{"id":48,"date":"2026-09-30T14:29:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-30T13:29:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leweb2ks.dev\/vitrine-vocadial\/en\/resources\/numbers-in-spanish\/"},"modified":"2026-09-30T14:29:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-30T13:29:10","slug":"numbers-in-spanish","status":"publish","type":"vd_ressource","link":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/resources\/numbers-in-spanish\/","title":{"rendered":"Numbers in Spanish: from 0 to a million, with the rules pupils get wrong"},"content":{"rendered":"

0 to 20<\/h2>\n\n

The pronunciation column follows the pronunciation of most of Spain, with the stressed syllable in capitals. In Latin America, the Canary Islands and parts of Andalusia, the “th” sound is an s: THEEN-koh becomes SEEN-koh.<\/p>\n\n

Spanish<\/th>Number<\/th>Say it like<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
cero<\/td>0<\/td>THEH-roh<\/td><\/tr>
uno<\/td>1<\/td>OO-noh<\/td><\/tr>
dos<\/td>2<\/td>doss<\/td><\/tr>
tres<\/td>3<\/td>tress<\/td><\/tr>
cuatro<\/td>4<\/td>KWAH-troh<\/td><\/tr>
cinco<\/td>5<\/td>THEEN-koh<\/td><\/tr>
seis<\/td>6<\/td>sayss<\/td><\/tr>
siete<\/td>7<\/td>SYEH-teh<\/td><\/tr>
ocho<\/td>8<\/td>OH-choh<\/td><\/tr>
nueve<\/td>9<\/td>NWEH-beh<\/td><\/tr>
diez<\/td>10<\/td>dyeth<\/td><\/tr>
once<\/td>11<\/td>ON-theh<\/td><\/tr>
doce<\/td>12<\/td>DOH-theh<\/td><\/tr>
trece<\/td>13<\/td>TREH-theh<\/td><\/tr>
catorce<\/td>14<\/td>kah-TOR-theh<\/td><\/tr>
quince<\/td>15<\/td>KEEN-theh<\/td><\/tr>
diecis\u00e9is<\/td>16<\/td>dyeh-thee-SAYSS<\/td><\/tr>
diecisiete<\/td>17<\/td>dyeh-thee-SYEH-teh<\/td><\/tr>
dieciocho<\/td>18<\/td>dyeh-thee-OH-choh<\/td><\/tr>
diecinueve<\/td>19<\/td>dyeh-thee-NWEH-beh<\/td><\/tr>
veinte<\/td>20<\/td>BAYN-teh<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n

From 16 to 29, numbers are written as one word: diecis\u00e9is<\/span>, veintid\u00f3s<\/span>, veintitr\u00e9s<\/span>, veintis\u00e9is<\/span>. Note the written accents on these four; the others in the series have none. The older separate spellings (“diez y seis”, “veinte y uno”) are now rare and should not be taught.<\/p>\n\n

Tens and the numbers in between<\/h2>\n\n
Spanish<\/th>Number<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
veintiuno<\/td>21<\/td><\/tr>
veintid\u00f3s<\/td>22<\/td><\/tr>
treinta<\/td>30<\/td><\/tr>
treinta y uno<\/td>31<\/td><\/tr>
cuarenta<\/td>40<\/td><\/tr>
cincuenta<\/td>50<\/td><\/tr>
sesenta<\/td>60<\/td><\/tr>
setenta<\/td>70<\/td><\/tr>
ochenta<\/td>80<\/td><\/tr>
noventa<\/td>90<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n

From 31 onwards, y<\/span> joins the tens and the units: cuarenta y dos<\/span>, noventa y nueve<\/span>. That is the only place y<\/span> appears.<\/p>\n\n

Tengo catorce a\u00f1os.<\/span>I’m fourteen.<\/small><\/p>\n\n

Un a\u00f1o tiene trescientos sesenta y cinco d\u00edas.<\/span>A year has three hundred and sixty-five days.<\/small><\/p>\n\n

Son cuarenta y cinco euros.<\/span>That’s forty-five euros.<\/small><\/p>\n\n

Stress in the numbers follows regular rules, so the written accent is a reliable guide: diecis\u00e9is<\/span> and veintitr\u00e9s<\/span> are stressed on the last syllable, veinte<\/span>, treinta<\/span> and cuarenta<\/span> on the one before.<\/p>\n\n

A memory trick for a classic confusion: sesenta<\/span> (60) has an s like seis<\/span>, setenta<\/span> (70) has a t like siete<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n

