Ch 2 · Lesson 42Spanish · Chapter 2 · Lesson 42 · Grammar primer
Treinta y dos: the y rule, and un or una
From 31 to 99 every number is three words, ; and turns into or before a noun: veintiún , .
The short version
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Before a masculine noun shortens to , and before a feminine noun it becomes , inside bigger numbers too: veintiún , , . Counting with no noun, it stays . From thirty-one to ninety-nine, every number is the ten, then y, then the unit.
Thirty to ninety-nine: the y rule
The tens are words to learn:
| 30 to 50 | 60 to 80 | 90 to 100 |
|---|---|---|
30 | 60 | 90 |
40 | 70 | 100 |
50 | 80 |
From thirty-one, the fusing stops. Every number is three words, the ten, then , then the unit:
.- It costs ninety-nine euros.
(60) keeps the s of ; (70) keeps the t of . That is the pair to say slowly until it is automatic.
The goes only between the tens and the units. It never joins hundreds:
Uno, un and una
is the only number below two hundred with a gender, and it is also the word for a or an:
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| masculine noun | | - one book |
| feminine noun | | - one house |
| no noun, counting | | , , |
The same rule runs inside every number ending in one:
veintiún- twenty-one yearsveintiuno.- I'm twenty-one. (no noun: the full form)
Before a feminine noun, veintiuna is the standard written form, though you will also hear veintiún there.
Going further: The whole system on one screen and the rest of the guide, when you want them. This lesson does not need them.
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Lesson 42 of 50 in this chapter