Spanish Numbers & Ordinals

Spanish Numbers & Ordinals are relatively the easier part of learning Spanish, so don't hesitate or wait to get started with them. Although the use of numbers can be a bit confusing to start with but it is also nothing major.

Firstly we are going to deal with the ordinals.

Ordinals

The ordinal numbers might be thought of as the adjective form of the cardinal numbers, which are the numbers in the form they are most often used. Thus uno ("one") is a cardinal number, while primero ("first") is its ordinal form. In Spanish, the ordinal forms are used most commonly for the numbers 10 and under. Here are the forms:

For larger numbers, it is common to use simply the cardinal number, especially in speech. It is also common to word a sentence in such a way that the ordinal form is not used.

Cardinals

let´s start with the number for one in Spanish - uno. It loses its o and becomes un when used before a masculine noun.

When used before a feminine noun it changes to una.

For example:

- un niño ..... one boy - una niña ..... one girl

You should use uno when counting generically, as in:

- one, two, three, four, etc - uno, dos, tres, cuatro, etc

You should use un or una when counting specifically, as in:

- one banana, one apple, etc - un plátano, una manzana, etc

So, having explained the various forms of one in Spanish and when to use them, let´s now get started on the list of 1 100 Numbers In Spanish.

The Spanish numbers 16 through to 19 are actually contractions. For example, the Spanish for 16 - dieciséis - literally means ten and six, but is joined together, as shown below:
- dieciséis = diez y seis

You will also notice that, like the cardinal numbers 16 to 19, the Spanish numbers 21 to 29 are also contractions, but this time of the Spanish for twenty and one, etc.