🇫🇷 French A1: Numbers & the Alphabet
Les Nombres et l’Alphabet - Trilingual (French/English/عربي)
🔢 Les Nombres et l'Alphabet — Numbers & the Alphabet
In this lesson you will learn to count from 0 to 100, spell out loud using the French alphabet, and use numbers in everyday situations like prices, phone numbers, and ages.
The French alphabet has the same 26 letters as English, but every letter is pronounced differently — click any speaker button to hear it. A few letters are especially tricky for English speakers: G and J are reversed from what you'd expect (G sounds like "zhay," J sounds like "zhee"), H is always silent, and W is literally called "double v," not "double u." Once you've gone through all 26, try spelling your own name out loud.
📖 Grammar Focus: Why 70, 80, and 90 look strange
Unlike Belgian or Swiss French, standard French builds 70–99 using addition and multiplication instead of new words:
| Number | Literal breakdown | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 70 = soixante-dix | soixante (60) + dix (10) | "sixty-ten" |
| 80 = quatre-vingts | quatre (4) × vingt (20) | "four-twenties" |
| 90 = quatre-vingt-dix | quatre-vingts (80) + dix (10) | "four-twenty-ten" |
| 99 = quatre-vingt-dix-neuf | 80 + 10 + 9 | "four-twenty-ten-nine" |
This pattern continues for every number between 70–99, so 71 is "soixante-onze" (60+11) and 91 is "quatre-vingt-onze" (80+11).
📖 Grammar Focus: Asking and giving phone numbers / prices
French phone numbers are usually said in pairs: 06 12 34 56 78 is read as "zéro six, douze, trente-quatre, cinquante-six, soixante-dix-huit." For prices, you simply say the number followed by "euros": Ça coûte vingt euros (That costs 20 euros).
💬 Sample Dialogue
🎯 Flashcards
Click each card to flip it and reveal the English and Arabic translation. Click again to flip back.
❓ Quick Quiz
Answer one question at a time. You'll see right away if you got it right, then move to the next.
📝 Practice Exams — 5 Exams, 50 Questions Total
Each exam has 10 questions, answered one at a time with instant feedback. Exam 5 is a comprehensive mixed review. Choose an exam below to begin.
💡 Tips & Cultural Notes
Expert teacher notes to help you sound more natural and avoid common beginner mistakes.
⚠️ Common Mistake: forgetting the vingt/cent agreement rule
"Vingt" and "cent" stay singular in most compounds (quatre-vingt-deux = 82), but "quatre-vingts" gets an -s only when it stands alone at the end of a number (quatre-vingts = exactly 80). This is a famous French spelling quirk that trips up even native speakers.
🇫🇷 Belgian and Swiss French use different words
In Belgium and Switzerland, "septante" (70), "octante/huitante" (80), and "nonante" (90) are used instead of the standard French compounds. If you ever watch Belgian or Swiss content, don't be confused — both systems are correct French, just regional.
⚠️ Common Mistake: the silent H
The letter H is always silent in French — "huit" (eight) is pronounced "weet," not "hweet." This trips up Arabic speakers especially, since Arabic has a strong "h" sound that doesn't exist the same way in French.
🗣️ Liaison tip: numbers before nouns
"Six" and "dix" change pronunciation depending on what follows: before a vowel they link smoothly ("six enfants" = see-zahn-fahn), but before a consonant the final consonant is often dropped ("six garçons" = see gar-sohn).
📌 Practice spelling your name
A great way to master the alphabet is to spell your own name out loud using French letter names. If a French speaker ever asks "Comment ça s'épelle ?" (How is that spelled?), you'll be ready to answer letter by letter.