Hundreds, thousands and millions<\/h2>\n\n
Spanish<\/th>Number<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
cien<\/td>100<\/td><\/tr>
ciento uno<\/td>101<\/td><\/tr>
ciento cincuenta<\/td>150<\/td><\/tr>
doscientos<\/td>200<\/td><\/tr>
trescientos<\/td>300<\/td><\/tr>
cuatrocientos<\/td>400<\/td><\/tr>
quinientos<\/td>500<\/td><\/tr>
seiscientos<\/td>600<\/td><\/tr>
setecientos<\/td>700<\/td><\/tr>
ochocientos<\/td>800<\/td><\/tr>
novecientos<\/td>900<\/td><\/tr>
mil<\/td>1,000<\/td><\/tr>
dos mil<\/td>2,000<\/td><\/tr>
cien mil<\/td>100,000<\/td><\/tr>
un mill\u00f3n<\/td>1,000,000<\/td><\/tr>
dos millones<\/td>2,000,000<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n

Three hundreds are irregular: quinientos<\/span>, setecientos<\/span> and novecientos<\/span> (not “cincocientos”, “sietecientos”, “nuevecientos”).<\/p>\n\n

Seven rules to know<\/h2>\n\n
  1. Cien or ciento.<\/strong> Cien<\/span> is 100 exactly, and is also used before a noun and before mil<\/span> and millones<\/span>: cien libros<\/span>, cien mil<\/span>. Ciento<\/span> is used when more digits follow: ciento tres<\/span>. Percentages use por ciento<\/span>: el diez por ciento<\/span>.<\/li>
  2. No “and” after hundreds.<\/strong> British English says “one hundred and three”; Spanish says ciento tres<\/span>, never “ciento y tres”. Y<\/span> only links tens and units.<\/li>
  3. Uno shortens before a masculine noun.<\/strong> un libro<\/span>, veinti\u00fan a\u00f1os<\/span>, treinta y un d\u00edas<\/span>. Before a feminine noun it becomes una<\/span>: veintiuna chicas<\/span>.<\/li>
  4. Hundreds agree in gender.<\/strong> doscientos chicos<\/span>, doscientas chicas<\/span>, quinientas libras<\/span>.<\/li>
  5. Mil is invariable and never takes un.<\/strong> mil<\/span>, dos mil<\/span>, diez mil<\/span>. “Un mil” is wrong.<\/li>
  6. Mill\u00f3n is a noun.<\/strong> It takes un<\/span>, a plural and de<\/span> before a noun: un mill\u00f3n de habitantes<\/span>, tres millones de euros<\/span>. The de<\/span> disappears when more numbers follow: tres millones quinientos mil euros<\/span>.<\/li>
  7. A billion is not un bill\u00f3n.<\/strong> English “billion” (a thousand million) is mil millones<\/span>. Un bill\u00f3n<\/span> is a million million.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n

    Decimals, thousands and ordinals<\/h2>\n\n

    In Spain the decimal marker is a comma: 3,5 is tres coma cinco<\/span>. Mexico and several other Latin American countries use a point, as in the UK. For thousands, the Real Academia Espa\u00f1ola recommends a space rather than a point or comma, from five digits: 10 000. Pupils reading Spanish websites will meet all of these.<\/p>\n\n

    For mental maths in Spanish: m\u00e1s<\/span> (plus), menos<\/span> (minus), por<\/span> (times), entre<\/span> or dividido por<\/span> (divided by), and son<\/span> or es igual a<\/span> (equals): Dos m\u00e1s tres son cinco.<\/span> Useful words around numbers include la mitad<\/span> (half), un tercio<\/span> (a third), un cuarto<\/span> (a quarter), una docena<\/span> (a dozen) and un par<\/span> (a pair, a couple).<\/p>\n\n

    The first ten ordinals are primero, segundo, tercero, cuarto, quinto, sexto, s\u00e9ptimo, octavo, noveno, d\u00e9cimo<\/span>. Primero<\/span> and tercero<\/span> shorten before a masculine noun: el primer piso<\/span>, el tercer d\u00eda<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n

    Typical mistakes of English-speaking learners<\/h2>\n\n
    • Age with ser or estar:<\/strong> “soy doce a\u00f1os” or “estoy doce”. Age uses tener<\/span>: Tengo doce a\u00f1os.<\/span><\/li>
    • “Ciento y uno”:<\/strong> a calque of “a hundred and one”. It is ciento uno<\/span>.<\/li>
    • “Cien uno” or “un cien”:<\/strong> it is ciento uno<\/span> and cien<\/span>.<\/li>
    • “Veintiuno a\u00f1os”:<\/strong> before a masculine noun it is veinti\u00fan a\u00f1os<\/span>.<\/li>
    • Missing accents:<\/strong> “dieciseis”, “veintitres”.<\/li>
    • Gender of hundreds:<\/strong> “doscientos libras” instead of doscientas libras<\/span>.<\/li>
    • Sesenta and setenta<\/strong> swapped, especially in listening.<\/li>
    • Billion:<\/strong> translating “a billion” as un bill\u00f3n<\/span>.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n

