These figures appear everywhere — prices, phone numbers, addresses, dates, and scores. Whether you want to learn how to say numbers in English for the first time or practice writing number names correctly, this guide takes you from one all the way to one hundred with clear pronunciation for every digit. 🔢
Each section covers a range of numbers with pronunciation guides, spelling notes, and Fliki audio files so you can hear every word spoken at a natural pace. For a broader foundation in everyday English, essential basic English phrases covers numbers alongside greetings, directions, and shopping phrases.
from one to one hundred, with pronunciation!
Numbers one through nine are usually written as words in formal writing (one, two, three). From 10 onwards, digits are more common in everyday contexts.
Numbers twenty-one through ninety-nine are hyphenated when written in words: twenty-one, forty-five, seventy-eight.
Forty is spelled F-O-R-T-Y, never 'fourty'. This is the most common spelling mistake in English number writing.
Each new hundred, thousand, and million starts a new group: two hundred, one thousand five hundred, one million.
In English, commas separate groups of three digits in large numbers: 1,000 (one thousand), 10,000 (ten thousand).
Numbers 1–20
The numbers one through twenty are the most important numbers in English to learn because they are all unique words with no predictable pattern. Unlike numbers 21 and above, each of these must be memorised individually. Pay close attention to the pronunciation audio; several of these numbers have sounds that don't match their spelling.
| # | Written | Pronunciation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | one | wun | Irregular — essential building block for all compound numbers |
| 2 | two | too | The W is silent — never say 'tuh-woh' |
| 3 | three | three | Practice the TH sound: tongue between teeth |
| 4 | four | for | Sounds like the word 'for' |
| 5 | five | fiyv | The V at the end is voiced — don't say 'fife' |
| 6 | six | siks | Clear ending — don't drop the S |
| 7 | seven | SEV-en | Stress on first syllable: SEV not sev-EN |
| 8 | eight | ayt | Silent GH — just say 'ayt' |
| 9 | nine | nyn | Long I sound — rhymes with 'mine' |
| 10 | ten | ten | Short E sound — the base of the 'teen' numbers |
| 11 | eleven | ih-LEV-en | Irregular — stress on second syllable |
| 12 | twelve | twelv | Irregular — note the silent E at the end |
| 13 | thirteen | thur-TEEN | Stress on TEEN: thur-TEEN, not THIR-teen |
| 14 | fourteen | for-TEEN | Stress on TEEN: for-TEEN |
| 15 | fifteen | fif-TEEN | Note: five → fif (not five-teen) |
| 16 | sixteen | siks-TEEN | Stress on TEEN: siks-TEEN |
| 17 | seventeen | sev-en-TEEN | Three syllables: SEV-en-TEEN |
| 18 | eighteen | ay-TEEN | Note: eight → eigh (ay sound) |
| 19 | nineteen | nyn-TEEN | Stress on TEEN: nyn-TEEN |
| 20 | twenty | TWEN-tee | Stress on TWEN: TWEN-tee |
Add -teen to say a number from 13 to 19
three + teen = thirteen, four + teen = fourteen
five → fif-teen, eight → eigh-teen, nine → nine-teen
Always stress the -TEEN syllable: thir-TEEN, four-TEEN
Confusing thirteen (13) and thirty (30) — practice both!
These words come up constantly when introducing yourself: your age, your phone number, and your address all require confident use of them. Our article "How to introduce yourself" in English covers these practical conversation situations in detail.
Thirteen (13) vs. thirty (30): thir-TEEN vs. THIR-tee — the stress position changes!
Fourteen (14) vs. forty (40): for-TEEN vs. FOR-tee
Fifteen (15) vs. fifty (50): fif-TEEN vs. FIF-tee
In casual American speech, the -teen ending is often reduced. Context usually makes the meaning clear.
Numbers 20–40
From twenty onwards, the names follow a clear pattern: say the decade (twenty, thirty) and then add a hyphen and the unit (one through nine). This pattern applies all the way to ninety-nine. Learn the decade words first (twenty and thirty) and the rest of this range becomes straightforward to say and write.
Decade + hyphen + unit
twenty + - + one = twenty-one (21) thirty + - + seven = thirty-seven (37)
Always use a hyphen: twenty-three, not 'twenty three'
Forty has no U — it is F-O-R-T-Y, not 'fourty'
All decade words end in the same -tee sound: twen-tee, thur-tee, for-tee, fif-tee. Mastering this sound makes the whole range easier to say.
