Numbers (Leaving Cert French): Revision Notes

Numbers

Numbers 1 to 20

Number	French	Pronunciation
1	un	uhn
2	deux	duh
3	trois	twah
4	quatre	kat-ruh
5	cinq	sank
6	six	sees
7	sept	set
8	huit	weet
9	neuf	nuhf
10	dix	dees
11	onze	onz
12	douze	dooz
13	treize	trez
14	quatorze	kah-torz
15	quinze	kanz
16	seize	sez
17	dix-sept	dees-set
18	dix-huit	dees-weet
19	dix-neuf	dees-nuhf
20	vingt	van

Numbers 21 to 29

For the numbers 21 to 29, you start with the base number "vingt" (20) and add the number from 1 to 9.

The number 21 is special because it includes the word "et" (and)!

Number	French	Pronunciation
21	vingt et un	van ay uhn
22	vingt-deux	van duh
23	vingt-trois	van twah
24	vingt-quatre	van kat-ruh
25	vingt-cinq	van sank
26	vingt-six	van sees
27	vingt-sept	van set
28	vingt-huit	van weet
29	vingt-neuf	van nuhf

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Numbers 30 to 39

Just like with the 20s, the numbers 30 to 39 follow a similar pattern. The base number here is "trente" (30).

Number	French	Pronunciation
30	trente	tront
31	trente et un	tront ay uhn
32	trente-deux	tront duh
33	trente-trois	tront twah
34	trente-quatre	tront kat-ruh
35	trente-cinq	tront sank
36	trente-six	tront sees
37	trente-sept	tront set
38	trente-huit	tront weet
39	trente-neuf	tront nuhf

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Moving Beyond 39

Numbers beyond 39 are formed in the same way as the 20s and 30s, but using different base numbers:

Number	French	Pronunciation
40	quarante	ka-ront
50	cinquante	san-kont
60	soixante	swa-sont

Numbers 41 to 69

41 to 49: Start with "quarante" (40) and add the numbers from 1 to 9 (e.g., quarante et un, quarante-deux).

51 to 59: Start with "cinquante" (50) and add the numbers from 1 to 9 (e.g., cinquante et un, cinquante-deux).

61 to 69: Start with "soixante" (60) and add the numbers from 1 to 9 (e.g., soixante et un, soixante-deux).

Numbers 70 to 79

For numbers from 70 to 79, French uses "soixante" (60) as the base and then adds 10 to the second digit:

Number	French	Pronunciation
70	soixante-dix	swa-sont dees
71	soixante et onze	swa-sont ay onz
72	soixante-douze	swa-sont dooz
73	soixante-treize	swa-sont trez
74	soixante-quatorze	swa-sont kah-torz
75	soixante-quinze	swa-sont kanz
76	soixante-seize	swa-sont sez
77	soixante-dix-sept	swa-sont dees-set
78	soixante-dix-huit	swa-sont dees-weet
79	soixante-dix-neuf	swa-sont dees-nuhf

Numbers 80 to 99

For the numbers 80 to 99, the pattern shifts again:

80 to 89: The base number is "quatre-vingts" (80), meaning "four twenties". You then add the numbers from 1 to 9.

Number	French	Pronunciation
80	quatre-vingts	kat-ruh van
81	quatre-vingt-un	kat-ruh van uhn
82	quatre-vingt-deux	kat-ruh van duh
83	quatre-vingt-trois	kat-ruh van twah
84	quatre-vingt-quatre	kat-ruh van kat-ruh
85	quatre-vingt-cinq	kat-ruh van sank
86	quatre-vingt-six	kat-ruh van sees
87	quatre-vingt-sept	kat-ruh van set
88	quatre-vingt-huit	kat-ruh van weet
89	quatre-vingt-neuf	kat-ruh van nuhf

90 to 99: The base number is "quatre-vingt-dix" (90), meaning "four twenties and ten." Then add the numbers from 1 to 9.

Number	French	Pronunciation
90	quatre-vingt-dix	kat-ruh van dees
91	quatre-vingt-onze	kat-ruh van onz
92	quatre-vingt-douze	kat-ruh van dooz
93	quatre-vingt-treize	kat-ruh van trez
94	quatre-vingt-quatorze	kat-ruh van kah-torz
95	quatre-vingt-quinze	kat-ruh van kanz
96	quatre-vingt-seize	kat-ruh van sez
97	quatre-vingt-dix-sept	kat-ruh van dees-set
98	quatre-vingt-dix-huit	kat-ruh van dees-weet
99	quatre-vingt-dix-neuf	kat-ruh van dees-nuhf

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Counting to 100 and Beyond

Number 100

The number 100 in French is "cent."

When counting beyond 100, "cent" is used similarly to how we use "hundred" in English:

• 101: cent un
• 110: cent dix
• 120: cent vingt If you have more than one hundred (like 200, 300), you add "cent" in plural:
• 200: deux cents
• 300: trois cents However, note: When "cent" is followed by another number, it stays singular:
• 201: deux cent un

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Number 1,000

The number 1,000 in French is "mille."

Unlike "cent," "mille" does not take an "s" for plural:

• 2,000: deux mille
• 3,000: trois mille

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Larger Numbers

For numbers like 1,100 or 1,200, you simply combine "mille" with the appropriate hundreds:

• 1,100: mille cent
• 1,200: mille deux cents For 10,000, the word "dix-mille" is used:
• 10,000: dix-mille
• 20,000: vingt-mille

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