French Numbers 1-100: Counting and Pronunciation Guide

French numbers 1-100 are cardinal numbers used for counting, prices, ages, dates, addresses, phone numbers, classroom exercises, travel phrases, and everyday conversation. The system is regular from 1 to 69, then it changes shape from 70 to 99, where standard French uses combinations such as soixante-dix, quatre-vingts, and quatre-vingt-dix.

French Numbers 1-20

The first twenty numbers deserve extra attention because many later forms reuse them. The pronunciation cues below are beginner-friendly approximations; French sounds such as un, deux, and cinq are best learned by hearing the nasal vowel and rounded vowel clearly.

Number	French	Pronunciation Cue	Useful Note
1	un	uhn, nasal	Use une before a feminine noun.
2	deux	duh, rounded	Final x is silent alone.
3	trois	trwah	Final s is silent alone.
4	quatre	katr	The final sound is light.
5	cinq	sank	The final consonant is often heard.
6	six	sees	Changes sound before nouns.
7	sept	set	The p is not pronounced.
8	huit	wheet	Starts with a French ui sound.
9	neuf	nuf	Final f is usually heard.
10	dix	dees	Changes sound before nouns.
11	onze	onz	Used in 71 and 91.
12	douze	dooz	Used in 72 and 92.
13	treize	trez	Used in 73 and 93.
14	quatorze	ka-torz	Used in 74 and 94.
15	quinze	kanz	Used in 75 and 95.
16	seize	sez	Used in 76 and 96.
17	dix-sept	dees-set	Literally ten-seven.
18	dix-huit	deez-wheet	Linked sound is smooth.
19	dix-neuf	deez-nuf	Literally ten-nine.
20	vingt	van, nasal	The final t is silent in 20 alone.

Counting by Tens

The tens are the main anchors of French counting. From 20 to 69, French usually adds a small number after the ten: vingt-deux means 22, and cinquante-neuf means 59.

Number	French	Pronunciation Cue	Pattern
10	dix	dees	Base form for 17-19 and 70.
20	vingt	van	Used in 21-29.
30	trente	tront	Used in 31-39.
40	quarante	ka-ront	Used in 41-49.
50	cinquante	san-kont	Used in 51-59.
60	soixante	swah-sont	Used in 61-69 and 70-79.
70	soixante-dix	swah-sont-dees	60 + 10.
80	quatre-vingts	katr-van	4 × 20; final s is written only in 80.
90	quatre-vingt-dix	katr-van-dees	4 × 20 + 10.
100	cent	son, nasal	Means one hundred.

Complete French Numbers 1-100

This complete number chart uses the common learner spelling for vingt et un, trente et un, quarante et un, cinquante et un, soixante et un, and soixante et onze. Modern spelling may also connect all parts with hyphens, such as vingt-et-un.

Number	French	Number	French
1	un	51	cinquante et un
2	deux	52	cinquante-deux
3	trois	53	cinquante-trois
4	quatre	54	cinquante-quatre
5	cinq	55	cinquante-cinq
6	six	56	cinquante-six
7	sept	57	cinquante-sept
8	huit	58	cinquante-huit
9	neuf	59	cinquante-neuf
10	dix	60	soixante
11	onze	61	soixante et un
12	douze	62	soixante-deux
13	treize	63	soixante-trois
14	quatorze	64	soixante-quatre
15	quinze	65	soixante-cinq
16	seize	66	soixante-six
17	dix-sept	67	soixante-sept
18	dix-huit	68	soixante-huit
19	dix-neuf	69	soixante-neuf
20	vingt	70	soixante-dix
21	vingt et un	71	soixante et onze
22	vingt-deux	72	soixante-douze
23	vingt-trois	73	soixante-treize
24	vingt-quatre	74	soixante-quatorze
25	vingt-cinq	75	soixante-quinze
26	vingt-six	76	soixante-seize
27	vingt-sept	77	soixante-dix-sept
28	vingt-huit	78	soixante-dix-huit
29	vingt-neuf	79	soixante-dix-neuf
30	trente	80	quatre-vingts
31	trente et un	81	quatre-vingt-un
32	trente-deux	82	quatre-vingt-deux
33	trente-trois	83	quatre-vingt-trois
34	trente-quatre	84	quatre-vingt-quatre
35	trente-cinq	85	quatre-vingt-cinq
36	trente-six	86	quatre-vingt-six
37	trente-sept	87	quatre-vingt-sept
38	trente-huit	88	quatre-vingt-huit
39	trente-neuf	89	quatre-vingt-neuf
40	quarante	90	quatre-vingt-dix
41	quarante et un	91	quatre-vingt-onze
42	quarante-deux	92	quatre-vingt-douze
43	quarante-trois	93	quatre-vingt-treize
44	quarante-quatre	94	quatre-vingt-quatorze
45	quarante-cinq	95	quatre-vingt-quinze
46	quarante-six	96	quatre-vingt-seize
47	quarante-sept	97	quatre-vingt-dix-sept
48	quarante-huit	98	quatre-vingt-dix-huit
49	quarante-neuf	99	quatre-vingt-dix-neuf
50	cinquante	100	cent