| # | Written | Pronunciation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | twenty-one | TWEN-tee-wun | Compound: decade + hyphen + unit |
| 22 | twenty-two | TWEN-tee-too | |
| 23 | twenty-three | TWEN-tee-three | |
| 24 | twenty-four | TWEN-tee-for | |
| 25 | twenty-five | TWEN-tee-fiyv | |
| 26 | twenty-six | TWEN-tee-siks | |
| 27 | twenty-seven | TWEN-tee-SEV-en | |
| 28 | twenty-eight | TWEN-tee-ayt | |
| 29 | twenty-nine | TWEN-tee-nyn | |
| 30 | thirty | THUR-tee | New decade — practice: THUR-tee, not THIR-ee |
| 31 | thirty-one | THUR-tee-wun | |
| 32 | thirty-two | THUR-tee-too | |
| 33 | thirty-three | THUR-tee-three | |
| 34 | thirty-four | THUR-tee-for | |
| 35 | thirty-five | THUR-tee-fiyv | |
| 36 | thirty-six | THUR-tee-siks | |
| 37 | thirty-seven | THUR-tee-SEV-en | |
| 38 | thirty-eight | THUR-tee-ayt | |
| 39 | thirty-nine | THUR-tee-nyn | |
| 40 | forty | FOR-tee | ⚠️ Spelled FORTY — NOT 'fourty'. Most common spelling mistake! |
Numbers 40–60
The forty to sixty range introduces two new decade words: fifty and sixty. Notice that fifty follows the same pattern as fifteen — the word five changes to fif. Sixty adds a T before the -ty ending, making it six-t-y rather than six-y. Say it as SIK-stee, not SIK-see.
| # | Written | Pronunciation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 41 | forty-one | FOR-tee-wun | |
| 42 | forty-two | FOR-tee-too | |
| 43 | forty-three | FOR-tee-three | |
| 44 | forty-four | FOR-tee-for | |
| 45 | forty-five | FOR-tee-fiyv | |
| 46 | forty-six | FOR-tee-siks | |
| 47 | forty-seven | FOR-tee-SEV-en | |
| 48 | forty-eight | FOR-tee-ayt | |
| 49 | forty-nine | FOR-tee-nyn | |
| 50 | fifty | FIF-tee | Note: five → fif (same change as fifteen) |
| 51 | fifty-one | FIF-tee-wun | |
| 52 | fifty-two | FIF-tee-too | |
| 53 | fifty-three | FIF-tee-three | |
| 54 | fifty-four | FIF-tee-for | |
| 55 | fifty-five | FIF-tee-fiyv | |
| 56 | fifty-six | FIF-tee-siks | |
| 57 | fifty-seven | FIF-tee-SEV-en | |
| 58 | fifty-eight | FIF-tee-ayt | |
| 59 | fifty-nine | FIF-tee-nyn | |
| 60 | sixty | SIK-stee | Note: six → sixt (adds a T) |
Being confident with these words is essential when talking about dates and scheduling — managing calendars and appointments becomes much easier once you can say them without hesitation. The days of the week in English covers how to combine numbers with day and month names for complete dates.
Numbers 60–80
Seventy is the longest of the decade words, with three syllables: SEV-en-tee. Beginners sometimes rush through it and drop the middle syllable. Practice it slowly: sev — en — tee. Eighty uses the long A sound from eight (ay), making it AY-tee rather than "eet-ee."
| # | Written | Pronunciation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61 | sixty-one | SIK-stee-wun | |
| 62 | sixty-two | SIK-stee-too | |
| 63 | sixty-three | SIK-stee-three | |
| 64 | sixty-four | SIK-stee-for | |
| 65 | sixty-five | SIK-stee-fiyv | |
| 66 | sixty-six | SIK-stee-siks | |
| 67 | sixty-seven | SIK-stee-SEV-en | |
| 68 | sixty-eight | SIK-stee-ayt | |
| 69 | sixty-nine | SIK-stee-nyn | |
| 70 | seventy | SEV-en-tee | Three syllables: SEV-en-tee |
| 71 | seventy-one | SEV-en-tee-wun | |
| 72 | seventy-two | SEV-en-tee-too | |
| 73 | seventy-three | SEV-en-tee-three | |
| 74 | seventy-four | SEV-en-tee-for | |
| 75 | seventy-five | SEV-en-tee-fiyv | |
| 76 | seventy-six | SEV-en-tee-siks | |
| 77 | seventy-seven | SEV-en-tee-SEV-en | |
| 78 | seventy-eight | SEV-en-tee-ayt | |
| 79 | seventy-nine | SEV-en-tee-nyn | |
| 80 | eighty | AY-tee | Note: eight → eigh (AY sound) |
Numbers 80–100
Ninety follows the same pattern as nineteen: nine drops its final E before adding -ty, giving you nin-ty rather than nine-ty. One hundred is the first that introduces a new group word. Notice that in American usage, you say "one hundred," not just "a hundred" in formal written contexts.
