Mastering French Numbers

French numbers mostly act like adjectives. They come before the noun they describe. For example, trois chats means three cats. Most numbers are "invariable." This is great news for you! It means they do not change based on gender or number. Whether you have three boys or three girls, trois stays the same. The only major exception is the number one. It changes from un to une depending on the noun. Another small quirk is the number 80, which sometimes takes an s. But don't let that scare you. For 95% of the time, the number you see is the number you use. You just need to memorize the core building blocks. Once you have those, you can stack them together like Lego bricks. It is a system of patterns and rhythms.

1. 1Master the "Rebels" (0-16). These numbers have unique names. You must memorize zéro, un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf, dix, onze, douze, treize, quatorze, quinze, and seize. Think of these as the foundation of your house.
2. 2Build the "Teens" (17-19). These are easy. You just combine ten (dix) with the unit. So, 17 is dix-sept, 18 is dix-huit, and 19 is dix-neuf. It is literally "ten-seven," "ten-eight," and "ten-nine."
3. 3Learn the "Tens" (20-60). These are your anchors. Vingt (20), trente (30), quarante (40), cinquante (50), and soixante (60).
4. 4Add the Units. To make 22, you say vingt-deux. For 35, it is trente-cinq. Always use a hyphen!
5. 5The "Et" Rule. For numbers ending in 1 (21, 31, 41, 51, 61), add the word et (and). So, 21 is vingt et un. It sounds very elegant, like a little song.
6. 6The "Math Zone" (70-99). This is where French gets famous. 70 is soixante-dix (60+10). 71 is soixante et onze (60+11). 80 is quatre-vingts (4x20). 90 is quatre-vingt-dix (4x20+10). Yes, you are doing mental math while speaking!

Use numbers when you are at a bakery. Ordering quatre éclairs is a great way to make friends (or a very full stomach). Use them for your phone number. In France, people give phone numbers in pairs. Instead of saying "zero, six, one...", they say zéro six, douze, trente.... It feels very sophisticated once you get the hang of it. Use them for your age. In French, you don't "be" an age; you "have" years. You would say J'ai vingt ans. Use them for prices. If a coffee is deux euros cinquante, you need those numbers ready. They are also essential for time. Il est huit heures tells your boss you are on time. Finally, use them for dates. Except for the first of the month, French uses cardinal numbers for everything.

Do not use these numbers for the "first" of anything. For the 1st of the month, use le premier. Saying le un mai will make a Frenchman's baguette drop in shock. Also, avoid using them for "once" or "twice." French has specific words for that, like une fois or deux fois. When counting items in a sequence (like 1st, 2nd, 3rd), you need ordinal numbers like deuxième. However, for kings and queens, French uses these basic numbers. You would say Louis quatorze (Louis 14th). It is a bit of a royal exception!

Many people forget the hyphen. In modern French, we put hyphens between all parts of a number. So vingt-deux is correct, not vingt deux. Another classic mistake is the et in 81 and 91. While 21 is vingt et un, 81 is just quatre-vingt-un. No "and" allowed there! It is a bit of a grammar traffic light. Also, watch out for the s on quatre-vingts. If another number follows it, the s disappears. So 80 is quatre-vingts, but 82 is quatre-vingt-deux. Yes, even native speakers mess this up sometimes! Finally, don't confuse deux (2) with douze (12). One is a couple, the other is a dozen donuts.

English is very linear. You say "seventy," "eighty," "ninety." It is predictable. French is more like a history lesson. The base-20 system (used for 80 and 90) comes from ancient Celtic influences. It is like the English phrase "four score and seven years ago." French just decided to keep that style for everyday use! In Belgium and Switzerland, they actually use septante (70) and nonante (90). These are much closer to the English logic. If you find the French math too hard, just pretend you are in Brussels for a moment! However, in Paris, you must embrace the math. It is part of the charm.