French Numbers, Dates, and Times: The Complete Guide
Why French Numbers Are Surprisingly Tricky
French numbers are mostly logical — until you hit 70. Then they become mathematical puzzles. Soixante-dix (sixty-ten) for 70, quatre-vingts (four-twenties) for 80, quatre-vingt-dix (four-twenty-ten) for 90. Belgium and Switzerland sensibly use septante, huitante, nonante — but standard French doesn't.
Knowing numbers solidly is essential for TCF listening (you'll hear prices, dates, statistics) and for any real-world French communication.
Numbers 1–20
The Tens: 20–100
| Number | French | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | vingt | 21 = vingt et un, 22 = vingt-deux |
| 30 | trente | 31 = trente et un |
| 40 | quarante | 41 = quarante et un |
| 50 | cinquante | 51 = cinquante et un |
| 60 | soixante | 61 = soixante et un |
| 70 | soixante-dix | 71 = soixante et onze, 79 = soixante-dix-neuf |
| 80 | quatre-vingts | 81 = quatre-vingt-un (no -s when followed by another number) |
| 90 | quatre-vingt-dix | 91 = quatre-vingt-onze, 99 = quatre-vingt-dix-neuf |
| 100 | cent | 200 = deux cents, 201 = deux cent un (no -s) |
Large Numbers
- 1 000 — mille (invariable — never milles)
- 10 000 — dix mille
- 1 000 000 — un million (takes de before a noun: un million de personnes)
- 1 000 000 000 — un milliard (note: not "billion" — French billion = 10¹²)
Ordinal Numbers
Add -ième to the cardinal number (drop final -e if present):
- 2e — deuxième (or second/seconde for second of two)
- 3e — troisième
- 4e — quatrième
- Exception: 1er/1ère — premier/première (not unième)
- 5e — cinquième (note the u inserted)
- 9e — neuvième (f changes to v)
Dates in French
Format: le + cardinal number + month + year (no capital for months)
- le 1er janvier 2026 (1 January 2026) — note: premier for the 1st, cardinals for all others
- le 15 mars (15 March)
- "On the 3rd of June" = le 3 juin (no preposition needed other than le)
The months: janvier, février, mars, avril, mai, juin, juillet, août, septembre, octobre, novembre, décembre — all lowercase in French.
Telling the Time
| Time | French |
|---|---|
| 3:00 | il est trois heures |
| 3:15 | il est trois heures et quart |
| 3:30 | il est trois heures et demie |
| 3:45 | il est quatre heures moins le quart |
| 12:00 (noon) | il est midi |
| 12:00 (midnight) | il est minuit |
| 14:30 (official/24h) | il est quatorze heures trente |
Note: France and Quebec use 24-hour time in official/written contexts (train schedules, event listings). In conversation, 12-hour time with du matin / de l'après-midi / du soir is standard.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- ❌ quatre-vingts-un → ✅ quatre-vingt-un (drop -s on vingt when followed by a number)
- ❌ deux cents euros (for 200€) → ✅ deux cents euros — actually correct! The -s stays when cent ends the number: deux cents = 200. But deux cent un = 201 (no -s because another number follows).
- ❌ le premier de janvier → ✅ le premier janvier (no "de" between premier and the month)
- ❌ milles → ✅ mille (always invariable)
- ❌ Janvier (capital J) → ✅ janvier (months are not capitalised in French)
Want to build exam-ready vocabulary around this topic? Check out our TCF vocabulary lists.