Numbers from 0 to 100 in Portuguese

The sounds: 0–20, then the tens

Use the number labels in the reference table below to identify each word: um is 1, dois is 2, and so on. Listen in short groups: 0–5, 6–10, 11–15, then 16–20; after that, listen to the tens from 30 to 90 and cem (100). First repeat just 0, 2, 5, 10, 16, 20, 30, 60 and 100; come back for the others. Compare dezesseis (16) with sessenta (60) by playing those two cards again. Catorze means 14; quatorze is also standard in Brazil. Livro means book and is masculine; cadeira means chair and is feminine; e means and.

• zero🔊zero
• um🔊one
• dois🔊two
• três🔊three
• quatro🔊four
• cinco🔊five
• seis🔊six
• sete🔊seven
• oito🔊eight
• nove🔊nine
• dez🔊ten
• onze🔊eleven
• doze🔊twelve
• treze🔊thirteen
• catorze🔊fourteen
• quinze🔊fifteen
• dezesseis🔊sixteen
• dezessete🔊seventeen
• dezoito🔊eighteen
• dezenove🔊nineteen
• vinte🔊twenty
• trinta🔊thirty
• quarenta🔊forty
• cinquenta🔊fifty
• sessenta🔊sixty
• setenta🔊seventy
• oitenta🔊eighty
• noventa🔊ninety
• cem🔊hundred
• livro🔊book
• cadeira🔊chair
• e🔊and

Quantities: tens + e + units

Recall “Eu tenho um livro.” (I have a book): eu is I and tenho means I have, so Tenho without eu also works. To count more than one, use livros (books) or cadeiras (chairs): Tenho dois livros. means I have two books, and Tenho duas cadeiras. means I have two chairs. One is um with livro and uma with cadeira; two is dois with livros and duas with cadeiras.

For 21–99, when there is a unit after the tens, put e (and) between them: vinte e um is 21; sessenta e sete is 67. Keep that e even where English has no and. An exact ten such as vinte (20) has no extra unit. The last um/uma or dois/duas agrees with what you count: vinte e um livros (21 books), vinte e duas cadeiras (22 chairs). Because 21 is more than one, livros stays plural even though the number ends in um. Play the model phrases and say the quantities with them.

Tenho 2 / 21 / 22 / 67 livros / cadeiras

• Eu tenho um livro.🔊

  I have a book.

• Tenho dois livros.🔊

  I have two books.

• Tenho duas cadeiras.🔊

  I have two chairs.

• Tenho vinte e um livros.🔊

  I have twenty-one books.

• Tenho vinte e duas cadeiras.🔊

  I have twenty-two chairs.

• Tenho sessenta e sete livros.🔊

  I have sixty-seven books.

Reference: every number from 0 to 100

Consult this table when you need a number; you do not need to memorize all its rows in one sitting. The labels give the value of every word in the audio list. It shows numbers on their own, with um and dois; when counting feminine nouns, use uma and duas instead. There is no audio on this table: use the cards above and the model phrases for listening. Recognition only: exactly 100 is cem; in 101–199, it becomes cento, as in cento e um (101). You are not asked to produce numbers beyond 100 here.

Codes: one digit at a time

For the fictional label 0314, say zero, três, um, quatro: zero, three, one, four. For 2410, say dois, quatro, um, zero: two, four, one, zero. These are individual digits, not quantities in the thousands; keep the initial zero and do not insert e between the digits. Listen to each line, look away, and write the four digits you hear. Then read the two labels aloud.

0, 3, 1, 4

• Zero, três, um, quatro.🔊

  Zero, three, one, four.

• Dois, quatro, um, zero.🔊

  Two, four, one, zero.

Use a quantity, then read a code

Imagine an inventory with 2 books, 22 chairs and 67 books: cover the examples, say each quantity with Tenho, then compare with the three model phrases and their audio. For the label 0314, say the digits and check the fourth example. Now try a fresh quantity, 42 books: Tenho quarenta e dois livros. (I have forty-two books). In the Explorer, find a familiar book or chair and count a few visible objects without needing to know every object’s name. Keep the main contrast: a quantity such as vinte e duas joins tens and units with e, whereas the digit-by-digit code keeps each digit separate. Return to the reference whenever you need a number.

• Tenho dois livros.🔊

  I have two books.

• Tenho vinte e duas cadeiras.🔊

  I have twenty-two chairs.

• Tenho sessenta e sete livros.🔊

  I have sixty-seven books.

• Zero, três, um, quatro.🔊

  Zero, three, one, four.