Arabic numbers are not merely eleven vocabulary labels. From one to ten, most numerals have gender-related pairs, several inflect for case, and different ranges govern different noun forms. English three books keeps three unchanged and simply pluralizes book; formal Modern Standard Arabic treats the numeral and counted noun as one governed phrase.
This page first teaches 0–10 as citation and counting forms. It then maps the boundaries of the counted-noun systems so that you do not extend one rule across the whole range. One and two receive only an overview here; their postnominal agreement and dual syntax are taught independently on One and Two with Counted Nouns.
The basic counting sequence
When reciting numbers without a counted noun, learners normally memorize the following pausal citation forms. The Arabic-Indic digits are included beside the Western digits used internationally.
| Value | Arabic-Indic | Common citation form | Romanization |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | ٠ | صفر | ṣifr |
| 1 | ١ | واحد | wāḥid |
| 2 | ٢ | اثنان | ʾithnān |
| 3 | ٣ | ثلاثة | thalātha(h) |
| 4 | ٤ | أربعة | ʾarbaʿa(h) |
| 5 | ٥ | خمسة | khamsa(h) |
| 6 | ٦ | ستة | sitta(h) |
| 7 | ٧ | سبعة | sabʿa(h) |
| 8 | ٨ | ثمانية | thamāniya(h) |
| 9 | ٩ | تسعة | tisʿa(h) |
| 10 | ١٠ | عشرة | ʿashara(h) |
Initial اثنان has hamzat al-waṣl. At the beginning of an utterance it is pronounced ʾithnān; after a preceding vowel its initial helping vowel and glottal stop are normally elided. This differs from أربعة, whose written hamzat al-qaṭʿ remains pronounced.
نعد هكذا: صفر، واحد، اثنان، ثلاثة، أربعة.
naʿuddu hākadhā: ṣifr, wāḥid, ʾithnān, thalātha(h), ʾarbaʿa(h).
We count like this: zero, one, two, three, four.
ثم نقول: خمسة، ستة، سبعة، ثمانية، تسعة، عشرة.
thumma naqūlu: khamsa(h), sitta(h), sabʿa(h), thamāniya(h), tisʿa(h), ʿashara(h).
Then we say: five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten.
These are citation forms, not a complete recipe for “number + noun.” In particular, the visible ـة on ثلاثة through عشرة does not mean that those forms count feminine nouns.
Gender pairs from one through ten
The safest table labels each form by the gender of the singular counted noun it accompanies, not by an isolated English-style label “masculine number” or “feminine number.” One and two agree with the noun. Three through ten show polarity: the form with ـة accompanies a masculine noun, while the shorter form accompanies a feminine noun.
| Value | With a masculine counted noun | With a feminine counted noun |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | واحد | واحدة |
| 2 nominative | اثنان | اثنتان |
| 2 accusative/genitive | اثنين | اثنتين |
| 3 | ثلاثة | ثلاث |
| 4 | أربعة | أربع |
| 5 | خمسة | خمس |
| 6 | ستة | ست |
| 7 | سبعة | سبع |
| 8 | ثمانية | ثمان / ثماني |
| 9 | تسعة | تسع |
| 10 | عشرة | عشر |
Eight is genuinely irregular. The form without ـة behaves like a defective noun: independent nominative/genitive forms can appear as ثمانٍ, while the construct before a counted noun restores ي, as in ثماني سيارات. There is no honest one-line shortcut; learn ثمانية كتب and ثماني سيارات as model phrases.
The governed phrase: three systems inside 0–10
The counted noun changes with the range. The following map prevents the most damaging overgeneralization.
| Range | Numeral behavior | Counted noun | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | صفر behaves as a noun-like numeral; usage depends on the measure or label | often a singular specification in measurements | صفر درجة |
| 1 | follows and agrees | singular, case set by the sentence | كتاب واحد |
| 2 | usually omitted; if explicit, follows and agrees | dual, case set by the sentence | كتابان اثنان |
| 3–10 | precedes; gender polarity; case set by the sentence | plural genitive | ثلاثة كتب |
Zero is a comparatively modern everyday counting need and is not folded neatly into the traditional 1–10 gender-polarity paradigm. In scores it can stand as a case-bearing predicate; in measurements it commonly precedes a singular unit.
انتهت المباراة بهدفين مقابل صفر.
ʾintahati l-mubārātu bi-hadafayni muqābila ṣifr.
The match ended two goals to nil.
كانت درجة الحرارة صفر درجة مئوية صباحا.
kānat darajatu l-ḥarārati ṣifra darajatin miʾawiyyatin ṣabāḥā.
The temperature was zero degrees Celsius this morning.
The unit after صفر is singular درجة, not a polarity-governed plural. This is a measurement convention, not the 3–10 system.
Three through ten: polarity plus plural genitive
For 3–10, determine the lexical gender of the singular noun, choose the opposite-shaped numeral, then put the counted noun in the genitive plural. The numeral itself takes whatever case its position in the larger sentence requires.
وصلت ثلاثة كتب جديدة إلى المكتبة.
waṣalat thalāthatu kutubin jadīdatin ʾilā l-maktaba(h).
Three new books arrived at the library.
كتاب is masculine, so the numeral is ثلاثة. كتب is plural genitive. Because the whole number phrase is the postverbal subject, ثلاثةُ is nominative.
