Lesson 2 of 8 · Level A1 · 12 min
Numbers, time and dates
You need numbers for phone numbers, prices, addresses, shift times and dates. Two things are different from English.
1. Numbers from 21 are said “backwards”
German says the ones before the tens: 21 is einundzwanzig (“one-and-twenty”), 45 is fünfundvierzig (“five-and-forty”), 98 is achtundneunzig.
2. “halb” means half TO the next hour
halb neun is 8:30, not 9:30. Think: halfway to nine.
Getting halb wrong is how people arrive an hour late for interviews. Es ist halb drei = it is 2:30.
Numbers
Tap the headphones to hear each one.
- null, eins, zwei, drei0, 1, 2, 3
- vier, fünf, sechs, sieben4, 5, 6, 7
- acht, neun, zehn8, 9, 10
- elf, zwölf11, 12
- dreizehn, zwanzig13, 20
- einundzwanzig21
- dreißig, vierzig, fünfzig30, 40, 50
- hundert, tausend100, 1,000
Time
Tap the headphones to hear each one.
- Wie spät ist es?What time is it?
- Es ist acht Uhr.It is eight o’clock.
- Viertel nach achtQuarter past eight (8:15)
- halb neunHalf past eight (8:30)
- Viertel vor neunQuarter to nine (8:45)
- um 14 Uhrat 2 pm (14:00)
Days and months
Tap the headphones to hear each one.
- Montag, Dienstag, MittwochMonday, Tuesday, Wednesday
- Donnerstag, FreitagThursday, Friday
- Samstag, SonntagSaturday, Sunday
- am Montagon Monday
- im Januarin January
- heute, morgen, gesterntoday, tomorrow, yesterday
Germany uses the 24-hour clock in writing: a shift “um 14:30 Uhr” starts at 2:30 pm. Dates are written day first: 05.11.2026 is 5 November 2026.
Quiz
1. What time is “halb drei”?
2. How do you say 45?
3. Your interview is “am Dienstag um 10 Uhr”. When is it?
4. What is the date 03.07.2026?
5. “Viertel vor neun” is…