Arabic Numbers 1–10, 1–100 & Prices

Quick answer In Egyptian Arabic you count 1 to 10 as wahid, itnein, talata, arbaʿa, khamsa, sitta, sabʿa, tamanya, tisʿa, ʿashara (واحد، اتنين، تلاتة، أربعة، خمسة، ستة، سبعة، تمانية، تسعة، عشرة). Egypt writes them with the digits ١ ٢ ٣ ٤ ٥ ٦ ٧ ٨ ٩ ١٠, left to right like ours. From 21 on the unit comes first: 21 is wahid wi ʿishrin, "one and twenty". The full list to 1000, the counting rule and prices are below; the PDF is the printable version with exercises.

How do you count from 1 to 10 in Arabic (the Egyptian way)?

These are the numbers you will hear in Cairo, with the Arabic-Indic digits Egypt prints on price tags, banknotes and bus numbers. Say them out loud until they come without thinking; every larger number is built from these ten.

Two traps with the digits: ٦ looks like a 7 but is 6, and ٠ is a dot while ٥ is a small circle. Multi-digit numbers are written left to right exactly like ours, so ٢٥ is 25.

Arabic numbers 11 to 100 in Egyptian Arabic

Eleven to nineteen all end in -ashar, the tens all end in -in. From 21 upwards the unit comes first: 21 is literally "one and twenty", wahid wi ʿishrin.

Examples: 35 is khamsa wi talatin, 105 is miyya wi khamsa, 224 is mitein wi arbaʿa wi ʿishrin, 2026 is alfein wi sitta wi ʿishrin. Before a noun, 100 shortens to mit: mit geneh, a hundred pounds.

How is Arabic number pronunciation different in Egypt?

Egyptian drops the "th" sounds of Modern Standard Arabic. Standard thalatha becomes talata, ithnan becomes itnein, thamaniya becomes tamanya. If a textbook taught you the standard forms, you will be understood, but you will hear the Egyptian forms everywhere, from taxi meters to football scores. The worksheet uses the Egyptian forms throughout and marks the standard one where it helps.

The counting rule: what happens to the noun after a number

This is the one point almost every beginner gets wrong, and the market is where it shows. Four cases: with 1 the noun stays singular and the number follows it (kitab wahid, one book). With 2 there is no "itnein" at all; the noun takes the dual ending -ein (kitabein, two books; yomein, two days). From 3 to 10 you use a short form of the number plus the plural (talat kutub, three books; khamas ayyam, five days). From 11 upwards the noun goes back to the singular (ʿishrin yom, twenty days). Ordering food, drinks and paying in pounds is the friendly exception: full number plus singular, itnein shay, two teas, khamsa gneih, five pounds. Exercise 1 on the sheet drills exactly these four cases.

Prices and time are on pages 3 and 4: bikam da? (how much is this?), ghali awi! (too expensive!), es-saʿa kam? (what time is it?), with a market dialogue to read in pairs. For the small words you need around numbers, see the 200 most common words, and for asking "how many" and "how much", the question words sheet.

What's inside the PDF

• Numbers 0 to 10, 11 to 19, tens, hundreds and thousands as a visual grid: Egyptian digit, Arabic script and Cairo pronunciation side by side
• How compound numbers are built (units first: wahid wi ʿishrin) and how to read the digits on price tags, buses and banknotes
• The counting rule in one table: singular, dual, plural after 3 to 10, singular again after 11, plus the ordering exception (itnein shay)
• Prices and money vocabulary and a haggling dialogue at a Cairo fruit stall to read in pairs
• Telling the time with wi and illa, the days of the week and the time words you need every day
• Six exercises: the counting rule, three ways to write a number, price tags, clock faces, a haggling role-play with seller and buyer cards, maths out loud
• Answer key and teacher notes on a separate page you can remove before handing out

How to use it on your own

Say every number in sections A and B out loud until you can count to 20 and in tens to 100 without looking. Read the counting rule, then test yourself with objects on your desk. Read the fruit-stall dialogue as both speakers. For the role-play, play both parts yourself out loud if you have no partner; it feels silly and works. Finish with the clocks and the maths, always speaking the answer before you write it.

How to use it in class

Fits a 45 to 60 minute lesson, or a 30-minute version with section A, the counting rule and the role-play. The counting rule (section C) is the grammar point of this sheet: drill it with real objects in the room before Ex. 3. Ex. 5, the haggling role-play, is the centrepiece: pairs play it twice so both roles are covered, Arabic numbers only, and the seller keeps the minimum column secret. Points fields on every exercise, answer key on the last page.

Preview

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Frequently asked questions

How do you say the numbers 1 to 10 in Arabic?

In Egyptian Arabic: wahid (1), itnein (2), talata (3), arbaʿa (4), khamsa (5), sitta (6), sabʿa (7), tamanya (8), tisʿa (9), ʿashara (10). Zero is sifr. Modern Standard Arabic says thalatha, ithnan and thamaniya for 3, 2 and 8; Egyptians drop the "th" and say t instead.

How do you count to 100 in Arabic?

Learn 1 to 10, then the tens: ʿishrin (20), talatin (30), arbiʿin (40), khamsin (50), sittin (60), sabʿin (70), tamanin (80), tisʿin (90), miyya (100). Everything in between is unit + wi + ten: 21 is wahid wi ʿishrin, 45 is khamsa wi arbiʿin, 99 is tisʿa wi tisʿin. The sheet has the full chart to 1000 on page 1.

Are Arabic numerals the same as the numbers used in Egypt?

The digits we call "Arabic numerals" (1, 2, 3) are used in the Maghreb; Egypt and the Middle East use the Arabic-Indic digits ٠ ١ ٢ ٣ ٤ ٥ ٦ ٧ ٨ ٩. You will see them on price tags, banknotes and bus numbers. They are written left to right exactly like ours, so ٢٥ is 25. The worksheet has a reading exercise with real price tags.

How do you say the time in Egyptian Arabic?

Start with es-saʿa (the hour) and the number: es-saʿa khamsa is five o'clock, es-saʿa khamsa w-nuss is half past five, es-saʿa khamsa w-rubʿ is quarter past, es-saʿa sitta illa rubʿ is quarter to six. Exercise 4 drills clock faces, with the answer key on the last page.

Why does the noun change after numbers in Arabic?

Arabic has four counting cases: one book is kitab wahid, two books is kitabein (dual ending, no "two"), three to ten books take the plural (talat kutub), and from eleven on the noun returns to the singular (hidashar kitab). Food, drinks and money are the exception and keep the singular, which is why you order itnein shay, two teas.

Is this numbers worksheet free?

Yes. Download the PDF, print it and copy it as often as you like for personal use and in class. Please keep the Yallah Speak credit in the footer.