Counting by Tens
Now we will learn how to count by tens up to one hundred. Just like smaller numbers, these are placed directly in front of plural nouns and do not change their form.
Thirty and Forty
The words for thirty and forty are tredive and fyrre.
| The large house has thirty rooms. | Det store hus har tredive værelser. |
| There are forty dogs in the park. | Der er fyrre hunde i parken. |
Fifty to Ninety
Historically, the Danish numbers from fifty to ninety are based on a base-20 counting system. Today, you can simply memorize them as distinct words:
- 50: halvtreds
- 60: tres
- 70: halvfjerds
- 80: firs
- 90: halvfems
| The man buys fifty apples. | Manden køber halvtreds æbler. |
| We know sixty teachers. | Vi kender tres lærere. |
| There are seventy birds in the forest. | Der er halvfjerds fugle i skoven. |
| The old house has eighty beds. | Det gamle hus har firs senge. |
| The store has ninety chairs. | Butikken har halvfems stole. |
One Hundred
The word for one hundred is hundrede. It is often used with the word for one, as et hundrede, but it can also just stand alone.
| The family has one hundred pictures. | Familien har et hundrede billeder. |
Combining Tens and Single Digits
When combining a ten and a single digit to form a number like 21 or 35, Danish uses a "units first" structure. You say the single digit, followed by og (and), and then the tens. The entire number is written together as a single word.
For example, 21 is enogtyve (literally "one-and-twenty").
| The store has twenty-one cakes. | Butikken har enogtyve kager. |
Similarly, 35 is femogtredive (literally "five-and-thirty").
| The doctor has thirty-five magazines. | Lægen har femogtredive blade. |
