Numbers 1 to 100 in Chinese (in words)
| Number | Chinese | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 一 | yī | one |
| 2 | 二 | èr | two |
| 3 | 三 | sān | three |
| 4 | 四 | sì | four |
| 5 | 五 | wǔ | five |
| 6 | 六 | liù | six |
| 7 | 七 | qī | seven |
| 8 | 八 | bā | eight |
| 9 | 九 | jiǔ | nine |
| 10 | 十 | shí | ten |
| 11 | 十一 | shíyī | eleven |
| 12 | 十二 | shíèr | twelve |
| 13 | 十三 | shísān | thirteen |
| 14 | 十四 | shísì | fourteen |
| 15 | 十五 | shíwǔ | fifteen |
| 16 | 十六 | shíliù | sixteen |
| 17 | 十七 | shíqī | seventeen |
| 18 | 十八 | shíbā | eighteen |
| 19 | 十九 | shíjiǔ | nineteen |
| 20 | 二十 | èrshí | twenty |
| 21 | 二十一 | èrshíyī | twenty-one |
| 22 | 二十二 | èrshíèr | twenty-two |
| 23 | 二十三 | èrshísān | twenty-three |
| 24 | 二十四 | èrshísì | twenty-four |
| 25 | 二十五 | èrshíwǔ | twenty-five |
| 26 | 二十六 | èrshíliù | twenty-six |
| 27 | 二十七 | èrshíqī | twenty-seven |
| 28 | 二十八 | èrshíbā | twenty-eight |
| 29 | 二十九 | èrshíjiǔ | twenty-nine |
| 30 | 三十 | sānshí | thirty |
| 31 | 三十一 | sānshíyī | thirty-one |
| 32 | 三十二 | sānshíèr | thirty-two |
| 33 | 三十三 | sānshísān | thirty-three |
| 34 | 三十四 | sānshísì | thirty-four |
| 35 | 三十五 | sānshíwǔ | thirty-five |
| 36 | 三十六 | sānshíliù | thirty-six |
| 37 | 三十七 | sānshíqī | thirty-seven |
| 38 | 三十八 | sānshíbā | thirty-eight |
| 39 | 三十九 | sānshíjiǔ | thirty-nine |
| 40 | 四十 | sìshí | forty |
| 41 | 四十一 | sìshíyī | forty-one |
| 42 | 四十二 | sìshíèr | forty-two |
| 43 | 四十三 | sìshísān | forty-three |
| 44 | 四十四 | sìshísì | forty-four |
| 45 | 四十五 | sìshíwǔ | forty-five |
| 46 | 四十六 | sìshíliù | forty-six |
| 47 | 四十七 | sìshíqī | forty-seven |
| 48 | 四十八 | sìshíbā | forty-eight |
| 49 | 四十九 | sìshíjiǔ | forty-nine |
| 50 | 五十 | wǔshí | fifty |
| 51 | 五十一 | wǔshíyī | fifty-one |
| 52 | 五十二 | wǔshíèr | fifty-two |
| 53 | 五十三 | wǔshísān | fifty-three |
| 54 | 五十四 | wǔshísì | fifty-four |
| 55 | 五十五 | wǔshíwǔ | fifty-five |
| 56 | 五十六 | wǔshíliù | fifty-six |
| 57 | 五十七 | wǔshíqī | fifty-seven |
| 58 | 五十八 | wǔshíbā | fifty-eight |
| 59 | 五十九 | wǔshíjiǔ | fifty-nine |
| 60 | 六十 | liùshí | sixty |
| 61 | 六十一 | liùshíyī | sixty-one |
| 62 | 六十二 | liùshíèr | sixty-two |
| 63 | 六十三 | liùshísān | sixty-three |
| 64 | 六十四 | liùshísì | sixty-four |
| 65 | 六十五 | liùshíwǔ | sixty-five |
| 66 | 六十六 | liùshíliù | sixty-six |
| 67 | 六十七 | liùshíqī | sixty-seven |
| 68 | 六十八 | liùshíbā | sixty-eight |
| 69 | 六十九 | liùshíjiǔ | sixty-nine |
| 70 | 七十 | qīshí | seventy |
| 71 | 七十一 | qīshíyī | seventy-one |
| 72 | 七十二 | qīshíèr | seventy-two |
| 73 | 七十三 | qīshísān | seventy-three |
| 74 | 七十四 | qīshísì | seventy-four |
