German Grammar - Cardinal Numbers

Cardinal Numbers

In relation to nouns, cardinal numbers are placed before adjectives, if any. If the number is relatively low, it is usually not combined with an indefinite plural article (e.g. einige or mehrere). Personal pronouns of the first and second person are placed before numbers. Personal pronouns of the third person cannot be used with numbers.

"Drei Hunde"

"Die vier apokalyptischen Reiter"

NOT: "Einige fünf Äpfel" BUT: "Einige Äpfel" or "Fünf Äpfel"

"Ein paar tausend Euro"

"Wir vier"

The use of cardinal numbers requires the plural form of the noun or nominal phrase.

NOT: "Zehn Pferd" BUT: "Zehn Pferde"

EXCEPTION: "Zehn Bier" (colloquial) and "Zehn Biere" (semi-formal) are both acceptable, with respect to certain nouns such as beverages.

The cardinal number "one" is identical in form and inflection to the indefinite article. The number is distinguished from the article in speech by intonation and in writing sometimes by emphasis (italics or spacing: "ein" or "e i n"). In dialects, the indefinite is much shortened to a Schwa, equivalent to an unstressed e (varying into a short "a" when coming into Upper German regions), whereas the cardinal number isn't.

"Ein rotes Buch" may mean

"a red book" - ein rotes Buch; or

"one red book" - ein rotes Buch

The numbers zwei (two) and drei (three) have case endings in some instances. Where an adjective would have weak endings, numbers do not have endings. If an adjective had strong endings, these numbers may also have strong endings in the genitive case

"das Haus zweier junger Frauen"

If there is no other word carrying the strong ending of the genitive plural, the numbers must carry it.

"die Reise dreier Schwestern"

If these numbers are centre of a nominal phrase in the dative plural and no other word carries case markers, they may carry dative endings.

"Zweien habe ich Bananen gegeben"

Special case for 'eins' in German: It can be represented as: "eins", "eine", "einer", "eines", "einem" or "einen" depending on the sentence.