 21st July 2016 = el veintiuno de julio del dos mil dieciséis
Notice how "del" is used instead of "de el" in the second example. This contraction occurs when "de" is followed by "el".
| Spanish phrase | English translation |
|---|---|
| el cinco de mayo | the fifth of May |
| el quince de agosto | the fifteenth of August |
| el primero de abril | the first of April |
| el uno de abril | the first of April (alternative) |
| de marzo | of March |
| de junio | of June |
| de diciembre | of December |
Example sentences:
- Mi cumpleaños es el veintitrés de febrero. (My birthday is the twenty-third of February.)
- La reunión será el diez de octubre. (The meeting will be on the tenth of October.)
- Terminamos el curso el treinta de junio. (We finish the course on the thirtieth of June.)
- Mis padres se casaron el catorce de abril de mil novecientos noventa. (My parents got married on the fourteenth of April, 1990.)
Key rules for dates
The first day of the month can be expressed in two ways: either "el primero de" or "el uno de". Both forms are correct and widely used across Spanish-speaking regions. This is the only exception where an ordinal number can be used for dates.
Month names in Spanish are never capitalised unless they appear at the beginning of a sentence. This differs from English, where months always have capital letters. Students frequently make this error when writing dates, so double-check that months like "enero", "febrero", and "marzo" remain lowercase.
Ordinal numbers (first, second, third) are not used for dates, except for the first of the month. All other days use cardinal numbers. Don't say "el segundo de mayo" – instead, say "el dos de mayo".
Telling the time
Expressing time in Spanish requires understanding when to use singular and plural verb forms, as well as the various ways to describe minutes past and to the hour. The time system in Spanish has specific patterns that differ from English constructions.
Basic time expressions
For most hours, Spanish uses the plural form "son las" because "horas" (hours) is plural. However, one o'clock is an exception and requires singular agreement.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Qué hora es? | What time is it? |
| Son las cinco. | It's five o'clock. |
| Es la una. | It's one o'clock. |
| A las diez. | At ten o'clock. |
| A la una. | At one o'clock. |
| las tres y cinco | five past three |
| las seis y diez | ten past six |
Example sentences:
- Son las nueve de la mañana. (It's nine o'clock in the morning.)
- La clase empieza a las ocho y media. (The class starts at half past eight.)
- Es la una en punto. (It's exactly one o'clock.)
- Cenamos a las siete y cuarto. (We have dinner at quarter past seven.)
Quarter and half past
Quarter past and half past have special expressions in Spanish that you'll use frequently. The word "cuarto" (quarter) and "media" (half) are added after the hour with "y" (and).
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| y cuarto | quarter past |
| y media | half past |
| las tres y cuarto | quarter past three |
| las tres y media | half past three |
| las nueve y cuarto | quarter past nine |
| las once y media | half past eleven |
Example sentences:
- El tren sale a las cinco y cuarto. (The train leaves at quarter past five.)
- Llegaré a las dos y media. (I'll arrive at half past two.)
- La película empieza a las ocho y cuarto. (The film starts at quarter past eight.)
- Comemos a las doce y media. (We eat lunch at half past twelve.)
Time "to" the hour
For times approaching the next hour, Spanish uses "menos" (minus/less) to indicate minutes before the hour. This is similar to saying "quarter to" or "ten to" in English. Rather than counting minutes past the current hour, you count backwards from the next hour.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| las cuatro menos cuarto | quarter to four |
| las cuatro menos cinco | five to four |
| las doce menos veinte | twenty to twelve |
| las seis menos diez | ten to six |
Example sentences:
- Son las siete menos diez. (It's ten to seven.)
- La reunión termina a las tres menos cuarto. (The meeting finishes at quarter to three.)
- El autobús llega a las nueve menos cinco. (The bus arrives at five to nine.)
- Me despierto a las seis menos veinte. (I wake up at twenty to six.)
Ordinal numbers
Ordinal numbers indicate position or order (first, second, third). In Spanish, they function as adjectives and must agree with the nouns they modify. Unlike cardinal numbers, ordinals are used much less frequently in everyday Spanish.
Common ordinals
The most frequently used ordinal numbers are the first three, particularly in everyday conversation. Beyond tenth, Spanish speakers often use cardinal numbers instead.
| Spanish | English | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| primero | first | cuarto | fourth |
| segundo | second | quinto | fifth |
| tercero | third | sexto | sixth |
Example sentences:
- Vivo en el segundo piso. (I live on the second floor.)
- Esta es mi primera vez en España. (This is my first time in Spain.)
- Mi oficina está en la tercera planta. (My office is on the third floor.)
- Ganó el primer premio. (He/she won first prize.)
Agreement and special forms
When ordinal numbers are used with nouns, they must agree in gender (masculine or feminine). For example, "la segunda calle" (the second street) uses the feminine form because "calle" is feminine. The masculine form would be "el segundo edificio" (the second building).
Two ordinals change their form before masculine singular nouns:
- "primero" becomes "primer"
- "tercero" becomes "tercer"
This shortening only occurs immediately before the noun and is known as apocopation.
Examples of apocopation:
- el primer día (the first day)
- el tercer año (the third year)
- el primer ministro (the prime minister)
- el tercer piso (the third floor)
Note that this change doesn't happen with feminine nouns or plural nouns: "la primera casa" (the first house), "los primeros días" (the first days), "las terceras personas" (the third people).
Pronunciation tip: The word "primero" has stress on the first syllable (pri-ME-ro), whilst "tercero" has stress on the second syllable (ter-CE-ro). The shortened forms "primer" and "tercer" maintain the same stress pattern as their full forms.
Common mistakes and tips
Agreement with "uno": Remember that numbers ending in "uno" drop the final "-o" before masculine nouns. Say "veintiún años" (twenty-one years), not "veintiuno años". This applies to all such numbers: treinta y un días, cincuenta y un euros.
Hundreds agreement: The hundreds must match the gender of the noun. Use "doscientos euros" but "doscientas libras". A common error is using the masculine form with all nouns regardless of gender.
Irregular hundreds: Don't try to form 500, 700, and 900 by adding "-cientos" to the basic number. These have special forms: quinientos, setecientos, novecientos. This is a frequent mistake in writing.
Months capitalisation: Unlike in English, months in Spanish are not capitalised: "enero", not "Enero". Only capitalise when starting a sentence. This applies to all month names.
One o'clock: Always use "es la una" (singular) for one o'clock, not "son las una". This is one of the most frequent mistakes students make when telling the time.
Date format: Don't use ordinals for dates (second, third, fourth). Say "el dos de marzo", not "el segundo de marzo", unless you're referring to the first of the month (el primero de marzo).
Time expressions: When saying what time something happens, use "a las" (at) with the hour: "a las cinco" (at five o'clock). Don't forget the preposition "a" – it's required in Spanish even though we sometimes omit it in English.
Remember!
Key Points to Remember:
- Numbers ending in "uno" drop the "-o" before masculine nouns (veintiún años, not veintiuno años)
- Hundreds (200, 300, etc.) must agree in gender with the noun they describe (doscientos libros, doscientas páginas)
- Three hundreds are irregular: 500 = quinientos, 700 = setecientos, 900 = novecientos
- Month names are never capitalised in Spanish unless they start a sentence
- Use "es la una" for one o'clock, but "son las" for all other hours – one o'clock is always singular