Breakdown of Tengo dieciocho manzanas y diecinueve libros.
y
and
la manzana
the apple
tener
to have
el libro
the book
Questions & Answers about Tengo dieciocho manzanas y diecinueve libros.
Where do the words dieciocho and diecinueve come from?
In Spanish, numbers 16 through 19 are formed by combining diez (ten), y (and), and the single digit. When they merge into one word, the z changes to a c, and the y becomes an i. So, diez y ocho becomes dieciocho, and diez y nueve becomes diecinueve.
Do I need to change the endings of dieciocho or diecinueve to match manzanas (feminine) and libros (masculine)?
No, these numbers stay exactly the same regardless of gender. While adjectives in Spanish usually change to match whether a noun is masculine or feminine, most numbers do not. You use the exact same number word for both feminine apples (manzanas) and masculine books (libros). The main exception is the number one (uno), which changes to un or una.
Can I write these numbers as three separate words, like diez y ocho?
Why doesn't the sentence use (I) before ?