| 75 | 七十五 | qīshíwǔ | seventy-five |
| 76 | 七十六 | qīshíliù | seventy-six |
| 77 | 七十七 | qīshíqī | seventy-seven |
| 78 | 七十八 | qīshíbā | seventy-eight |
| 79 | 七十九 | qīshíjiǔ | seventy-nine |
| 80 | 八十 | bāshí | eighty |
| 81 | 八十一 | bāshíyī | eighty-one |
| 82 | 八十二 | bāshíèr | eighty-two |
| 83 | 八十三 | bāshísān | eighty-three |
| 84 | 八十四 | bāshísì | eighty-four |
| 85 | 八十五 | bāshíwǔ | eighty-five |
| 86 | 八十六 | bāshíliù | eighty-six |
| 87 | 八十七 | bāshíqī | eighty-seven |
| 88 | 八十八 | bāshíbā | eighty-eight |
| 89 | 八十九 | bāshíjiǔ | eighty-nine |
| 90 | 九十 | jiǔshí | ninety |
| 91 | 九十一 | jiǔshíyī | ninety-one |
| 92 | 九十二 | jiǔshíèr | ninety-two |
| 93 | 九十三 | jiǔshísān | ninety-three |
| 94 | 九十四 | jiǔshísì | ninety-four |
| 95 | 九十五 | jiǔshíwǔ | ninety-five |
| 96 | 九十六 | jiǔshíliù | ninety-six |
| 97 | 九十七 | jiǔshíqī | ninety-seven |
| 98 | 九十八 | jiǔshíbā | ninety-eight |
| 99 | 九十九 | jiǔshíjiǔ | ninety-nine |
| 100 | 一百 | yībǎi | one hundred |
Numbers in Chinese are one of the friendliest places to start Mandarin, because the system is beautifully regular. Once your child knows the words for 1 to 10, they can count all the way to 99 by simply combining them. Tap any number on the chart above to hear it in Mandarin and English, or press Count with me and count along from 一 (yī) to 一百 (yìbǎi).
Chinese numbers 1 to 10
These ten words are the whole foundation: 一 yī, 二 èr, 三 sān, 四 sì, 五 wǔ, 六 liù, 七 qī, 八 bā, 九 jiǔ, 十 shí. Zero is 零 (líng). Notice that the characters for one, two and three are simply one, two and three lines. Children spot this instantly, and it is often the first Chinese writing they can do on their own.
Chinese numbers 1 to 20 with pinyin
| Number | Chinese | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 一 | yī |
| 2 | 二 | èr |
| 3 | 三 | sān |
| 4 | 四 | sì |
| 5 | 五 | wǔ |
| 6 | 六 | liù |
| 7 | 七 | qī |
| 8 | 八 | bā |
| 9 | 九 | jiǔ |
| 10 | 十 | shí |
| 11 | 十一 | shíyī |
| 12 | 十二 | shíèr |
| 13 | 十三 | shísān |
| 14 | 十四 | shísì |
| 15 | 十五 | shíwǔ |
| 16 | 十六 | shíliù |
| 17 | 十七 | shíqī |
| 18 | 十八 | shíbā |
| 19 | 十九 | shíjiǔ |
| 20 | 二十 | èrshí |
Look at 11 to 19: they are "ten-one", "ten-two" and so on. 十一 (shíyī) is 11, 十五 (shíwǔ) is 15. There are no special words like English "eleven" or "twelve" to memorise.
How to count to 100 in Chinese
Tens work the same way, but the other way round: "two-ten" is 20 (二十, èrshí), "three-ten" is 30 (三十, sānshí). Put a unit on the end and you have any number: 二十一 (èrshíyī) is 21, 四十五 (sìshíwǔ) is 45, 九十九 (jiǔshíjiǔ) is 99. One hundred is 一百 (yìbǎi); in front of bǎi, the tone of yī shifts to yì, which the audio does for you.
