Counting in Chinese 1 to 100: pinyin, audio and the tone traps

One to ten

Learn these ten with their tones attached, because every larger number is made of them. Notice the mix: four first tones, three fourth tones, two third tones and one second tone. That variety is why counting aloud is such a good tone workout. Each one has its own page with a sentence, a tone tip and a character breakdown.

Zero is 零líng. You need it for phone numbers, room numbers and numbers like 105 (一百零五, one hundred zero five), but not for anything from 1 to 100.

Eleven to nineteen: ten plus something

Say 十 shí and add the units digit. 11 is ten-one, 12 is ten-two, and so on. There is no leading one: 11 is 十一, never 一十一. In pinyin the syllables are joined into one word, and 12 takes an apostrophe (shí'èr) because the second syllable starts with a vowel.

Twenty to ninety-nine: digit, ten, digit

From 20 upwards the pattern is tens-digit + 十 + units-digit. Twenty is two-ten (二十), thirty is three-ten, and 99 is nine-ten-nine. Round tens simply stop after 十. That is the whole system: no -ty, no -teen, no twelve.

A small pronunciation note that makes you sound natural: the third-tone digits 五 and 九 are said as a low half-third when something follows them, so 50 is a low wǔ followed by a rising shí, not a dip-and-rise on each syllable. The full explanation is in the third tone is lying to you.

The full table: 1 to 100 with audio

Every number, with characters and tone-coloured pinyin. Tap any cell to hear it. A good drill is to count aloud in tens, then backwards, then in odd numbers only, checking yourself against the audio whenever a tone feels uncertain.

Trap 1: 一 (yī) changes tone

On its own, when counting, and at the end of a number, 一 is a high first tone, yī. But when it comes directly before another syllable, it changes: before a fourth tone it becomes a rising second tone (yí), and before a first, second or third tone it becomes a falling fourth tone (yì). Inside 1 to 100 this bites exactly once, at 100 itself: 一百 is written yībǎi and said yìbǎi. Outside counting it bites constantly, because 一 precedes almost every measure word.

One more twist: when reading digits one at a time, in phone numbers, room numbers and bus routes, 一 is often said yāo so it cannot be confused with qī (seven) over a bad line. The same rule for 不 and the full third-tone rule are on the tone sandhi page.

Trap 2: 二 (èr) versus 两 (liǎng)

Chinese has two words for two. 二 èr is the number: it is what you say when counting, doing maths, reading a phone number, and inside every compound number (12, 20, 22, 92). 两 liǎng is the quantity: it is what you say before a measure word when you mean two of something. So you count 一、二、三 but you order 两杯 (two cups). Saying 二个 is one of the clearest beginner giveaways. For 200 the usual form is 两百, although 二百 is also heard, and for 2,000 and 20,000 you use 两.

Trap 3: 四 (sì) and 十 (shí)

Four and ten are separated by two things English speakers find hard: the flat-tongue s versus the curled-tongue sh, and a falling tone versus a rising one. Get either wrong and 14, 40 and 44 blur into each other, which is a problem when money is involved. Practise them as a set until the difference is automatic; the tongue positions are explained in the pinyin pronunciation guide.

The 十 and 百 patterns, in one place

Numbers are among the first words on the HSK 1 vocabulary list (the larger numbers, days and dates are on the Chinese numbers vocabulary page), and they are the best possible material for tone practice, because you already know what they mean and can focus entirely on pitch. Count to a hundred out loud once a day for a week, then take the free tone test to see whether your ear has caught up with your mouth.

Frequently asked questions