Spanish Numbers 20-30

SpanishEnglishPronunciation (Approx.)
VeinteTwentyBayn-teh
VeintiunoTwenty-oneBayn-tee-oo-noh
VeintidósTwenty-twoBayn-tee-dohss
VeintitrésTwenty-threeBayn-tee-trehss
VeinticuatroTwenty-fourBayn-tee-kwah-troh
VeinticincoTwenty-fiveBayn-tee-theen-koh
VeintiséisTwenty-sixBayn-tee-sayss
VeintisieteTwenty-sevenBayn-tee-sy-et-eh
VeintiochoTwenty-eightBayn-tee-oh-choh
VeintinueveTwenty-nineBayn-tee-nweh-beh
TreintaThirtyTrayn-tah
 

English explanation of Spanish numbers from 20 to 30, with easy-to-understand pronunciation, usage rules, and examples — without any external links.


Spanish Numbers from Twenty to Thirty

20 — veinte (pronounced BAYn-teh)
21 — veintiuno (pronounced beyn-tee-OO-noh)
22 — veintidós (pronounced beyn-tee-dohs)
23 — veintitrés (pronounced beyn-tee-trehs)
24 — veinticuatro (pronounced beyn-tee-KWA-troh)
25 — veinticinco (pronounced beyn-tee-SEEN-koh)
26 — veintiséis (pronounced beyn-tee-SAYS)
27 — veintisiete (pronounced beyn-tee-SYE-teh)
28 — veintiocho (pronounced beyn-tee-OH-choh)
29 — veintinueve (pronounced beyn-tee-NWEH-veh)
30 — treinta (pronounced TRAYN-tah)


How These Numbers Are Formed

➤ For 20–29, Spanish builds numbers by combining the base veinte with the units.
➤ Instead of saying twenty and one, Spanish fuses them into one word: veintiuno, veintidós, veintitrés, etc.
➤ That veinti- pattern is the standard way to form numbers from 21 to 29.


Pronunciation Tips

➤ The v in Spanish often sounds more like b, so veinte sounds close to beinte.
➤ Stress in veintidós, veintitrés, veintiséis falls on the last syllable — that’s why they have a written accent.
➤ The ei sound in veinti- is similar to the English ay in day, but shorter.


Usage Rules & Examples

Counting Objects

Veinticuatro sillas — “twenty-four chairs.”
Veintisiete libros — “twenty-seven books.”

Age

In Spanish, age is expressed with tener (to have):
Tengo veintidós años. — “I am twenty-two years old.”

Time

For hours after 20:00 (eight p.m.), Spanish may use the full numeric form:
Son las veintidós. — “It is twenty-two o’clock.”
(Although in everyday speech, the 24-hour clock may be replaced with context depending on country.)


Gender & Agreement Notes

➤ When counting people or objects, the numbers themselves don’t change except for veintiuno:
Veintiún libros — “twenty-one books” (masculine)
Veintiuna casas — “twenty-one houses” (feminine)
This is because uno becomes un/una to match gender when it directly precedes a noun.


Moving Past Thirty

➤ Once you reach 30 — treinta, Spanish stops using the veinti- pattern.
➤ Numbers above 30 (like 31, 32, etc.) use tens + y + units:
Treinta y uno — “thirty-one”
Treinta y dos — “thirty-two”
This y (meaning and) returns after 30, whereas it isn’t used between 20 and 29.


Quick Memory Helpers

veinte is the base word for twenty.
veinti- is the prefix for “twenty-plus-unit.”
➤ Accent marks in veintidós, veintitrés, veintiséis show the stressed syllable.


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