Counting in German
If you want to ask how much something costs “Wie viel kostet das?” you need to know the German numbers, so that you’ll actually be able to understand the answer to your question.
Did you know that the German numbers are kind of backwards? Instead of saying twenty-two like in English you say two-and-twenty or nine-and-twenty for twenty-nine. It might feel strange to start with, but you will soon get the hang of it.
Check out this lesson on counting in German below!
Resources for further reading:
Counting in German
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Starting out: 0 to 35
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0
eins
1
zwei
2
drei
3
vier
4
fünf
5
sechs
6
sieben
7
acht
8
neun
9
zehn
10
elf
11
zwölf
12
dreizehn
13
vierzehn
14
fünfzehn
15
sechzehn
16
siebzehn
17
achtzehn
18
neunzehn
19
zwanzig
20
einundzwanzig
21
zweiundzwanzig
22
dreiundzwanzig
23
vierundzwanzig
24
fünfundzwanzig
25
sechsundzwanzig
26
siebenundzwanzig
27
achtundzwanzig
28
neunundzwanzig
29
dreißig
30
einunddreißig
31
zweiunddreißig
32
dreiunddreißig
33
vierunddreißig
34
fünfunddreißig
35
Some numbers are also shortened to make them easier to pronounce. For example six is “sechs” in German, but sixteen is shortened to “sechzehn”. It’s just like in English where you say fifteen instead of “fiveteen.”
For example:
Ich bin fünfundzwanzig Jahre alt
I'm twenty-five years old.
Ich möchte sechzehn Stück Kuchen
I would like sixteen pieces of cake.
You can ask for the time by saying one of the following:
Wie spät ist es?
How late is it?
Haben Sie die Uhrzeit?
Do you have the time ?
Wieviel Uhr ist es?
What time is it?
Können Sie mir bitte sagen wie spät es ist?
Could you please tell me how late it is?
If you want more lessons on German time then I recommend these ones!
- Know the days of the week in German.
- All the months in German.
- Learn the seasons in German.
Bis bald!
Paul Weber: Rocket German
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