Counting in Dutch (A1) | Dutch Grammar

Knowing the number words is one thing; using them in a real sentence is another. This page is about counting in practice: telling someone how many brothers you have, ordering three coffees, saying there are five people in the room. You will count from one to twenty and slot those numbers into the everyday frames Dutch speakers actually use. Two small habits make all the difference at A1: numbers themselves never change shape, but the noun after them goes plural — and from twenty-one up, Dutch flips the order, saying the unit before the ten.

One to twenty

Start by getting these solid. They are the bricks for everything else.

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
een	twee	drie	vier	vijf	zes	zeven	acht	negen	tien

11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20
elf	twaalf	dertien	veertien	vijftien	zestien	zeventien	achttien	negentien	twintig

Watch dertien (13) and veertien (14): the stems bend a little (not drietien, not viertien). Everything else from 13 to 19 is just the unit plus -tien.

Eén, twee, drie… kom je nog of niet?

One, two, three… are you coming or not?

Er liggen twaalf eieren in de doos.

There are twelve eggs in the box.

Saying how many: the noun goes plural

Here is the rule that English speakers already half-know but still slip on. When you count ordinary things, the noun after the number is plural: twee broers (two brothers), drie koffies, vijf mensen. The number itself never changes — twee is twee whether it sits before broer or huis — but the thing being counted takes its plural form, exactly as in English ("two brothers," not "two brother").

Ik heb twee broers en een zus.

I have two brothers and one sister. ('broers' is plural after the number)

Op het bord liggen vier koekjes.

There are four biscuits on the plate.

Ze hebben drie kinderen, allemaal jongens.

They have three children, all boys.

The only common exceptions are units of measure — time, weight, money — which stay singular after a number: twee jaar (two years), drie uur (three hours), vijf euro (five euros), tien kilo. But for ordinary countable things — brothers, biscuits, people, books — go plural.

De reis duurt drie uur.

The trip takes three hours. (unit of time → 'uur' stays singular)

Dat kost vijf euro.

That costs five euros. (money → 'euro' stays singular)

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Quick test: is it a thing you could point at and pluralise (brothers, cups, people)? Then it goes plural after the number. Is it a unit of time, weight or money (jaar, uur, kilo, euro)? Then it stays singular. That single distinction covers almost every case at A1.

Er zijn / er is: saying there is, there are

To say "there is" or "there are," Dutch uses er is (singular) and er zijn (plural) — the er is a fixed little filler word, like English "there." With a number above one, you use er zijn + the plural noun.

Er zijn vijf mensen in de wachtkamer.

There are five people in the waiting room.

Er is nog één plek vrij.

There's still one spot free. (singular → 'er is')

Er zijn maar twee stoelen, dus we moeten delen.

There are only two chairs, so we'll have to share.

Ordering things: drie koffie, alsjeblieft

When you order food and drink, casual spoken Dutch often keeps the noun singular, treating it as "three (servings of) coffee": drie koffie, alsjeblieft. You will also hear the regular plural drie koffies — both are heard, and the singular is the relaxed café form. Either is understood; copy what you hear locally.

Twee koffie en een thee, alsjeblieft.

Two coffees and a tea, please. (café-style singular 'koffie')

Mag ik drie broodjes kaas?

Can I have three cheese rolls? (regular plural 'broodjes')

Doe mij maar twee bier en een cola.

I'll have two beers and a cola, please. (café-style 'twee bier')

The twenty-one trap (a first look)

From twenty-one up, Dutch reverses the order: it says the unit first, then the ten, glued together as one word with -en- in between. Eenentwintig is literally "one-and-twenty." This is the single biggest shock for English speakers, so meet it early even at A1.

Mijn oma heeft eenentwintig kleinkinderen.

My grandma has twenty-one grandchildren. (eenentwintig = one-and-twenty)

Er zaten vijfentwintig kinderen in de klas.

There were twenty-five children in the class. (vijfentwintig = five-and-twenty)

Just register the pattern for now: say the small digit first. The full system of the twenties through the nineties is covered on the cardinals and teens-and-tens pages.

Common Mistakes

❌ Ik heb twee broer.

Incorrect — count nouns go plural after a number: 'broers'.

✅ Ik heb twee broers.

I have two brothers.

❌ twintig-een / twintig een

Incorrect — Dutch says the unit first: 'eenentwintig' (one-and-twenty).

✅ eenentwintig

twenty-one

❌ Er is vijf mensen in de kamer.

Incorrect — a plural count takes 'er zijn', not 'er is'.

✅ Er zijn vijf mensen in de kamer.

There are five people in the room.

❌ De reis duurt drie uren.

Incorrect — units of time stay singular after a number: 'drie uur'.

✅ De reis duurt drie uur.

The trip takes three hours.

❌ Ik heb vijf jaren in Amsterdam gewoond.

Incorrect — 'jaar' stays singular after a number.

✅ Ik heb vijf jaar in Amsterdam gewoond.

I lived in Amsterdam for five years.

Key Takeaways

Memorise 1–20; dertien (13) and veertien (14) bend the stem.
Numbers never change shape, but the count noun after them goes plural (twee broers, vijf mensen).
Units of time, weight and money stay singular (drie uur, vijf euro, tien kilo).
Use er is for one thing, er zijn for several (er zijn vijf mensen).
Café orders are often singular (drie koffie); from 21 up, the unit comes first (eenentwintig).

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