| # | Written | Pronunciation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 81 | eighty-one | AY-tee-wun | |
| 82 | eighty-two | AY-tee-too | |
| 83 | eighty-three | AY-tee-three | |
| 84 | eighty-four | AY-tee-for | |
| 85 | eighty-five | AY-tee-fiyv | |
| 86 | eighty-six | AY-tee-siks | |
| 87 | eighty-seven | AY-tee-SEV-en | |
| 88 | eighty-eight | AY-tee-ayt | |
| 89 | eighty-nine | AY-tee-nyn | |
| 90 | ninety | NYN-tee | Note: nine → nin (drops the E) |
| 91 | ninety-one | NYN-tee-wun | |
| 92 | ninety-two | NYN-tee-too | |
| 93 | ninety-three | NYN-tee-three | |
| 94 | ninety-four | NYN-tee-for | |
| 95 | ninety-five | NYN-tee-fiyv | |
| 96 | ninety-six | NYN-tee-siks | |
| 97 | ninety-seven | NYN-tee-SEV-en | |
| 98 | ninety-eight | NYN-tee-ayt | |
| 99 | ninety-nine | NYN-tee-nyn | |
| 100 | one hundred | wun HUN-dred | New category — not a decade, a hundred |
100 — one hundred
200 — two hundred (no 's' on hundred)
1,000 — one thousand
10,000 — ten thousand
100,000 — one hundred thousand
1,000,000 — one million
Note: in American English, 'and' is NOT used between hundred and the following number. Say 'one hundred twenty,' not 'one hundred and twenty.'
Understanding Ordinal Numbers in English
Cardinal numbers tell you how many (one, two, three). Ordinal numbers tell you the order or position (first, second, third). These ordinal forms are essential for talking about dates, rankings, floors in a building, and competition results. The first three are completely irregular (first, second, third) after which most follow a regular -th pattern.
| Cardinal (#) | Cardinal Word | Ordinal Word | Written Short | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | one | first | 1st | Irregular |
| 2 | two | second | 2nd | Irregular |
| 3 | three | third | 3rd | Irregular |
| 4 | four | fourth | 4th | Add -th |
| 5 | five | fifth | 5th | five → fifth (irregular spelling) |
| 6 | six | sixth | 6th | Add -th |
| 7 | seven | seventh | 7th | Add -th |
| 8 | eight | eighth | 8th | eight → eighth (drop the E) |
| 9 | nine | ninth | 9th | nine → ninth (drop the E) |
| 10 | ten | tenth | 10th | Add -th |
| 11 | eleven | eleventh | 11th | Add -th |
| 12 | twelve | twelfth | 12th | twelve → twelfth (irregular) |
| 13 | thirteen | thirteenth | 13th | Add -th |
| 20 | twenty | twentieth | 20th | twenty → twentieth (y → ieth) |
| 21 | twenty-one | twenty-first | 21st | Unit takes ordinal form |
| 22 | twenty-two | twenty-second | 22nd | Unit takes ordinal form |
| 23 | twenty-three | twenty-third | 23rd | Unit takes ordinal form |
| 30 | thirty | thirtieth | 30th | thirty → thirtieth (y → ieth) |
| 40 | forty | fortieth | 40th | forty → fortieth (y → ieth) |
| 100 | one hundred | hundredth | 100th | Add -th to hundred |
📌 Ordinal Number Rules
- 1st, 2nd, 3rd: first, second, third — always irregular, must be memorised.
- 4th through 20th: add -th (fourth, fifth, sixth... twentieth). Exceptions: fifth (five → fifth), eighth (eight → eighth, drop the E), ninth (nine → ninth, drop the E), twelfth (twelve → twelfth).
- For decades ending in -ty (twenty, thirty...): change y to ieth — twentieth, thirtieth, fortieth.
- For compound ordinals (21st, 22nd, 33rd...): only the last word takes the ordinal form — twenty-first, forty-second, sixty-third.
- Ordinal forms are used for dates in American usage: January 1st, July 4th, December 25th.
Using Numbers in Everyday English
Here are the most common ways these words and figures appear in real-life conversation, with examples showing how to say each one.
| Situation | Written | How To Say |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $24.99 | twenty-four dollars and ninety-nine cents |
| Phone number | 555-0172 | five five five, zero one seven two |
| Address | 48 Oak Street | forty-eight Oak Street |
| Year | 2025 | twenty twenty-five |
| Date | March 3rd | March third |
| Temperature | 72°F | seventy-two degrees Fahrenheit |
| Decimal | 3.5 | three point five |
| Percentage | 25% | twenty-five percent |
| Score | 3-0 | three to zero (or three nil in British English) |
| Math | 20 + 30 = 50 | twenty plus thirty equals fifty |
Knowing how to exchange phone numbers, addresses, and personal details comes up constantly when meeting new people. Check out our guide 30 essential English greetings covers the conversations that lead to these practical exchanges.
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