Count from 0 to 1,000,000+, tell time, discuss days and months, and navigate the quirks of French numbering — including why the French say "four-twenties-ten-nine" for 99.
Estimated Time: 50–60 minutes
The first 20 numbers must be memorized — they're the building blocks for everything else.
| # | French | Pronunciation | # | French | Pronunciation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | zéro | zay-ROH | 11 | onze | OHNZ | |
| 1 | un / une | UHN / ÜN | 12 | douze | DOOZ | |
| 2 | deux | DUH | 13 | treize | TREZ | |
| 3 | trois | TWAH | 14 | quatorze | kah-TORZ | |
| 4 | quatre | KATR | 15 | quinze | KANZ | |
| 5 | cinq | SANK | 16 | seize | SEZ | |
| 6 | six | SEES | 17 | dix-sept | dee-SET | |
| 7 | sept | SET | 18 | dix-huit | dee-ZWEET | |
| 8 | huit | WEET | 19 | dix-neuf | dee-NUHF | |
| 9 | neuf | NUHF | 20 | vingt | VAN | |
| 10 | dix | DEES |
Un is masculine, une is feminine. This matters when counting objects: un chat (one cat, masculine), une maison (one house, feminine). When just counting (1, 2, 3...) use un.
This part is logical — just combine the tens and ones:
| Tens | French | Pattern for 21–29, etc. |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | vingt | vingt et un (21), vingt-deux (22), vingt-trois (23)... |
| 30 | trente | trente et un (31), trente-deux (32)... |
| 40 | quarante | quarante et un (41), quarante-deux (42)... |
| 50 | cinquante | cinquante et un (51), cinquante-deux (52)... |
| 60 | soixante | soixante et un (61), soixante-deux (62)... |
For 21, 31, 41, 51, 61, and 71 you use et un (and one) — no hyphen. For all other combinations, use a hyphen: vingt-deux, trente-trois, etc.
This is where France French takes a mathematical detour — and where Belgian, Swiss, and Canadian French offer simpler alternatives.
| # | 🇫🇷 France | Logic | 🇧🇪 Belgium / 🇨🇭 Switzerland / 🇨🇦 Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| 70 | soixante-dix | 60 + 10 | septante |
| 71 | soixante et onze | 60 + 11 | septante et un |
| 72 | soixante-douze | 60 + 12 | septante-deux |
| 79 | soixante-dix-neuf | 60 + 19 | septante-neuf |
| 80 | quatre-vingts | 4 × 20 | huitante (🇨🇭 some) / quatre-vingts |
| 81 | quatre-vingt-un | 4 × 20 + 1 | huitante et un / quatre-vingt-un |
| 90 | quatre-vingt-dix | 4 × 20 + 10 | nonante |
| 91 | quatre-vingt-onze | 4 × 20 + 11 | nonante et un |
| 99 | quatre-vingt-dix-neuf | 4 × 20 + 19 | nonante-neuf |
The vigesimal (base-20) counting system in French comes from ancient Celtic/Gallic influence. Before the French Revolution standardized many things, base-20 counting was common across Northern France. The Académie française kept it — and so 80 is quatre-vingts (4 × 20) and 90 is quatre-vingt-dix (4 × 20 + 10).
The base-20 system is standard and universal. Everyone says soixante-dix, quatre-vingts, and quatre-vingt-dix. Using septante or nonante will immediately mark you as non-French (Belgian, Swiss, or Canadian).
Québécois French mostly uses the France system (quatre-vingts, quatre-vingt-dix), but septante and nonante are understood. Some older speakers or those influenced by Belgian/Swiss French use them. You'll be understood either way!
| # | French | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | cent | pronounced "SAHN" |
| 101 | cent un | no "et" — just cent un |
| 200 | deux cents | note the S on cents |
| 201 | deux cent un | S drops when followed by another number |
| 500 | cinq cents | |
| 1 000 | mille | never "un mille" — just "mille" |
| 1 500 | mille cinq cents | |
| 2 000 | deux mille | mille never takes an S |
| 1 000 000 | un million | million DOES take S: deux millions |
| 1 000 000 000 | un milliard | "billion" in English = milliard in French |
French uses spaces (or periods) for thousands and commas for decimals — the opposite of English!
