Numbers and Quantities

1.Numbers and quantities

Numbers appear everywhere in German: when counting, shopping, paying, using addresses and phone numbers, and talking about quantities and prices. At A1 the focus is on cardinal numbers and basic quantity expressions.

2.Numbers from 0 to 10

The first numbers are basic building blocks.

3.Numbers from 11 to 19

Several forms are best learned as fixed words.

Pay particular attention to sechs → sechzehn and sieben → siebzehn. Not sechszehn or siebenzehn.

4.The tens

Notable forms include dreißig (with ß), sechzig and siebzig.

5.Numbers from 21 to 99: ones + und + tens

In many two-digit German numbers, the ones digit comes before the tens digit: 21 → ein + und + zwanzig → einundzwanzig.

This order can initially feel reversed to many learners.

For 21–99, think: ones + und + tens.

6.Why einundzwanzig but eins?

The number 1 has two important forms. On its own: eins. Inside a compound number often ein-: einundzwanzig, einunddreißig, einhunderteins.

7.Hundreds

From 100 upward, the structure is again systematic: hundert / einhundert, zweihundert, dreihundert, vierhundert.

German normally writes these number words together.

8.Thousands

The parts of thousands are also combined: tausend / eintausend, zweitausend, fünftausend, zehntausend.

In longer texts, large numbers are often written as digits because they are easier to read.

9.Million and Milliarde are nouns

Million and Milliarde behave differently from hundert and tausend. They are nouns and are capitalized: eine Million, zwei Millionen, eine Milliarde, drei Milliarden.

Plural forms: Million → Millionen, Milliarde → Milliarden.

10.German number words are often written together

Smaller compound number words normally appear as a single word: vierundzwanzig, neunundsechzig, einhundertdrei, zweitausendfünfhundert. They can look long, but the structure is regular.

To analyse them, mentally separate the parts. For example zweitausendfünfhundertachtunddreißig = zwei + tausend + fünf + hundert + acht + und + dreißig.

11.Numbers with nouns

After a number, the noun appears in the form required by the sentence: ein Buch, zwei Bücher, drei Tage, zehn Euro, zwanzig Minuten.

Before a noun, German normally does not use eins, but a form of ein: ein Buch, eine Flasche, ein Kind.

12.ein agrees with the noun

When 1 directly precedes a noun, it behaves like the indefinite article: ein Mann, eine Frau, ein Kind. Its form can change with case.

Higher numbers do not inflect like articles: zwei Männer, mit zwei Männern. The number itself remains zwei.

13.viel or viele?

A central distinction concerns countable and non-countable quantities.

viel often appears with things treated as non-countable: viel Wasser, viel Zeit, viel Geld, viel Arbeit.

viele is common with countable plural nouns: viele Bücher, viele Leute, viele Fragen, viele Autos.

viel + non-countable quantity; viele + countable plural.

14.wenig and wenige

The corresponding forms are often wenig and wenige: wenig Zeit, wenig Geld, wenig Wasser — but wenige Leute, wenige Bücher, wenige Minuten.

wenig → usually non-countable; wenige → countable plural.

15.ein paar: a small imprecise quantity

ein paar often means a few — a small number that is not specified exactly: ein paar Minuten, ein paar Fragen, ein paar Freunde, ein paar Tage.

With capital Paar, ein Paar Schuhe means one matching pair. By contrast, ein paar Schuhe can mean a few shoes depending on context.

16.genug: a sufficient amount

genug means that the amount is sufficient: genug Zeit, genug Geld, genug Stühle, genug Informationen.

genug often stands directly before the noun and does not change form.

17.Exact and approximate quantities

Numbers express exact quantities: drei Bücher, zehn Minuten, fünfzig Euro. Other quantity words leave the number open: viele Bücher, wenige Minuten, ein paar Euro, genug Wasser.

You can also give an approximate number: ungefähr zehn Minuten, circa zwanzig Euro, etwa hundert Personen. ungefähr, circa and etwa signal that the number is approximate.

18.Prices and money amounts

Numbers are frequently used with prices.

In writing, you often see 2,50 €, 19,99 €, 125,00 €. German normally uses a comma as the decimal separator: 2,5, 3,14, 19,99.

19.Decimal numbers

Decimal numbers are written with a comma: 1,5, 2,75, 3,14. They can be read as 1,5 → eins Komma fünf, 2,75 → zwei Komma sieben fünf.

Money amounts are often read differently: 2,50 € → zwei Euro fünfzig. So the exact spoken form depends on context.

20.Phone numbers and groups of digits

With phone numbers, digits are often read individually or in small groups. For example 0176 … can be read as null – eins – sieben – sechs. The exact grouping can vary.

For learners, the key points are: 0 = null; recognize individual digits reliably; a long digit sequence does not have to be read as one large cardinal number.

21.Years, times and dates are separate systems

Numbers also appear in forms such as 2026, 18:30, 25.09.2026. These areas have their own language conventions: telling the time, dates and temporal prepositions are covered in their own articles.

For now, the main point is that the number system provides the building blocks, while time and dates add further patterns.

22.Common mistakes

Independently, Ich nehme eins. is still fine. And viel Wasser remains correct.

23.A useful way to analyse large numbers

Long numbers become easier when divided into blocks.

Example 3,548: 3,000 → dreitausend, 500 → fünfhundert, 48 → achtundvierzig → together dreitausendfünfhundertachtundvierzig.

Another example 726: 700 → siebenhundert, 26 → sechsundzwanzig → siebenhundertsechsundzwanzig.

German builds large numbers from small, repeating components. Once you can recognize the numbers up to 20, the tens, and the pattern ones + und + tens, many larger numbers become systematic.