One suffix does almost all of it
French builds ordinals by adding -ième to the cardinal number you already know. There is no separate word to learn for each one.
| cardinal | ordinal | |
|---|---|---|
| deux | deuxième | second |
| trois | troisième | third |
| six | sixième | sixth |
| sept | septième | seventh |
| huit | huitième | eighth |
| dix | dixième | tenth |
A final -e is dropped first: quatre → quatrième, not quatreième.
| The fourth team won. | La quatrième équipe a gagné. |
Three that change their spelling
| why | ||
|---|---|---|
| cinq → cinquième | fifth | a u is inserted to keep the /k/ sound |
| neuf → neuvième | ninth | the f becomes v |
| un → premier | first | completely irregular, and carded back at L79 |
premier is the only ordinal with a separate feminine form you must think about: premier / première. Every ordinal in -ième is identical for both genders — le troisième jour, la troisième fois.
second or deuxième ?
Both mean second. The old rule is that second is used when there are only two of something and deuxième when the list may go on, and while few people apply it strictly any more, second does keep a slightly more formal ring.
| It is my second trip. | C'est mon second voyage. |
Floors are counted from zero
Le deuxième étage is two flights up, because the ground floor is le rez-de-chaussée and is not counted as a numbered floor at all.
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