English: 1,234.56 → French: 1 234,56
This matters for prices, measurements, and math!
French uses the 24-hour clock in formal contexts (schedules, announcements) and the 12-hour clock in casual speech.
| Time | French (casual) | French (24h formal) |
|---|---|---|
| 1:00 | Il est une heure | Il est treize heures (13h) |
| 2:15 | Il est deux heures et quart | Il est quatorze heures quinze |
| 3:30 | Il est trois heures et demie | Il est quinze heures trente |
| 4:45 | Il est cinq heures moins le quart | Il est seize heures quarante-cinq |
| 12:00 PM | Il est midi | Il est douze heures |
| 12:00 AM | Il est minuit | Il est zéro heure / minuit |
et quart = quarter past · et demie = half past · moins le quart = quarter to · moins cinq = five to · midi = noon · minuit = midnight · du matin = in the morning · de l'après-midi = in the afternoon · du soir = in the evening
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| lundi | luhn-DEE | Monday |
| mardi | mar-DEE | Tuesday |
| mercredi | mair-kruh-DEE | Wednesday |
| jeudi | zhuh-DEE | Thursday |
| vendredi | vahn-druh-DEE | Friday |
| samedi | sam-DEE | Saturday |
| dimanche | dee-MAHNSH | Sunday |
Unlike English, French days of the week and months are not capitalized (unless starting a sentence). It's lundi, not Lundi.
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| janvier | zhahn-vee-AY | January |
| février | fay-vree-AY | February |
| mars | MARS | March |
| avril | av-REEL | April |
| mai | MAY | May |
| juin | ZHWAN | June |
| juillet | zhwee-AY | July |
| août | OOT (or OO) | August |
| septembre | sep-TAHMR | September |
| octobre | ok-TOBR | October |
| novembre | no-VAHMR | November |
| décembre | day-SAHMR | December |
French dates use cardinal numbers (not ordinal) — except for the 1st:
Format: le + number + month + year
le 15 avril 2026 — April 15, 2026
le 1er janvier — January 1st (the only ordinal: premier)
le 25 décembre — December 25
Written format: DD/MM/YYYY (not MM/DD/YYYY like the US!)
15/04/2026 = April 15, 2026
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Quelle est la date aujourd'hui ? | What is today's date? |
| On est le combien ? | What's the date? (casual) |
| aujourd'hui | today |
| hier | yesterday |
| demain | tomorrow |
| la semaine prochaine | next week |
| le mois dernier | last month |
| l'année prochaine | next year |
| # | French | Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | premier / première | 1er / 1re |
| 2nd | deuxième | 2e |
| 3rd | troisième | 3e |
| 4th | quatrième | 4e |
| 5th | cinquième | 5e |
| 10th | dixième | 10e |
| 20th | vingtième | 20e |
| 100th | centième | 100e |
Except for premier (1st), just add -ième to the number. If the number ends in -e, drop it first: quatre → quatrième. If it ends in -f, change to -v: neuf → neuvième. And cinq adds a u: cinquième.
1. How do you say 75 in France French?
2. What is 92 in France French?
3. How do you say 3:30 PM casually in French?
4. How is the date 07/03/2026 read in French format?
✦ Numbers 0–16 must be memorized; 17–69 follow logical tens + ones patterns.
✦ 70–99 use base-20 math in France (soixante-dix, quatre-vingts, quatre-vingt-dix).
✦ Belgium, Switzerland, and some Canadian speakers use septante (70), huitante (80), nonante (90).
✦ French uses 24-hour time formally and 12-hour time casually; "et quart/et demie/moins le quart."
✦ Days and months are NOT capitalized in French.
✦ Date format is DD/MM/YYYY — the opposite of American English.