72 in French
soixante-douze
Spellings verified June 2026 · page updated 2 October 2026
Sixty-twelve inside the soixante-dix run
“Seventy-two in French” is soixante-douze, the number 72. Hear it spoken below.
NUMERAL
72
FRENCH
soixante-douze
IPA
/swa.sɑ̃t.duz/
Breakdown
Regional variants
FR France
soixante-douze
BE Belgium
septante-deux
CH Switzerland
septante-deux
Ordinal form
Ranking things rather than counting them: 72 becomes soixante-douzième, written 72e in figures.
MASCULINE
soixante-douzième
72e
FEMININE
soixante-douzième
72e (same word as the masculine)
BELGIUM
septante-deuxième
SWITZERLAND
septante-deuxième
French writes the abbreviation with a plain e, never ème: 72e. The Académie française allows two irregular pairs: premier and première abbreviate 1er and 1re, and second and seconde abbreviate 2d and 2de. Full rules on the ordinal numbers reference.
Counting around 72
Real sentence examples
“Ma grand-mère a soixante-douze ans.”
“Le bus numéro soixante-douze passe toutes les dix minutes.”
Pronunciation and morphology notes
From 70 to 79 France counts on top of soixante, so soixante-douze is literally "sixty-twelve". Belgium and French-speaking Switzerland replace the whole block with septante, giving the cleaner septante-deux.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say seventy-two (72) in French?
Seventy-two in French is "soixante-douze" (the number 72). It is built as 60 + 12 = 72.
How is soixante-douze (72) pronounced in French?
In the International Phonetic Alphabet, "soixante-douze" is transcribed /swa.sɑ̃t.duz/. Use the audio button on this page to hear the standard French pronunciation.
Is 72 said differently in Belgian or Swiss French?
Yes. In Metropolitan France 72 is "soixante-douze", but in Belgian French it is "septante-deux", and in Swiss French it is "septante-deux".
What is the ordinal form of 72 in French?
The ordinal for 72 is "soixante-douzième", abbreviated 72e. The form is the same in the masculine and the feminine. In Belgium it is "septante-deuxième", and in Switzerland it is "septante-deuxième".
How is 72 used in a French sentence?
A natural example is: "Ma grand-mère a soixante-douze ans."
Related numbers
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