Hebrew numbers have masculine and feminine forms that match the noun being counted. The system seems counterintuitive at first: when counting masculine nouns, you use the feminine number form, and vice versa! However, in everyday colloquial speech, the feminine form is used for both. Focus on the feminine (colloquial) form first.
Numbers 1–10
| Number | Masculine form | Feminine form (colloquial) | Transliteration (f) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | אֶחָד | אַחַת | achat |
| 2 | שְׁנַיִם | שְׁתַּיִם | shtayim |
| 3 | שְׁלֹשָׁה | שָׁלֹשׁ | shalosh |
| 4 | אַרְבָּעָה | אַרְבַּע | arba |
| 5 | חֲמִשָּׁה | חָמֵשׁ | chamesh |
| 6 | שִׁשָּׁה | שֵׁשׁ | shesh |
| 7 | שִׁבְעָה | שֶׁבַע | sheva |
| 8 | שְׁמוֹנָה | שְׁמוֹנֶה | shmone |
| 9 | תִּשְׁעָה | תֵּשַׁע | tesha |
| 10 | עֲשָׂרָה | עֶשֶׂר | eser |
11–20 and Tens up to 1,000
| Hebrew | Transliteration | Number |
|---|---|---|
| אַחַד עָשָׂר | achad asar | 11 |
| שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר | shneym asar | 12 |
| שְׁלֹשָׁה עָשָׂר | shlosha asar | 13 |
| אַרְבָּעָה עָשָׂר | arba'a asar | 14 |
| חֲמִשָּׁה עָשָׂר | chamisha asar | 15 |
| שִׁשָּׁה עָשָׂר | shisha asar | 16 |
| שִׁבְעָה עָשָׂר | shiv'a asar | 17 |
| שְׁמוֹנָה עָשָׂר | shmona asar | 18 |
| תִּשְׁעָה עָשָׂר | tish'a asar | 19 |
| עֶשְׂרִים | esrim | 20 |
| שְׁלֹשִׁים | shloshim | 30 |
| אַרְבָּעִים | arba'im | 40 |
| חֲמִשִּׁים | chamishim | 50 |
| שִׁשִּׁים | shishim | 60 |
| שִׁבְעִים | shiv'im | 70 |
| שְׁמוֹנִים | shmonim | 80 |
| תִּשְׁעִים | tish'im | 90 |
| מֵאָה | mea | 100 |
| אֶלֶף | elef | 1,000 |
Compound numbers: Use וְ (ve, "and"): 21 = עֶשְׂרִים וְאֶחָד (esrim ve'echad).
Expressing age: יֵשׁ לִי עֶשְׂרִים וְחָמֵשׁ שָׁנִים — I am 25 years old. (Literal: "I have 25 years.")