A1 · Tölur
Tölur · Numbers
Learn to count, then make your numbers agree.
Start with 0–20, build bigger numbers, and discover why two can be tveir, tvær or tvö.
The downloadable PDF guide is not uploaded yet — “Print the guide” prints this page’s reference instead.
Telja · Count
The numbers 0–20 and the tens
Pick a set, say each one out loud, then hide the English and test yourself. Only 1–4 have three forms — everything else stays the same.
Recordings are not added yet, so there are no play buttons. Read each word out loud — the stress always falls on the first syllable.
Why do 1–4 have three forms? +
Every Icelandic noun has a grammatical gender: KK · karlkyn KVK · kvenkyn HK · hvorugkyn. The numbers one to four agree with that gender, like an adjective does.
When you simply count out loud — one, two, three, four — use the masculine forms: einn, tveir, þrír, fjórir. That is why the KK form is marked “Counting form”.
From five upwards (fimm, sex, sjö…) the words never change for gender.
Byggja · Build numbers
Tens og one digit
From 21 to 99, say the tens, then og (and), then the last digit: þrjátíu og fimm is 35. The teens and the exact tens are one word, with no og.
Slide or type a number from 0 to 100.
Kyn · Gender of the noun
Prófaðu · Try these
35
Kyn · Match gender
One to four agree with the noun
This is grammatical gender, not biological sex: a book is feminine and a house is neuter. Learn each noun together with its gender. All forms here are nominative (nefnifall) — the dictionary form.
| Tala | KK · masculine | KVK · feminine | HK · neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | einncounting form | ein | eitt |
| 2 | tveircounting form | tvær | tvö |
| 3 | þrírcounting form | þrjár | þrjú |
| 4 | fjórircounting form | fjórar | fjögur |
Nominative (nefnifall). The other cases are a later lesson.
1 · Veldu nafnorð · Choose a noun
2 · Hversu mörg? · How many?
Útkoman · The result
Regla 1 · Counting
Plain counting uses the KK forms
One, two, three, four on their own: einn, tveir, þrír, fjórir. With a noun, the number takes the noun’s gender instead. Telling the time is different again: it uses the neuter.
Klukkan er tvö. — It is two o’clock.
Regla 2 · What never changes
5–20 and the exact tens stay the same
fimm, sex, sjö … tuttugu, þrjátíu … are the same for every gender. The teens 11–14 (ellefu, tólf, þrettán, fjórtán) do not use the 1–4 forms either.
fimm hestar · fimm bækur · fimm hús
Regla 3 · Big numbers ending in 1–4
Only the last part agrees
In 21–24, 31–34 and so on, the tens stay put and only the 1–4 part at the end changes.
tuttugu og tvær bækur · tuttugu og tvö hús
Regla 4 · One or more
One takes a singular noun, 2–4 a plural
einn hestur but tveir hestar. Good to know for later: 21, 31 and so on also take the singular — tuttugu og einn hestur.
ein bók · tvær bækur
Heads-up · case Preview · later lesson
Gender and case are two different things
Everything on this page is nominative, the subject form: Hér eru tveir hestar (Here are two horses). After a verb like eiga (to own) the number changes case:
Ég á tvo hesta. — I own two horses. Þolfall · accusative
Heads-up · bigger numbers Later lesson
Hundreds, thousands and “first, second”
100 is hundrað. Hundreds, thousands and the ordinal numbers (first, second, third) have rules of their own, so they get their own lessons.
Nota · Use them
Numbers in everyday life
A first look at things, age, time and prices. Each one gets a full lesson later.
Hlutir · Things
Hér eru þrjár bækur.
Here are three books.
KVK bók → þrjár
Hlutir · Things
Hér eru fjögur hús.
Here are four houses.
HK hús → fjögur
Aldur · Age
Ég er tuttugu ára.
I am twenty years old.
Ages ending in 1–4 take another form (tveggja ára) — that comes in the cases lesson.
Klukkan · Time
Klukkan er tvö.
It is two o’clock.
The hour uses the neuter: eitt, tvö, þrjú, fjögur.
Verð · Prices
22 krónur → tuttugu og tvær krónur
22 krónur (Icelandic money)
KVK króna, so 2 becomes tvær.
Tölur · The numbers module
Where to go from here
Æfa · Practise
Five short exercises
Ten free questions in each. No timer. Press Check answer when you are ready — a wrong answer just means another try.
Beginner spelling support accepts missing accents and th for þ, d for ð — you always see the exact spelling. Your practice progress is kept only in this browser; clearing your browser data removes it. Nothing you type is sent anywhere.
Athugaðu · Check with ChatGPT
Unsure about your own sentence?
Write your answer or question here, copy the ready-made prompt, and paste it into ChatGPT yourself. This is not built into the page: nothing is sent anywhere until you paste it.
ChatGPT can make mistakes. Confirm uncertain grammar with your teacher or an authoritative reference such as BÍN. The practice on this page is marked with its own checked answer key, not by AI.
Yfirlit · Quick reference
All the numbers on one screen
| 0 | núll |
| 1 | einn · ein · eitt |
| 2 | tveir · tvær · tvö |
| 3 | þrír · þrjár · þrjú |
| 4 | fjórir · fjórar · fjögur |
| 5 | fimm |
| 6 | sex |
| 7 | sjö |
| 8 | átta |
| 9 | níu |
| 10 | tíu |
| 11 | ellefu |
| 12 | tólf |
| 13 | þrettán |
| 14 | fjórtán |
| 15 | fimmtán |
| 16 | sextán |
| 17 | sautján |
| 18 | átján |
| 19 | nítján |
| 20 | tuttugu |
| 30 | þrjátíu |
| 40 | fjörutíu |
| 50 | fimmtíu |
| 60 | sextíu |
| 70 | sjötíu |
| 80 | áttatíu |
| 90 | níutíu |
| 100 | hundrað |
| 35 | þrjátíu og fimm |
1–4 shown as KK · KVK · HK. All forms nominative.
Heimildir · Sources
Forms checked against BÍN — Beygingarlýsing íslensks nútímamáls (Árni Magnússon Institute), the Icelandic grammar overview on Tungumálatorg, and the Icelandic grammar reference hosted by Árnastofnun (numbers section). Explanations and examples on this page are written for Íslenska saman.