Numbers, dates and telling the time

Counting, fixing a date and telling the time are among the first things a learner needs to do, and in European Portuguese each of them carries small quirks — of agreement, of spelling and of pronunciation — well worth pinning down early.

Cardinal numbers

The cardinals from zero to fifteen are individual forms to be memorised; beyond that the system is regular. Note the European spelling of several of them, which differs from the Brazilian one.

0 zero	4 quatro	8 oito	12 doze
1 um / uma	5 cinco	9 nove	13 treze
2 dois / duas	6 seis	10 dez	14 catorze
3 três	7 sete	11 onze	15 quinze

Between 16 and 19 and in the tens, the words are built by composition: dezasseis, dezassete, dezoito, dezanove; then vinte, trinta, quarenta, cinquenta, sessenta, setenta, oitenta, noventa. The hundreds run from cem to novecentos, and mil (“a thousand”) is invariable.

The word e (“and”) links the elements within each group (tens to units, hundreds to the rest): vinte e um (21), cento e trinta e dois (132), mil novecentos e oitenta e quatro (1984).

Gender and the form «cem»

Four numbers agree in gender with the noun they accompany: um/uma, dois/duas and the hundreds from two hundred upward (duzentos/duzentas, trezentos/trezentas…).

Use cem before a noun or a larger number (cem euros, cem mil), but cento when more units follow: cento e um (101), cento e vinte (120).

Ordinal numbers

Ordinals are used for ranking, for kings and popes, for floors and centuries. The basic forms are primeiro, segundo, terceiro, quarto, quinto, sexto, sétimo, oitavo, nono, décimo; then décimo primeiro, vigésimo (20th), trigésimo (30th), centésimo (100th), milésimo (1000th). All agree in gender and number: a primeira vez (“the first time”), os primeiros dias (“the first days”).

Decimal comma and thousands separator

Unlike English, Portuguese uses a comma as the decimal separator and reserves the full stop (or a space) for thousands: 3,14; 1 250,50 €. The comma is read as vírgula: três vírgula catorze. Times are written with h (14h30) and percentages with %, read por cento.

Dates

The weekdays from Monday to Friday are built with -feira and are feminine: segunda-feira (Mon.), terça-feira (Tue.), quarta-feira (Wed.), quinta-feira (Thu.), sexta-feira (Fri.); the weekend is sábado and domingo. The months — janeiro, fevereiro, março, abril, maio, junho, julho, agosto, setembro, outubro, novembro, dezembro — are written with a lowercase initial, as are the days.

A date is ordered day – month – year, joined by the preposition de, and the day is counted with a cardinal:

Telling the time

The question is Que horas são? (“What time is it?”). For one o’clock and for midday and midnight the verb is singular; for the rest it is plural:

Minutes are added with e (“and”); past the half hour, you say how much is missing until the next hour, with menos (“less”) or para as (“to”). The half hour is e meia and the quarter is um quarto:

Clock	Usual form
3.10	*são três e dez* (ten past three)
3.15	*são três e um quarto* / *e quinze* (quarter past)
3.30	*são três e meia* (half past three)
3.45	*são quatro menos um quarto* / *um quarto para as quatro*
3.50	*são dez para as quatro* (ten to four)
12.00	*é meio-dia* (midday)

In formal use and on public timetables the 24-hour clock prevails: the 14h30 train is announced catorze e trinta. To place the part of the day, add da manhã (“in the morning”), da tarde (“in the afternoon”) or da noite (“at night”): às nove da manhã, às oito da noite. The preposition introducing the time is a, contracted with the article: à uma (“at one”), às três (“at three”).

Asking and giving the time, fixing a meeting na quinta-feira or jotting down a price with a decimal comma are everyday gestures: once these details are mastered, the learner gains immediate autonomy for practical life in Portuguese.