حجزنا ثلاث غرف لليلة واحدة.
ḥajaznā thalātha ghurafin li-laylatin wāḥida(h).
We booked three rooms for one night.
غرفة is feminine, so the numeral uses ثلاث without ـة. The whole number phrase is the direct object, making ثلاثَ accusative; غرفٍ remains plural genitive.
تحدث التقرير عن خمسة مشاريع وعشر مدارس.
taḥaddatha t-taqrīru ʿan khamsati mashārīʿa wa-ʿashri madāris.
The report discussed five projects and ten schools.
After عن, the numerals are genitive: خمسةِ with masculine مشروع, and عشرِ with feminine مدرسة. The counted plurals are genitive too. مشاريع and مدارس are diptotes, so their indefinite genitive is marked with fatḥa rather than kasra.
سعر الدفتر خمسة دولارات.
siʿru d-daftari khamsatu dūlārāt.
The notebook costs five dollars.
This everyday price expression is still a governed phrase: masculine دولار selects خمسة, and the counted noun is plural genitive, although ordinary pausal speech does not pronounce its final case ending.
Reading digits inside right-to-left text
Arabic-Indic digits and Western digits both occur in contemporary MSA (formal and everyday). Arabic text runs right to left, but the internal order of a multi-digit numeral is not reversed. ١٠ is ten: the 1 remains the tens digit and 0 remains the units digit.
تظهر الشاشة ١٠، أي عشرة.
tuẓhiru sh-shāshatu ʿashara(h), ʾay ʿashara(h).
The screen shows 10, that is, ten.
When a numeral is an identifier rather than a quantity—bus 7, room 4, chapter 10—Arabic often uses a label construction or an ordinal in full prose. Do not automatically apply counted-noun polarity to every digit you see.
استقل الحافلة رقم سبعة.
ʾistaqilla l-ḥāfilata raqma sabʿa(h).
Take bus number seven.
Here سبعة names the number; it is not directly counting buses.
One and two are not polarity numerals
One and two agree with the counted noun and normally follow it, like adjectives. The noun itself is singular with one and dual with two.
بقي مقعد واحد، ووصلت حافلتان اثنتان.
baqiya maqʿadun wāḥidun, wa-waṣalat ḥāfilatāni thnatān.
One seat remained, and exactly two buses arrived.
The explicit numeral after the dual حافلتان adds emphasis; حافلتان alone already means “two buses.” Notice also connected-speech elision: after حافلتانِ, initial hamzat al-waṣl of اثنتان is not pronounced.
Common Mistakes
Applying polarity to one
❌ اشتريت تذكرة واحد.
Incorrect — one agrees with the feminine noun تذكرة and follows it.
✅ اشتريت تذكرة واحدة.
ʾishtaraytu tadhkiratan wāḥida(h).
I bought one ticket.
Keeping the noun singular after 3–10
❌ وصل ثلاثة كتاب.
Incorrect — after 3–10, the counted noun is plural genitive.
✅ وصلت ثلاثة كتب.
waṣalat thalāthatu kutub.
Three books arrived.
Reversing a multi-digit number
❌ الرقم ١٠ يعني واحدا، لأن العربية تكتب من اليمين.
Incorrect — text direction does not reverse the place value inside ١٠.
✅ الرقم ١٠ يعني عشرة.
ar-raqmu ʿashara(h) yaʿnī ʿashara(h).
The number 10 means ten.
Extending the 3–10 plural beyond ten
❌ حضر أحد عشر طلابا.
Incorrect boundary rule — 11–99 take a singular accusative counted noun, not the plural genitive used after 3–10.
✅ حضر أحد عشر طالبا.
ḥaḍara ʾaḥada ʿashara ṭālibā.
Eleven students attended.
Missing the case contrast on twelve
❌ قابلت اثنا عشر طالبا.
Incorrect boundary rule — as a direct object, the first part of twelve must be oblique اثني.
✅ قابلت اثني عشر طالبا.
qābaltu thnay ʿashara ṭālibā.
I met twelve students.
These final two pairs mark the boundary of this page; they do not replace a full treatment of 11–99.
Key Takeaways
- Learn the pausal citation sequence صفر، واحد، اثنان ... عشرة, but do not treat it as a ready-made noun-counting template.
- One and two agree and normally follow; three through ten show gender polarity and precede a plural genitive counted noun.
- The numeral in a 3–10 phrase takes the case required by the larger sentence; the counted noun stays genitive plural.
- ثمانية/ثمانٍ/ثماني is irregular and deserves model phrases rather than guesswork.
- Right-to-left text does not reverse the internal value of ١٠, and later ranges such as 11–99 use different noun and case rules.
Now practice Arabic
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Start learning Arabic →Related Topics
- كلّ، بعض، كثير، قليلA1 — Use Arabic’s core quantifiers with iḍāfa, من, and singular or plural complements while keeping case and agreement visible.
- One and Two with Counted NounsA1 — Use one as a postnominal agreeing adjective and express two through the Arabic dual, adding an explicit numeral only for emphasis or contrast.
- Case across Complex NumeralsA2 — Track exactly which component changes for nominative, accusative, and genitive case in twelve, decades, coordinated numbers, and large-number phrases.