Números ordinales
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Ordinal numbers are essential for lists: they denote the rank, position, or order of items in a group, whether that group is made up of people, objects, or things to do.
Por ejemplo…
Pablo está en segundo lugar, y David en quinto. | Pablo is in second place, and David is in fifth. | |
En primer lugar, tenemos que elegir un presidente. | In the first place, we need to choose a chairperson. |
Spanish ordinal numbers
first | primero primer |
1st | 1º | |
second | segundo | 2nd | 2º | |
third | tercero tercer |
3rd | 3º | |
fourth | cuarto | 4th | 4º | |
fifth | quinto | 5th | 5º | |
sixth | sexto | 6th | 6º | |
seventh | séptimo | 7th | 7º | |
eighth | octavo | 8th | 8º | |
ninth | noveno | 9th | 9º | |
tenth | décimo | 10th | 10º |
When primero and tercero precede a masculine noun, they change to the short-form adjectives primer and tercer.
Por ejemplo…
José está en segundo lugar y Alberto está en quinto. | José is in second place and Alberto is in fifth. | |
En primer lugar, tenemos que elegir un presidente. | In the first place, The first thing we need to do is choose a chairperson. |
Notes
- As shown in the table above, Spanish ordinal numbers can be abbreviated with superscript letters called letras voladas.
- Like most Spanish nouns, ordinal numbers end in o when masculine and a when feminine: el segundo 2o / la segunda 2ª.
- The ordinal numbers up to tenth usually precede the noun. After tenth, however, ordinal numbers are commonly expressed with just the cardinal number after the noun:
el segundo piso | the second floor | |
el piso veinte | the twentieth floor |
Most ordinal numbers are identical to their corresponding fractions.
If you have trouble remembering the difference between ordinal and cardinal numbers, try this mnemonic:
- ordinals are for ordering
- cardinals are for counting cards
Related lessons
En français
In italiano
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