German numbers run backwards: einundzwanzig is 21
CEFR A1 · part 19 minInstant feedback
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The rule, in three lines
From 21 up, German says the UNIT first, then und, then the ten, all as one word: einundzwanzig is 21, dreiundfünfzig is 53. The ten always lands at the end, so the end of the word tells you the size. And prices use a comma: 3,50 €.
The usual slip. Hearing einundzwanzig and writing 12. It is the most expensive practical mistake of the lot, because it happens with phone numbers, prices and times. The defence is to wait for the end of the word: the ten is always there.
Why it catches you out. Modern English runs in written order, but the German pattern is not new to you: it is the «four and twenty blackbirds» of the nursery rhyme, which is exactly einundzwanzig. The trap that costs money is the other one: German writes prices with a comma.