How French Builds Numbers

The Simple Pattern From 21 to 69

Most French numbers from 21 to 69 follow a clear pattern: ten + small number. For example, trente-deux is 30 + 2, and quarante-huit is 40 + 8.

• 22 = vingt-deux = twenty-two
• 35 = trente-cinq = thirty-five
• 49 = quarante-neuf = forty-nine
• 58 = cinquante-huit = fifty-eight
• 64 = soixante-quatre = sixty-four

The Et Un Pattern

French uses et un, meaning and one, in several numbers ending in 1. This gives forms such as vingt et un, trente et un, and soixante et un. The word et sounds like a short é.

Number	French Form	Literal Pattern	Pronunciation Cue
21	vingt et un	twenty and one	van-tay-uhn
31	trente et un	thirty and one	tront-ay-uhn
41	quarante et un	forty and one	ka-ront-ay-uhn
51	cinquante et un	fifty and one	san-kont-ay-uhn
61	soixante et un	sixty and one	swah-sont-ay-uhn
71	soixante et onze	sixty and eleven	swah-sont-ay-onz

The 70-79 Pattern

In standard French, 70 is not a single new word. It is soixante-dix, literally sixty-ten. The rest of the 70s continue from onze to dix-neuf.

Number	French	Literal Idea
70	soixante-dix	60 + 10
71	soixante et onze	60 + 11
72	soixante-douze	60 + 12
75	soixante-quinze	60 + 15
79	soixante-dix-neuf	60 + 19

The 80-99 Pattern

French 80 is quatre-vingts, literally four twenties. The written s appears in 80 alone, but disappears when another number follows: quatre-vingt-un, quatre-vingt-deux, quatre-vingt-dix.

Pronunciation Notes That Matter

French number pronunciation is easier when learners notice sound behavior, not only spelling. Some letters are written but silent; others appear only when a number connects to the next word. These patterns make spoken French feel compact and smooth.

Nasal Vowels

Several numbers use a nasal vowel, where air passes partly through the nose. In un, cinq, vingt, and cent, the vowel does not match a plain English vowel.

• un is not the same as English one.
• vingt and cent both use a nasal an/en-type sound.
• cinq often keeps a final consonant sound when counted alone.

Six and Dix Change Before Nouns

The numbers six and dix change sound depending on what follows. Alone, they often sound like sees and dees. Before a consonant, the final sound is commonly softer or absent; before a vowel, a z sound can appear through liaison.

Use	Example	Sound Pattern
Counting alone	six, dix	sees, dees
Before consonant	six livres, dix pages	often closer to see, dee
Before vowel	six amis, dix euros	z link: zee-zah-mee, dee-zuh-ro

Vingt in the 20s

The final t in vingt is silent in 20 alone, but it is often heard in the 20s, such as vingt-deux and vingt-trois. In quatre-vingt-un and later 80s forms, the t is usually not treated the same way as in vingt-deux.

Spelling, Hyphens, and Plural Endings

French number spelling has two areas that often confuse learners: hyphens and the plural s in quatre-vingts. Many learning materials use traditional spellings such as vingt et un, while modern spelling recommendations also allow forms such as vingt-et-un.

Point	Common Learner Form	Modern Hyphenated Form	Note
21	vingt et un	vingt-et-un	Both are widely understandable.
31	trente et un	trente-et-un	Et means “and.”
71	soixante et onze	soixante-et-onze	The pattern is 60 + 11.
80	quatre-vingts	quatre-vingts	The final s appears because nothing follows.
81	quatre-vingt-un	quatre-vingt-un	No final s on vingt.
100	cent	cent	No plural issue at 100 alone.

France, Belgium, and Switzerland Number Words

Standard French taught in many international courses uses soixante-dix, quatre-vingts, and quatre-vingt-dix. In some French-speaking regions, especially Belgium and Switzerland, learners may also meet septante, huitante, and nonante.

Number	Common Standard French	Belgium	Switzerland	Meaning
70	soixante-dix	septante	septante	seventy
80	quatre-vingts	quatre-vingts	huitante	eighty
90	quatre-vingt-dix	nonante	nonante	ninety

These regional forms are not “wrong”; they reflect different French-speaking norms. For a beginner learning broad standard usage, soixante-dix, quatre-vingts, and quatre-vingt-dix remain the safest first set to recognize.

