Numbers and Age

In this lesson, we will dive into the world of Russian numbers and learn how to use them to talk about something very personal: your age.

🔢 Part 1: Cardinal Numbers (0-100)

First, let's learn the basic numbers. They are the foundation for everything else.

🔹 Numbers 0-10:
0 - ноль (nol')
1 - один (adin)
2 - два (dva)
3 - три (tri)
4 - четыре (chetyre)
5 - пять (pyat')
6 - шесть (shest')
7 - семь (sem')
8 - восемь (vosem')
9 - девять (devyat')
10 - десять (desyat')

🔹 Numbers 11-20:
These are formed similarly to English 'teens'. You take the basic number and add the suffix -надцать (-nadtsat').
11 - одиннадцать (odinnadtsat')
12 - двенадцать (dvenadtsat')
13 - тринадцать (trinadtsat')
14 - четырнадцать (chetyrnadtsat')
15 - пятнадцать (pyatnadtsat')
16 - шестнадцать (shestnadtsat')
17 - семнадцать (semnadtsat')
18 - восемнадцать (vosemnadtsat')
19 - девятнадцать (devyatnadtsat')
20 - двадцать (dvadtsat')

🔹 Tens (30-100):
Now for the round numbers. Pay attention to 40 and 90, as they are exceptions to the pattern!
30 - тридцать (tridtsat')
40 - сорок (sorok) ⚠️ Exception!
50 - пятьдесят (pyat'desyat)
60 - шестьдесят (shest'desyat)
70 - семьдесят (sem'desyat)
80 - восемьдесят (vosem'desyat)
90 - девяносто (devyanosto) ⚠️ Exception!
100 - сто (sto)

To form a number like 23, you just combine the ten and the unit: двадцать три (dvadtsat' tri). For 58, it's пятьдесят восемь (pyat'desyat vosem'). Simple!

A quick but important note on gender: The numbers 'one' and 'two' change depending on the gender of the noun they describe.

• один (masculine), одна (feminine), одно (neuter)
• два (masculine/neuter), две (feminine)
  We will see this in action when we talk about age.

🎂 Part 2: How to Talk About Age

This is a very common question, so let's learn how to ask and answer it.

❓ The Question:
To ask someone 'How old are you?', you say:

• Сколько тебе лет? (Skol'ko tebe let?) - Informal, for friends and people your age.
• Сколько Вам лет? (Skol'ko Vam let?) - Formal, for strangers, older people, or in professional settings.

✅ The Answer:
The structure of the answer is always: Мне + [your age] + [a form of the word 'year'].
'Мне' (mne) means 'to me'. So, you are literally saying 'To me is X years'.

The tricky part is choosing the correct form of the word 'year'. There are three options: год (god), года (goda), and лет (let). The choice depends on the last number in your age.

Here is the golden rule:

1️⃣ Use год (god) if the age ends in 1 (but not 11).

• Мне 1 год. (I am 1 year old.)
• Мне 21 год. (I am 21 years old.) -> Note we use 'один' (masculine form) for 'год'.
• Мне 51 год. (I am 51 years old.)

2️⃣ Use года (goda) if the age ends in 2, 3, or 4 (but not 12, 13, or 14).

• Мне 2 года. (I am 2 years old.) -> Note we use 'два' for 'года'.
• Мне 3 года. (I am 3 years old.)
• Мне 4 года. (I am 4 years old.)
• Мне 32 года. (I am 32 years old.)
• Мне 44 года. (I am 44 years old.)

3️⃣ Use лет (let) for ALL other numbers. This is the most common form. It is used for:

• Ages ending in 0, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.
• Ages 11 through 19.
• Мне 5 лет. (I am 5 years old.)
• Мне 11 лет. (I am 11 years old.)
• Мне 15 лет. (I am 15 years old.)
• Мне 20 лет. (I am 20 years old.)
• Мне 67 лет. (I am 67 years old.)

Let's summarize this crucial rule:

• Age ends in 1 (e.g., 21, 31, 41) → год
• Age ends in 2, 3, 4 (e.g., 22, 33, 44) → года
• Age ends in 0, 5-9 or is 11-19 (e.g., 10, 11, 15, 20, 25) → лет

Mastering this rule is key to sounding natural when speaking Russian. Now, let's practice!