Numbers 1 to 20 in French

Six of the teens (11 to 16) are Latin-inherited singletons (onze through seize). The pattern shifts at 17, where French switches to dix + unit (dix-sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf) before vingt reboots the decimal count. IPA in the table is from Wiktionnaire and Larousse.

Updated May 2026

N	French	IPA	Note
1	un	/oe~/
2	deux	/doe/
3	trois	/tʁwa/
4	quatre	/katʁ/
5	cinq	/sɛ̃k/
6	six	/sis/
7	sept	/sɛt/
8	huit	/ɥit/
9	neuf	/noef/
10	dix	/dis/
11	onze	/ɔ̃z/	Unique form. Not "dix-un".
12	douze	/duz/	Unique form. Latin duodecim.
13	treize	/tʁɛz/	Unique form. Latin tredecim.
14	quatorze	/katɔʁz/	Unique form. Latin quattuordecim.
15	quinze	/kɛ̃z/	Unique form. Latin quindecim.
16	seize	/sɛz/	Unique form. Last of the base words.
17	dix-sept	/dis.sɛt/	Compound: dix + sept = 10 + 7. The s of sept stays voiced.
18	dix-huit	/diz.ɥit/	Compound: dix + huit. The x of dix is voiced /z/: /diz.ɥit/.
19	dix-neuf	/diz.noef/	Compound: dix + neuf. The x of dix is voiced: /diz.noef/.
20	vingt	/vɛ̃/	Vingt. The t is silent in isolation, voiced in liaison and compounds (vingt et un = /vɛ̃.t‿e.oe~/).

Where the pattern breaks and resets

1 to 10: ten unique base words.
11 to 16: six more unique words inherited directly from Latin.
17 to 19: compound forms built as dix + unit, the first sign of regular morphology.
20: vingt. The decimal count begins, and from here the pattern is regular until 70.

Keep going

1 to 10 in French
1 to 30 in French introduces vingt-et-un.
20 to 30 in French
Silent letters

Frequently asked

Why do the teens 11 to 16 not follow the pattern dix-un, dix-deux?

These six numbers inherit their forms directly from Latin (undecim, duodecim, tredecim, quattuordecim, quindecim, sedecim) rather than being constructed from dix + unit. From 17 onwards French shifts to a compound pattern (dix-sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf) before resetting at 20 with vingt. Larousse and the CNRTL both flag this as the standard split.

How do you pronounce 11 to 19 in French?

Onze /ɔ̃z/, douze /duz/, treize /tʁɛz/, quatorze /katɔʁz/, quinze /kɛ̃z/, seize /sɛz/, dix-sept /di.sɛt/, dix-huit /di.zɥit/, dix-neuf /diz.noef/. The compound forms voice the x of dix as /z/ before the vowel-initial unit.

Is vingt pronounced with the t?

In isolation no, the t is silent: vingt = /vɛ̃/. In compounds and liaison the t comes back: vingt et un = /vɛ̃.t‿e.oe~/, vingt ans = /vɛ̃.t‿ɑ̃/. Larousse marks this as standard.

How do you write 1 to 20 as words in French?

un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf, dix, onze, douze, treize, quatorze, quinze, seize, dix-sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf, vingt. The compound teens (17, 18, 19) take a hyphen by the 1990 Academie francaise rectifications.

Sources: Larousse, Wiktionnaire francophone, CNRTL, Academie francaise. IPA is broad phonemic.