How do you count in Russian?

Russian counting starts with один (odin) = 1, два (dva) = 2, три (tri) = 3, четыре (chetyre) = 4, пять (pyat') = 5. Numbers 11–19 add -надцать to the root (одиннадцать, двенадцать...). Tens are formed by combining the digit root with -дцать or -десят (двадцать = 20, тридцать = 30, пятьдесят = 50). 40 (сорок) and 90 (девяносто) are irregular.

Why do Russian numbers change the noun after them?

Russian numbers trigger different grammatical cases on the following noun. After 1, the noun stays in the nominative (один дом = one house). After 2, 3, or 4, the noun goes into the genitive singular (два дома = two houses). After 5–20, the noun goes into the genitive plural (пять домов = five houses). This pattern repeats: 21 acts like 1, 22 like 2, etc.

Do Russian numbers 1 and 2 have gender?

Yes. Один has three gender forms: один (masculine), одна (feminine), одно (neuter). Два has two: два (masculine/neuter) and две (feminine). So it's один дом (one house, masc.), одна книга (one book, fem.), два стола (two tables, masc.), две кошки (two cats, fem.). Numbers 3 and above don't change for gender.

Russian Numbers 1–1000 - Pronunciation, Cases & Counting Rules

Grammar hook - the counting case rule

In English, you say "one house, two houses, five houses." The noun just adds -s. In Russian, the number changes which case the noun takes:

Один дом - 1 house (nominative)
Два дома - 2 houses (genitive singular)
Пять домов - 5 houses (genitive plural)

The rule: 1 → nominative. 2, 3, 4 → genitive singular. 5–20 → genitive plural. Then it cycles: 21 acts like 1, 22 like 2, 25 like 5. This single pattern governs every count in Russian.

Numbers 1–10

The foundation. Note that 1 and 2 change for gender - один/одна/одно and два/две. From 3 onward, no gender distinction.

#	Russian	Pronunciation	Gender notes
1	один	odin	masc. Also: одна (fem.), одно (neut.)
2	два	dva	masc./neut. Also: две (fem.)
3	три	tri	No gender change
4	четыре	chetyre	No gender change
5	пять	pyat'	Soft sign ending (ь)
6	шесть	shest'	Soft sign ending (ь)
7	семь	sem'	Soft sign ending (ь)
8	восемь	vosem'	Soft sign ending (ь)
9	девять	devyat'	Soft sign ending (ь)
10	десять	desyat'	Soft sign ending (ь)

Numbers 11–19

All formed by combining the digit root with -надцать (-nadtsat'), which comes from "на десять" - "on ten." They all take genitive plural, just like 5–10.

#	Russian	Pronunciation	Notes
11	одиннадцать	odinnadtsat'	Double н
12	двенадцать	dvenadtsat'
13	тринадцать	trinadtsat'
14	четырнадцать	chetyrnadtsat'	No е after четыр-
15	пятнадцать	pyatnadtsat'	No soft sign before -надцать
16	шестнадцать	shestnadtsat'
17	семнадцать	semnadtsat'
18	восемнадцать	vosemnadtsat'
19	девятнадцать	devyatnadtsat'

Tens: 20–90

Most follow a pattern, but 40 and 90 are irregular - they break the -дцать/-десят system entirely. You just have to memorize сорок and девяносто.

#	Russian	Pronunciation	Notes
20	двадцать	dvadtsat'	два + дцать ("two tens")
30	тридцать	tridtsat'	три + дцать ("three tens")
40	сорок	sorok	Irregular. Possibly from Greek "forty"
50	пятьдесят	pyat'desyat	пять + десят ("five tens")
60	шестьдесят	shest'desyat	шесть + десят
70	семьдесят	sem'desyat	семь + десят
80	восемьдесят	vosem'desyat	восемь + десят
90	девяносто	devyanosto	Irregular. Old Slavic origin

100, 1000 & beyond

#	Russian	Pronunciation	Notes
100	сто	sto	Short. Like English "stow" without the w
200	двести	dvesti	два + сти
300	триста	trista	три + ста
500	пятьсот	pyat'sot	пять + сот. Same pattern for 600–900
1000	тысяча	tysyacha	Feminine noun. 2000 = две тысячи

Compound numbers

Just like English - say the tens, then the ones: двадцать один (21), тридцать пять (35), девяносто девять (99). No "and" needed.

The last digit determines the case of the following noun. So 21 acts like 1 (nominative), 22 acts like 2 (genitive singular), and 25 acts like 5 (genitive plural). This is the most important rule to internalize.

Numbers in context

Watch how the same noun (дом - house) changes shape depending on the number before it.

Один дом стоит на холме.

Odin dom stoit na kholme.

One house stands on the hill.

1 → дом (nominative singular)

Два дома стоят на холме.

Dva doma stoyat na kholme.

Two houses stand on the hill.

2 → дома (genitive singular)

Пять домов стоят на холме.

Pyat' domov stoyat na kholme.

Five houses stand on the hill.

5 → домов (genitive plural)

Двадцать один дом стоит на холме.

Dvadtsat' odin dom stoit na kholme.

Twenty-one houses stand on the hill.

21 → дом (nominative singular again - last digit is 1)

У меня две сестры и один брат.

U menya dve sestry i odin brat.

I have two sisters and one brother.

две (feminine form of 2) + сестры (gen. singular); один (masc.) + брат (nom.)

Cultural context

Phone numbers are said digit by digit. Russians don't say "three hundred forty-five" for 345 in a phone number - they say "три-четыре-пять." The area code is usually said as a group: "восемь-девятьсот-девяносто пять" (8-995).

Prices use the case rule. "21 рубль" (nominative), "22 рубля" (genitive singular), "25 рублей" (genitive plural). This is where the counting case rule hits you every single day in Russia - at every shop, cafe, and taxi fare.

Odd numbers for the living, even for the dead. When buying flowers in Russia, always buy an odd number (1, 3, 5, 7...). Even numbers are reserved for funerals. Bringing someone 12 roses is a serious faux pas.