Cardinal numbers
The Basics
one /wʌn/ two (/tuː/ silent 'w') three four five six seven eight (/eɪt/ silent 'gh') nine ten eleven twelve
The Teens
When we count, we stress the first syllable:
ˈthirteen, ˈfourteen, ˈfifteen, ˈsixteen, ˈseventeen, ˈeighteen, ˈnineteen
But when we say one of the numbers by itself, we stress the second syllable:
- How many different types of flowers do you grow?
- Oh... about fifˈteen.
See also 16 or 60?
The Tens
When we count, we stress the first syllable of the 'tens':
ˈtwenty, ˈthirty, ˈforty, ˈfifty, ˈsixty, ˈseventy, ˈeighty, ˈninety
But the main stress moves to the smallest number if one is used:
ˈtwenty... twenty-ˈthree
ˈseventy... seventy-ˈnine
ninety-seven ninety-eight ninety-nine
one hundred
a hundred, a thousand, a million
one hundred, one thousand, one million
There were three hundred people at the venue.
There were hundreds of people at the venue.
That house is on sale for five hundred thousand pounds.
That house is on sale for hundreds of thousands of pounds.
She's in her forties.
The Beatles became popular in the sixties (also written as 60s).
The Beatles became popular in the 1960s (not usually written out in words)
We use the word 'and' just before saying the tens or single digits:
301 - three hundred and one
310 - three hundred and ten
314 - three hundred and fourteen
350 - three hundred and fifty
399 - three hundred and ninety-nine
1001 - one thousand and one
1020 - one thousand and twenty
1206 - one thousand, two hundred and six
1299 - one thousand, two hundred and ninety-nine
However, when talking about years, we often split the year in half to make it quicker and easier to say. Compare:
It's 1066m ("one thousand and sixty-six metres") tall.
They invaded in 1066 ("ten sixty-six").
There are 1912 ("one thousand, nine hundred and twelve") people living here.
The Titanic sank in 1912 ("nineteen twelve").
For years <1000 and the years 2000-2009 we tend to say the full number:
That was in the year 543 "five hundred and forty-three".
I started uni in 2002 "two thousand and two".
Years from 2010 onwards can be split again:
We did well at the London 2012 ("twenty twelve") Olympics.