Memorization vs. Pattern: In order to count to infinity, you will have to memorize your basic numbers and values. Once you memorize your basic numbers and values, there is an overall pattern with a few rules in order to help you count to infinity. Although it seems intimidating to count to infinity, it can be done in a short amount of time if you take the proper steps. Furthermore, it is important to remember that although you know how to use large numbers in your own language, you do not count to an extreme amount when you speak your native language. Zero to Twenty-Nine: These numbers are the first set of numbers that you will have to memorize. They are the most important numbers in the language, because we use them for expressing time, the calendar and most other things that involve numbers. zero cero one uno two dos three tres four cuatro five cinco six seis seven siete eight ocho nine nueve ten diez eleven once twelve doce thirteen trece fourteen catorce fifteen quince sixteen dieciséis seventeen diecisiete eighteen dieciocho nineteen diecinueve twenty veinte twenty-one veintiuno twenty-two veintidós twenty-three veintitrés twenty-four veinticuatro twenty-five veinticinco twenty-six veintiséis
twenty-seven veintisiete twenty-eight veintiocho twenty-nine veintinueve Thirty to Ninety: Once we get to thirty, this is when we have to start applying a pattern. In order to do so, it is important to know your tens values. thirty treinta forty cuarenta fifty cincuenta sixty sesenta seventy setenta eighty ochenta ninety noventa Rule: To count past thirty, you must divide the tens value with the ones value by the word y, which literally means and in English. Only the tens and ones value are divided with the word y. Example 1: Example 2: o seventy-five seventy = setenta five = cinco seventy-five = setenta y cinco o forty-four forty cuarenta four cuatro forty-four cuarenta y cuatro One-Hundred: The hundreds value works similarly to the tens value; however, the number onehundred itself is special. one-hundred cien one-hundred one ciento uno one-hundred two ciento dos one-hundred three ciento tres
Rule: When the word one-hundred stands alone, it is simply cien, any time another number attaches to it, the word becomes ciento. This has to do with metric measurement in the Latin language. Rule: When dealing with the other hundreds values, you must add the letter s to the value. This is because the hundreds value has now become plural. Notice that all of the hundreds values contain this s. two-hundred doscientos three-hundred trescientos four-hundred cuatrocientos five-hundred quinientos six-hundred seiscientos seven-hundred setecientos eight-hundred ochocientos nine-hundred novecientos Note: The word quinientos is different. Based on the pattern, it seems like fivehundred should be cincocientos. This word was never created and this is because most larger numbers did not change from Latin to Spanish, since they were not used as often. Note: The same rule above is why you will see that seven-hundred and nine-hundred are not similar to the words seven and nine. From Latin to Spanish many words that were used often changed from an o to a ue or e to ie. We call these stemchanging words. However, because seven and nine are spoken more frequently, those numbers went from sete and nove to siete and nueve. This change did not occur for seven-hundred and nine-hundred, because the words were not used as often; therefore, these numbers sound more like Latin. Thousand: thousand mil Rule: The rule for the thousand values is the easiest rule in the entire language. This word has never changed from Latin. Therefore nothing needs to be added to it. In order to say a higher thousands value, you simply put the number before the word mil and that s it. Example 1: o five thousand five = cinco
thousand = mil five thousand = cinco mil Note: The word mil did not change at all, meaning we didn t need to make it plural. Example 2: Millions and Billions: o 414,000 four-hundred = cuatrocientos forteen = catorce thousand = mil four-hundred forteen thousand = cuatrocientos catorce mil Rule: This is the highest form of counting. Unlike the word thousand (mil), these do need to agree. If the millions or billions value is singular, then it stays as un millón or un billón. If the millions or billions value is plural, you will have to drop the accent mark and add es, making the words millones and billones. Example: o one-million = un millón o two-million = dos millones o three-million = tres millones o four-million = cuatro millones o five-million = cinco millones o 329-million = trescientos veintinueve millones Note: All of the examples above use the word millones, except onemillion and that s because the phrase one-million is the only time the millions value is singular. Rule: This leads to the conclusion of counting to infinity. At this point, you simply need to change the prefix as you would in English; however, the rules still apply. one-million, two millon = un millón, dos millones one-billion, two billion = un billón, dos billones one-trillion, two trillion = un trillón, dos trillones one-quadrillion, two quadrillion = un quadrillón, dos quadrillones