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How
to count in French - Forming
and expressing
numbers
On this page:
- 1. General points
- 2. Numbers 0 - 100
- 3. Numbers 101 - 999
- 4. Numbers 1000 - 1,000,000
- 5. Numbers above a million
- 6. General points : plurals, hyphens, separators
1. Cardinal numbers - les chiffres et les nombres
Cardinal numbers are the numbers that we use for counting or designating quantity : French uses the word "chiffre" to designate an individual digit, i.e. digits from 0 to 9, and "nombre" to designate quantity - which is limitless. So 26, vingt-six, is a "nombre" made up of two "chiffres".
Hyphens: in traditional French, hypens are used between words for figures below 100 except when et is used between two digits. The same applies when figures below 100 apply to thousands or millions (see section 4 below).
Following the Academy's 1990 recommendations, hyphens are used to link all the words making up a number, except where et is used. The examples below use the traditional rules.
2. Numbers from 0 to 100 - de zéro à cent
The number 0 is expressed as zéro , and occasionally as nul
Here are the important cardinal numbers between one and a hundred, which can serve as models for other numbers.
| 1 | un | 11 | onze | 21 | vingt et un |
| 2 | deux | 12 | douze | 22 | vingt-deux |
| 3 | trois | 13 | treize | 30 | trente |
| 4 | quatre | 14 | quatorze | 40 | quarante |
| 5 | cinq | 15 | quinze | 50 | cinquante |
| 6 | six | 16 | seize | 60 | soixante |
| 7 | sept | 17 | dix-sept | 70 | soixante-dix |
| 8 | huit | 18 | dix-huit | 80 | quatre-vingts |
| 9 | neuf | 19 | dix-neuf | 90 | quatre-vingt-dix |
| 10 | dix | 20 | vingt | 100 | cent |
| 70 | soixante-dix | 80 | quatre-vingts | 90 | quatre-vingt-dix |
| 71 | soixante et onze | 81 | quatre-vingt-un | 91 | quatre-vingt-onze |
| 72 | soixante-douze | 82 | quatre-vingt-deux | 92 | quatre-vingt-douze |
| 73 | soixante-treize | 83 | quatre-vingt-trois | 93 | quatre-vingt-treize |
| 74 | soixante-quatorze | 84 | quatre-vingt-quatre | 94 | quatre-vingt-quatorze |
| 75 | soixante-quinze | 85 | quatre-vingt-cinq | 95 | quatre-vingt-quinze |
| 76 | soixante-seize | 86 | quatre-vingt-six | 96 | quatre-vingt-seize |
| 77 | soixante-dix-sept | 87 | quatre-vingt-sept | 97 | quatre-vingt-dix-sept |
| 78 | soixante-dix-huit | 88 | quatre-vingt-huit | 98 | quatre-vingt-dix-huit |
| 79 | soixante-dix-neuf | 89 | quatre-vingt-neuf | 99 | quatre-vingt-dix-neuf |
Quatre-vingt or quatre-vingts ?
The number "quatre-vingt" only takes an s in round numbers, i.e. quantities ending in 80: quatre-vingts, or deux cent quatre-vingts etc. For all other numbers it is invariable, as in the examples above such as quatre-vingt-six.. It also takes an s when followed by a noun: Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours = Around the world in eighty days.
Regional variations
- Belgium : 70 = septante ; 90 = nonante
- Switzerland : 70 = septante ; 80 = huitante (rarely octante) ; 90 = nonante
3. Numbers from 101 to 999 - les nombres à trois chiffres
From the examples below, all other three-digit numbers in French can be formed.| 101 | cent un | 366 | trois cent soixante-six |
| 111 | cent onze | 482 | quatre cent quatre-vingt-deux |
| 121 | cent vingt et un | 547 | cinq cent quarante-sept |
| 122 | cent vingt-deux | 611 | six cent onze |
| 200 | deux cents | 671 | six cent soixante et onze |
| 293 | deux cent quatre-vingt-treize | 899 | huit cent quatre-vingt-dix-neuf |
Hundreds in the plural
The number "cent" only takes an s in round numbers: deux cents, trois cents etc. For all other numbers it is invariable, as in the examples above such as six cent onzeTo express "hundreds" as an imprecise quantity, French does not use the numeral cents but the noun centaines
Il y avait des centaines de personnes au concert
4. Numbers from 1000 to 1,000,000
- Apart from round numbers (numbers ending in 00) numbers above 1000 are normally written in figures, not in words. The table below shows essentially how to express them orally..
| 1000 | mille | 4632 | quatre mille six cent trente-deux |
| 1001 | mille et un or mille un | 10,000 | dix mille |
| 1082 | mille quatre-vingt-deux | 10,174 | dix mille cent soixante-quatorze |
| 1147 | mille cent quarante-sept or onze cent quarante-sept | 85,428 | quatre-vingt-cinq mille quatre cent vingt-huit |
| 1301 | mille trois cent un | 100,000 | Cent mille |
| 4400 | quatre mille quatre cents | 999,482 | neuf cent quatre-vingt-dix-neuf mille quatre cent quatre-vingt-deux |
5. Numbers greater than a million
The same general principles apply as above. The number simply starts with a quantity of millions.Examples;
2,015,222 = Deux millions quinze mille deux cent vingt-deux.
3,003,300 = Trois millions trois mille trois cents
3,033,333 = Trois millions trente-trois mille trois cent trente-trois
6. General points
Plural forms of cent, mille and million - all different !
Cent takes an s in the plural only when it is a round figure (-00)Mille never takes an s when used as a number. It only takes an s when used with the meaning of the English word "miles", particularly referring to nautical miles.
Million is a noun, so always takes an s when used in the plural. Thus for 1,000,000, we have to say un million , not just million. Since it is a noun, it must be followed by de when referring to a quantity of something.
To understand the difference, just compare these words
used in a singular context : 124 with 1024
and then with 1,000,024
Cent vingt-quatre / mille
vingt-quatre but un
million vingt-quatre.
- Ça coûte deux cents euros,
- Ça coûte deux mille euros,
- Ça coûte deux millions d'euros,
Writing numbers in figures in French
IMPORTANT : DO NOT SEPARATE DIGITS WITH COMMAS when writing large figures in French. French uses the comma, not the decimal point, as the decimal separator. Mi llions and thousands and hundreds are separated by a space, not by a comma.Thus the number one million seven hundred thousand will be written :
- 1,700,000 in English, but
- 1 700 000 in French
When to use hyphens in numbers ?
Hyphens are traditionally used to link the components in numbers between 17 and 99 whenever these are not linked by the word et. For example "quatre-vingt-treize" but "soixante et onze".This is true for all parts of a number, so we use hyphens when appropriate when expressing a number of millions, a number of thousands, a number of hundreds, and the part of a number below a hundred.
Since 1990, the French Academy recommends using hyphens between all the elements of a number that is written in words, unless elements are joined by et, so 85 428 is written, according to the new rules:
quatre-vingt-cinq-mille-quatre-cent-vingt-huit
rather than
quatre-vingt-cinq mille quatre cent vingt-huit
Continue to ordinals (first, second etc.)
Return to Grammar index
More about numbers: Numbers and counting in English
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