Translate to German:
zero
0
null
Numbers (1, 2, 3…) are introduced here as numerals (adjectives), so they should NOT be capitalized (e.g., fünf, zwanzig).
They are only capitalized when they function as nouns (e.g., die Drei - “The Three”), in which case they take an article.
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one
1
eins
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two
2
zwei
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three
3
drei
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four
4
vier
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five
5
fünf
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six
6
sechs
Pronunciation tip: The -chs at the end of sechs is pronounced like an x sound in English. E.g.: words like “taxi” or “box”.
A common mistake: trying to pronounce the -ch separately. The correct sound is -zeks (using the German -z sound, like the English -ts).
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seven
7
sieben
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eight
8
acht
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nine
9
neun
Translate to German:
ten
10
zehn
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eleven
11
elf
Cultural Note: elf is the numeral for “eleven” and is usually written in lowercase. However, die deutsche Elf (“The German Eleven”) is a common, capitalized term used to refer to the German national soccer team (because there are 11 players on the field).
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twelve
12
zwölf
Translate to German:
Count to 12 in German
1 – eins
2 – zwei
3 – drei
4 – vier
5 – fünf
6 – sechs
7 – sieben
8 – acht
9 – neun
10 – zehn
11 – elf
12 – zwölf
Translate to German:
thirteen
13
dreizehn
thirteen = dreizehn
Numbers from 13 to 19 follow the pattern: [unit] + zehn (“ten”).
Exceptions:
- For 16 sechzehn, the ‘s’ is dropped from sechs.
- For 17 siebzehn, the ‘en’ is dropped from sieben.
Translate to German:
twenty
20
zwanzig
twenty = zwanzig
Decades typically follow the pattern [unit] + zig. However, 20 is an exception and is formed as zwanzig (you don´t say zweizig).
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twenty-one
21
einundzwanzig
twenty-one = einundzwanzig
Compound Numbers 21-99: these numbers always start with the unit digit. The structure is: [unit] + und (“and”) + [decade].
E.g. 21 is einundzwanzig (“one-and-twenty”). The word und is always used to connect the unit and the decade.
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thirty
30
dreißig
thirty = dreißig
The number 30 is a major exception to the [unit] + zig rule: it is written dreißig, using -ßig instead of the standard -zig.
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forty
40
vierzig
fourty = vierzig
40, 50, 80, 90: these decades follow the standard pattern [unit] + zig.
Exceptions:
- 60: the ‘s’ is dropped from sechs before adding -zig. It is written sechzig.
- 70: the ‘en’ is dropped from sieben before adding -zig. It is written siebzig.
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one hundred
100
einhundert
one hundred = einhundert
In German, you can say the number 100 either as hundert (“hundred”) or einhundert (“one hundred”). Both are correct.
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five dollars
fünf Dollar
dollar = Dollar
The word Dollar often remains the same in both singular and plural forms when referring to an amount or price. E.g.: zwei Dollar (“two dollars”).
Note that the plural form Dollars is used in German only when talking about the currency in general.
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ten euros
zehn Euro
euro = Euro
In German, Euro remains the same in both singular and plural forms, unlike in English where we add an “s” for plurals.
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to have
haben
to have = haben
- ich habe - (I “have”)
- du hast - (you “have”) - (informal, singular)
- er/sie/es hat - (He/She/It “has”)
- wir haben - (We “have”)
- ihr habt - (you “have”) - (informal, plural)
- sie haben - (they “have”) - (plural)
- Sie haben - (you “have”) - formal (singular, plural)
Translate to German:
I have two cats.
Ich habe zwei Katzen.
I have = Ich habe
The verb habe comes from the infinitive haben (“to have”). In German, verbs change their ending depending on the subject (conjugation).
to have = haben
- ich habe - (I “have”)
- du hast - (you “have”) - (informal, singular)
- er/sie/es hat - (He/She/It “has”)
- wir haben - (We “have”)
- ihr habt - (you “have”) - (informal, plural)
- sie haben - (they “have”) - (plural)
- Sie haben - (you “have”) - formal (singular, plural)