This regularity is not only easy to learn, it helps with maths. Researchers have noted that children who count in Chinese see "twenty-three" as "two tens and three" from the start, which makes place value clearer. Use the 1 to 100 chart in English side by side and ask your child to find the same pattern.
Two ways to say two: èr and liǎng
When counting, 2 is 二 (èr). When saying how many things there are, Mandarin uses 两 (liǎng): 两个苹果 (two apples), 两只小狗 (two puppies). Mandarin also puts a measure word between the number and the noun, such as 个 (gè) for most things and 只 (zhī) for many animals. Your child does not need the grammar yet; just say "两个" naturally at snack time and they will copy you.
Chinese hand signs for numbers
In China, numbers 1 to 10 can be shown with one hand. One to five look like counting on fingers, but six is thumb and little finger out (六), seven is fingertips pinched together, eight is thumb and index finger in an L shape, nine is a hooked index finger, and ten is crossed index fingers or a fist. Children find the one-hand signs a fun secret code. Teach them while counting stairs or grapes.
Lucky and unlucky numbers in Chinese culture
- 8 八 (bā) sounds like 发 (fā, to prosper), so it is the luckiest number. The Beijing Olympics opened on 8 August 2008 at 8:08 pm.
- 6 六 (liù) sounds like 流 (flowing smoothly), another happy number.
- 4 四 (sì) sounds like 死 (death), so some buildings skip the fourth floor.
- 9 九 (jiǔ) sounds like 久 (long-lasting).
At Chinese New Year, children receive money in red envelopes (红包, hóngbāo). Counting the coins or notes together, in Mandarin, is a lovely festival habit. The Mid-Autumn Festival brings another counting chance: how many mooncakes, how many lanterns?
Teaching Chinese numbers at home, by age
| Age | Goal | Try this |
|---|---|---|
| 2-3 | Hear 1 to 5 | Count steps, shoes or blocks out loud: 一、二、三 |
| 3-4 | Say 1 to 10 | Press Count with me, then count grapes at snack time |
| 4-5 | Count to 20 and understand "how many" | Use 两个 and 几个？ (how many?) in play |
| 5-6 | Count by tens to 100, write 一 to 十 | Tap the tens on the chart, then fill in a hundred square |
Keep it short: one counting song or one "Count with me" round a day is plenty. Five minutes with a grown-up beats half an hour alone with a screen.
For bilingual and heritage-language families
Many children in Chinese-speaking families abroad count well in English but stop at ten in Mandarin. The trick is to keep one daily routine in Chinese: counting stairs to the bedroom, or counting down 十、九、八…… before bath time. Grandparents are often the best counting partners. If your family speaks Cantonese, the number words are different in sound but the pattern is the same, so skills transfer easily. When your child is ready for more, try the first Chinese characters or compare with numbers in Japanese, which use the same characters.
There is no numbers worksheet PDF, but you can print this page from your browser; the 1 to 20 table prints as a clean Chinese numbers chart with pinyin.
和孩子一起数一数
中文数字很有规律。学会了一到十，孩子就能数到九十九：十一就是“十”加“一”，二十就是“两个十”，三十五就是“三个十和五”。每天和孩子一起数一数，上楼梯的时候数台阶，吃水果的时候数葡萄，孩子很快就能从一数到一百。
要注意，数数的时候说“二”，说有几个东西的时候说“两”，比如“两个苹果”。过春节的时候，可以和孩子一起数一数红包里的钱；中秋节的时候，数一数月饼和灯笼。每数完一次，别忘了表扬孩子：“你数得真认真！”
How to use this page at home
Say it, then find it
Play for a few minutes, then look for the same thing away from the screen: chinese words on the shelf, in the kitchen, on the way to school. A child learns a word properly when they meet it twice, once on the screen and once in their hand.
Ten minutes is enough
Short and happy beats long and tired. Stop while your child still wants more, and come back tomorrow: the same page on five short days teaches far more than one long sitting. Nothing here is scored, so there is no reason to push.
Use both languages
Tap the language button at the top to hear the words in your home language first and the second language after. Hearing the same picture named in two languages is one of the few things research agrees builds attention as well as vocabulary.
