Chapter 3
Topic 3 Ordinal Numbers
Ordinal numbers indicate the order of a noun in a series.
They are usually placed before a noun, unless they refer to a street, royalty, or a pope, then it is placed after the noun.
They can also be used as adjectives that match the nouns they modify in both gender and number.
From FIRST to TENTH…
| Primero | First |
| Segundo | Second |
| Tercero | Third |
| Cuarto | Fourth |
| Quinto | Fifth |
| Sexto | Sixth |
| Séptimo | Seventh |
| Octavo | Eighth |
| Noveno | Ninth |
| Décimo | Tenth |
They have unique forms and are the most commonly used in Spanish.
- Before singular masculine nouns, primero and tercero are shortened to primer and tercer.
el primer estudiante
the first student
el tercer libro
the third book
- Teen ordinals, from eleventh to nineteenth are written in one word.
Decimoprimero to Decimonoveno
- décimo + ordinal number between primero and noveno
eleventh: décimo + primero
decimoprimero
twelfth: décimo + segundo
decimosegundo
thirteenth: décimo + tercero
decimotercero
The ordinal numbers as a single word, only the final word in these compounds agrees in gender with the noun.
the eleventh box
Spanish ordinal numbers can have an abbreviated form like in English.
If cardinal and ordinal numbers are in the same sentence, the cardinal number is placed before the ordinal number.
I like the first two months of the year.
- Octubre es el ______ mes del año.
- Agosto es el ______ mes del año.
- Marzo es el _______ mes del año.
- Junio es el ______ mes del año.
