Free taster
5 of 6 sections open
Los números — Numbers Reference
🔢 Los números — Numbers Reference
Spanish numbers follow a very regular pattern once you know the key milestones and three special rules.
| 1–20 | Tens 20–100 | Special rules |
|---|---|---|
| 1 uno · 2 dos · 3 tres | 20 veinte | uno → un/una before a noun: un libro, una mesa |
| 4 cuatro · 5 cinco · 6 seis | 30 treinta | cien = exactly 100. ciento = 101 and above (ciento uno, ciento doce...) |
| 7 siete · 8 ocho · 9 nueve | 40 cuarenta | Hundreds agree in gender: doscientos (m) / doscientas (f). E.g. doscientas personas. |
| 10 diez · 11 once · 12 doce | 50 cincuenta | 16–29 are written as ONE word: dieciséis, diecisiete, dieciocho, diecinueve, veintiuno... |
| 13 trece · 14 catorce · 15 quince | 60 sesenta | dieciséis — accent on the final é. Common error: writing dieciseis (no accent). |
| 16 dieciséis · 17 diecisiete | 70 setenta | 30+ compounds use y: treinta y uno, cuarenta y dos... |
| 18 dieciocho · 19 diecinueve | 80 ochenta | |
| 20 veinte | 90 noventa | |
| 100 cien |
La hora — Telling the Time
Spanish time follows a simple pattern — but with one critical rule that trips up almost every Foundation student.
Earn the mark scheme marks
💡 Number and Time Traps — AQA Papers 1–4
❌ Error 1: Es las dos.
✅ Correct: Son las dos.
Why it costs marks: Only 1 o'clock uses the singular es la una. All other times use the plural son las because you are describing a number of hours. Writing es las dos is ungrammatical — a 1-mark listening answer becomes 0 marks if the form is wrong in a production task.
❌ Error 2: El uno de enero.
✅ Correct: El primero de enero.
Why it costs marks: The first of any month requires the ordinal primero, never the cardinal uno. AQA mark schemes treat el uno de enero as an error. All other dates use cardinals: el dos, el tres, el quince, el veintitrés.