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Lesson 9A1

Numbers 11–100

எண்கள் 11–100

Spanish numbers stay irregular from eleven to fifteen, then turn into visible compounds from sixteen onward — a shape Tamil numbers share from eleven onward without a gap.

Grammar Comparison

இலக்கண ஒப்பீடு

Once–quince: five irregular words to memorize

Spanish

once (11), doce (12), trece (13), catorce (14), quince (15)

Tamil

பதினொன்று, பன்னிரண்டு, பதிமூன்று, பதினான்கு, பதினைந்து (11–15, தெளிவாக பத்து+இலக்கம்)

Spanish once through quince don't visibly contain diez ('ten') — they're a leftover set of standalone words you simply have to memorize, unlike Tamil's பதி-series, which stays transparent (பத்து + இலக்கம்) all the way from eleven. Once that's done, though, Spanish becomes just as predictable as Tamil.

dieciséis onward: diez + y + unit, fused into one word

Spanish

dieciséis (16 = diez + y + seis, 'ten and six'), veintiuno (21 = veinte + y + uno, 'twenty and one')

Tamil

பதினாறு (16 = பத்து + ஆறு)

From 16 onward, Spanish fuses diez y seis into dieciséis, one written word — the same 'ten-plus-unit' logic Tamil has used since eleven, just arriving five numbers later. From 21 onward the pattern repeats with veinte ('twenty'): veintiuno, veintidós, veintitrés, all fused into single words up through 29.

Tens words from 30 onward stay separate, joined by y

Spanish

treinta y uno (31), cuarenta y dos (42) — three separate words

Tamil

முப்பத்தி ஒன்று (31), நாற்பத்தி இரண்டு (42) — இணைந்த ஒரு சொல்

Unlike the twenties, tens from 30 up don't fuse into one word — treinta y uno stays three separate words (tens, y, unit), where Tamil fuses the equivalent into a single word (முப்பத்தி ஒன்று is written and said as one flowing compound). Both languages build the number the same logical way; Spanish just keeps a visible gap starting at 30.

Vocabulary

சொற்கள்

SpanishPronunciationTamilEnglish
onceOHN-sehபதினொன்றுpadhinoṉṟueleven
doceDOH-sehபன்னிரண்டுpaṉṉiraṇṭutwelve
quinceKEEN-sehபதினைந்துpadhinaindhufifteen
dieciséisdee-eh-see-SAYSபதினாறுpadhināṟusixteen
veinteVAYN-tehஇருபதுirubadhutwenty
veintiunovayn-tee-OO-nohஇருபத்தி ஒன்றுirubatthi oṉṟutwenty-one
treintaTRAYN-tahமுப்பதுmuppadhuthirty
cuarentakwah-REHN-tahநாற்பதுnāṟpadhuforty
cincuentaseen-KWEHN-tahஐம்பதுaimpadhufifty
sesentaseh-SEHN-tahஅறுபதுaṟubadhusixty
setentaseh-TEHN-tahஎழுபதுeḻubadhuseventy
ochentaoh-CHEHN-tahஎண்பதுeṇbadhueighty
noventanoh-VEHN-tahதொண்ணூறுtoṇṇūṟuninety
ciensee-EHNநூறுnūṟuone hundred