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Spanish numbers are written as one word up to thirty, then joined with y; uno and the hundreds agree with the noun. The time is given with ser, in the plural from two o'clock on.
Numbers and the time#
Cardinal numbers. From 0 to 15, each number has its own form: cero, uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco, seis, siete, ocho, nueve, diez, once, doce, trece, catorce, quince. From 16 to 29, the number is written as one word: dieciséis, diecisiete, veinte, veintiuno, veintidós, veintitrés, veintiséis. From 31 on, the tens (treinta, cuarenta, cincuenta, sesenta, setenta, ochenta, noventa) are joined to the unit with y: treinta y dos, cincuenta y cinco. Cien (100) becomes ciento before another number: ciento diez. The hundreds are doscientos, trescientos, cuatrocientos, quinientos, seiscientos, setecientos, ochocientos, novecientos; mil (1,000) does not change.
Formation
Two kinds of number agree with the noun. Uno becomes un before a masculine noun and una before a feminine noun, alone or at the end of a compound number: un libro, una mesa, veintiún libros, veintiuna mesas, treinta y un años, treinta y una personas. The hundreds, from 200 to 900, agree in gender: doscientos euros, doscientas personas.
Ordinal numbers. From 1 to 10, they are primero, segundo, tercero, cuarto, quinto, sexto, séptimo, octavo, noveno, décimo. They agree in gender and number with the noun (la primera calle, la segunda puerta) and come before it, after the article. Before a masculine singular noun, primero and tercero become primer and tercer: el primer día, el tercer piso.
The time. The question is ¿Qué hora es? The answer is built with ser and the feminine article: es la una for one o'clock, son las + number from two o'clock on (son las dos, son las diez). Minutes are added with y up to the half hour (y cinco, y cuarto, y media); after that, the next hour is named and the minutes are taken away with menos: son las cuatro menos diez. En punto means “exactly”, “on the dot”. The time of an event is introduced by a: a la una, a las ocho; the question is ¿A qué hora…?
- Mi abuelo tiene ochenta y un años.My grandfather is eighty-one.
- En el pueblo viven doscientas personas.Two hundred people live in the village.
- Mis abuelos viven en el tercer piso.My grandparents live on the third floor.
- ¿Qué hora es? — Son las once y diez.What time is it? — It's ten past eleven.
- La clase es a las nueve menos cuarto.The class is at a quarter to nine.
- Es la una en punto.It's one o'clock exactly.
Difference from English
English numbers never change; in Spanish, “twenty-one” and “two hundred” agree with a feminine noun: veintiuna personas, doscientas personas. Ordinals agree too: el quinto piso, la quinta puerta. “It's three o'clock” is Son las tres: a plural verb, the feminine article for hora, and no word for “o'clock”. The minutes come after the hour: “ten past eleven” is las once y diez, “a quarter to nine” las nueve menos cuarto. “At three” is a las tres.
Common mistakes
Tengo veintiuno años.→ Tengo veintiún años.Before a masculine noun, veintiuno becomes veintiún.doscientos personas→ doscientas personasThe hundreds agree with the feminine noun.el primero día→ el primer díaBefore a masculine singular noun, primero becomes primer.Es las tres.→ Son las tres.From two o'clock on, the verb is plural.a tres→ a las tresThe time of an event takes a and the article: a las tres.
The other quantity words, mucho, poco and bastante, are presented in “Muy and mucho: very, a lot”.
In short
| Point | Rule | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 16 to 29 | one word | dieciséis, veintitrés |
| from 31 on | tens + y + unit | cuarenta y dos |
| uno before a noun | un (masculine), una (feminine) | veintiún libros, treinta y una mesas |
| hundreds | agree in gender | doscientas personas |
| ordinals | agree; primer, tercer before a masculine | la quinta puerta, el primer día |
| the time | es la una; son las + number | Son las tres y diez. |
| time of an event | a la, a las | a las ocho |
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