Basic Mandarin Vocabulary: Numbers

Intro

The following vocabulary list is written in simplified characters and assumes you have knowledge of pinyin and tones.

Numbers
1: 一 (yī)
2: 二 (èr)
3: 三 (sān)
4: 四 (sì)
5: 五 (wŭ)
6: 六 (lìu)
7: 七 (qī)
8: 八 (bā)
9: 九 (jiŭ)
10: 十 (shí)

How do you count beyond 10?
11 is 10 plus 1, so we write it as 十一. 12 is 十二. Etc.
20 is 2 sets of 10, so we write it as 二十. 30 is 三十. Etc.

Sample Problem

Solution

20 is 2 sets of 10: 二十.
25 is 20 plus 5: 二十五.