      In class: a number routine<\/h2>\n\n

      Numbers are forgotten fast if they are not used. Five numbers at the start of each lesson, of increasing difficulty, keep them alive all year.<\/p>\n\n

      1. Show a number in figures on the board.<\/li>
      2. The class says it aloud, all together or one pupil at a time.<\/li>
      3. Reveal the number written in words, so pupils can check spelling and accents.<\/li>
      4. Repeat with four more numbers, each a little harder than the last.<\/li>
      5. Now and then, reverse it: say a number, pupils write the figures on mini whiteboards.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n

        This is exactly what a daily routine does: little, often, and slightly harder each time.<\/p>\n\n

        Useful variations: prices in euros (tres euros con cincuenta<\/span> or tres cincuenta<\/span>), phone numbers, football scores, the population of Spanish-speaking cities. At GCSE level, numbers in listening passages are a frequent stumbling block, so dictation of large numbers is time well spent.<\/p>\n\n

        Adapting to your class<\/h3>\n\n
        • A1<\/b>0 to 100.<\/li>
        • A2<\/b>Up to 1,000, with the hundreds and their agreement.<\/li>
        • B1<\/b>Up to 100,000, with decimals: tres coma cinco<\/span>.<\/li>
        • B2<\/b>Up to 9,000,000, with millones de<\/span>.<\/li><\/ul>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          From cero to un mill\u00f3n: the lists, the spelling traps, agreement, and a daily five-number routine for the classroom.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"menu_order":5,"template":"","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"Numbers in Spanish: Full List, Spelling and Rules | VocaDial","_seopress_titles_desc":"Numbers in Spanish from 0 to 1,000,000: spelling, pronunciation, cien or ciento, veinti\u00fan, doscientas, and the mistakes English speakers make.","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","_seopress_news_disabled":"","_seopress_video_disabled":"","_seopress_video":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas_manual":[],"_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable_all":"","_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas":[],"_vd_topic":"nombres","_vd_target":"es","_vd_module":"numero","_vd_level":"A1","_vd_minutes":"8","_vd_card_word":"veintiuno","_vd_answer":"Numbers in Spanish from 1 to 10 are uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, seis, siete, ocho, nueve, diez<\/span>. From 16 to 29 they are written as one word (diecis\u00e9is, veintiuno<\/span>); from 31 they use y<\/span> (treinta y uno<\/span>). 100 is cien<\/span>, but 101 is ciento uno<\/span>, and 1,000 is simply mil<\/span>.","_vd_faq":"[{\"q\":\"How do you count to 10 in Spanish?\",\"a\":\"Uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, seis, siete, ocho, nueve, diez<\\\/span>. Zero is cero<\\\/span>.\"},{\"q\":\"What is the difference between cien and ciento?\",\"a\":\"Cien<\\\/span> is 100 exactly, and is also used before a noun, mil<\\\/span> or millones<\\\/span>. Ciento<\\\/span> is used when more numbers follow: ciento uno<\\\/span>, ciento cincuenta<\\\/span>.\"},{\"q\":\"Is it veintiuno or veinti\u00fan?\",\"a\":\"Veintiuno<\\\/span> when counting, veinti\u00fan<\\\/span> before a masculine noun (veinti\u00fan a\u00f1os<\\\/span>) and veintiuna<\\\/span> before a feminine one (veintiuna personas<\\\/span>).\"},{\"q\":\"How do you say a billion in Spanish?\",\"a\":\"Mil millones<\\\/span>. The Spanish word bill\u00f3n<\\\/span> means a million million.\"},{\"q\":\"How do you say your age in Spanish?\",\"a\":\"With the verb tener<\\\/span>: Tengo doce a\u00f1os<\\\/span>, literally \\\"I have twelve years\\\". Never with ser<\\\/span> or estar<\\\/span>.\"},{\"q\":\"Which numbers in Spanish have an accent?\",\"a\":\"Diecis\u00e9is<\\\/span>, veintid\u00f3s<\\\/span>, veintitr\u00e9s<\\\/span> and veintis\u00e9is<\\\/span>, as well as veinti\u00fan<\\\/span> and mill\u00f3n<\\\/span>.\"}]","_vd_key":"nombres-es","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-48","vd_ressource","type-vd_ressource","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vd_ressource\/48","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vd_ressource"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/vd_ressource"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vd_ressource\/48\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vocadial.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}