Using French Numbers in Real Sentences

Numbers become easier when they appear inside short, useful phrases. The examples below show French numbers with ages, prices, time, addresses, and quantities. The grammar stays simple, so the number remains the focus.

Use	French Example	English Meaning	Number Focus
Age	J’ai vingt ans.	I am twenty years old.	vingt
Price	Ça coûte quinze euros.	It costs fifteen euros.	quinze
Time	Il est huit heures.	It is eight o’clock.	huit
Quantity	Nous avons trente-deux cartes.	We have thirty-two cards.	trente-deux
Address	J’habite au numéro quarante.	I live at number forty.	quarante
Date	Le vingt mai.	May twentieth.	vingt
Classroom	Page soixante et onze.	Page seventy-one.	soixante et onze
Travel	Le train part à neuf heures.	The train leaves at nine o’clock.	neuf

Dates, Time, and Phone Numbers

Dates Use Cardinal Numbers

French dates usually use cardinal numbers, not ordinal forms. English says “May twentieth,” but French says le vingt mai. The main exception is the first day of the month: le premier mai.

• le deux juin = June 2
• le quinze juillet = July 15
• le trente août = August 30
• le premier janvier = January 1

Time Uses Heure and Heures

For basic clock time, French places the number before heure or heures. The phrase une heure means one o’clock, while deux heures, trois heures, and later forms use the plural.

• Il est une heure. = It is one o’clock.
• Il est cinq heures. = It is five o’clock.
• Il est vingt heures. = It is 20:00 / 8 p.m.

Phone Numbers Are Often Grouped

French phone numbers are commonly read in pairs. A learner who knows 1-100 can understand this grouping more easily because each pair may be a number from 01 to 99.

Written Pair	Possible Spoken French	Meaning
06	zéro six	zero six
24	vingt-quatre	twenty-four
71	soixante et onze	seventy-one
98	quatre-vingt-dix-huit	ninety-eight

Common Learner Errors

Most mistakes with French numbers 1-100 come from applying English number logic too far. French is regular, but the regularity changes after 69.

Error	Better Form	Reason
sept-dix for 70	soixante-dix	Standard French uses 60 + 10.
soixante-onze for 71	soixante et onze	French adds et in 71.
quatre-vingts-un for 81	quatre-vingt-un	The s disappears when another number follows.
quatre-vingt-dix-six for 96	quatre-vingt-seize	96 is 80 + 16, not 90 + 6.
un page for one page	une page	Page is feminine, so un becomes une.
Pronouncing final letters every time	Listen for silent endings	French final consonants often change by context.

Practice With Answers

These short exercises help connect spelling, meaning, and pronunciation. Read each number aloud before checking the answer (slow speech first, then natural speed).

Resources

The resources below support French number spelling, pronunciation practice, and standard written forms. They are useful for checking examples and comparing learner-level explanations with language-reference notes.

• eCampusOntario Pressbooks — Les Nombres 1-10
• eCampusOntario Pressbooks — Les Nombres 11-59
• eCampusOntario Pressbooks — Les Nombres 60-100
• Office Québécois de la Langue Française — Prononciation de ET Dans Les Nombres Composés
• Office Québécois de la Langue Française — Trait D’union Dans Les Numéraux Composés
• Bescherelle — Maîtriser L’écriture Des Nombres

FAQ

How Do You Say 100 in French?

100 in French is cent. It is pronounced with a nasal vowel, close to son, but not exactly the same as the English word.

Why Is 70 Soixante-Dix in/ecriture-des-nombres/” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener noreferrer”>Bescherelle — Maîtriser L’écriture Des Nombres

FAQ

How Do You Say 100 in French?

100 in French is cent. It is pronounced with a nasal vowel French?

In standard French, 70 is soixante-dix, meaning sixty-ten. The numbers from 70 to 79 continue from soixante et onze through soixante-dix-neuf.

Why Does Quatre-Vingts Have an S?

Quatre-vingts has a final s when it means exactly 80. The s disappears when another number follows, as in quatre-vingt-un and quatre-vingt-deux.

Is Septante Correct for 70?

Septante is used in some French-speaking regions, especially Belgium and Switzerland. Standard French taught in many international courses uses soixante-dix, but regional forms are understandable in their own contexts.

What Is the Best Order to Learn French Numbers 1-100?

A practical order is 1-16, then 17-20, then the tens from 20 to 60, then the special patterns 70-99. This order makes French counting easier because many later numbers reuse earlier forms.