Maya: Hola, and welcome back to Spanish for Gringos! I'm Maya.
Devon: And I'm Devon. This is lesson three, and today we are conquering numbers one through twenty.
Maya: Devon, why are numbers such a big deal for a traveler?
Devon: Because every price tag, every hotel room number, and every taxi fare you'll ever hear is just numbers. Master these twenty and the whole trip gets easier.
Maya: Let's start at the very beginning. Repeat after me. Uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco. That's one through five.
Devon: Uno, two in Spanish is dos, tres means three, cuatro is four, cinco is five. Quick tip: the letter u in Spanish is always a long oo sound, like in moon. So dos is dohs, not dahss. And the letter c before an e sounds like an s, so cinco is SEEN-koh, not KIN-koh.
Maya: Next group, six through ten. Seis, siete, ocho, nueve, diez.
Devon: So that's seis for six, siete for seven, ocho for eight, nueve for nine, and diez for ten. The letter z is also an s sound, so diez is dee-EHS. And ocho is OH-choh, not oh-KOH. Practice these until they're automatic.
Maya: Now the teens, eleven through fifteen, and these are special because each has its own unique word. Once, doce, trece, catorce, quince.
Devon: Once means eleven. Careful, Devon says: once is pronounced OHN-say. It's not like the English word once. Then doce is twelve, trece is thirteen, catorce is fourteen, and quince is fifteen.
Maya: My tip for this group: the letter o is always a round oh sound, like in go. So doce is DOH-say and trece is TREH-say. And quince is KEEN-say. Say them like music: once, doce, trece, catorce, quince.
Devon: Final stretch, sixteen through twenty. Dieciséis, diecisiete, dieciocho, diecinueve, veinte.
Maya: These all follow a pattern. Diez plus the number, glued together. Dieciséis is sixteen, diecisiete is seventeen, dieciocho is eighteen, diecinueve is nineteen. And twenty is its own word: veinte.
Devon: And here's a classic gringo mistake. Veinte starts with a v, but in Spanish a v sounds like a soft b. So it's BAYN-tay, not WAYN-tay. Say it with me, Maya.
Maya: BAYN-tay. Veinte. Alright, Devon, let's use these in a real scene. Demo time. We're at a taco stand in Mexico City.
Devon: Buenas tardes. ¿Cuántos tacos quieren?
Maya: Quiero cuatro tacos, por favor. Cuatro tacos de pastor.
Devon: Cuatro tacos para la señora. ¿Algo más?
Maya: Sí, dos aguas frescas. Dos, por favor.
Devon: ¡Perfecto! Cuatro tacos y dos aguas.
Maya: And there it is. We used dos, cuatro, and por favor from lesson two. Devon, can I ask you something real quick? Where did the number thirteen hide for so long?
Devon: Ha! Trece was right there in the teen group. But here's your cultural note for today. In many Latin American markets, prices are not fixed. When a vendor says ocho dollars, you can smile and say siete. Bargaining is normal and friendly, so these numbers pay for themselves fast.
Maya: Also, taxi drivers will hold up fingers AND say the number, so knowing veinte or quince by ear saves you from guessing wrong.
Devon: Before we close, our three phrase recap drill. Maya, give me the first one.
Maya: Say the number six in Spanish.
Devon: Seis. SAY-ees.
Maya: Say the number twelve.
Devon: Doce. DOH-say.
Maya: And say the number twenty.
Devon: Veinte. BAYN-tay.
Maya: Excellent work. Numbers one through twenty are yours now. Next lesson, we go bigger: numbers twenty to one hundred, plus money and prices. Hasta luego, amigos!
Devon: Nos vemos. And remember, uno, dos, tres — practice out loud all day!