Ordinal Numbers: 1st to 100th List and Rules
What ordinal numbers are, the full list from first to one hundredth in words, the 1st, 2nd, 3rd suffix rule, the tricky spellings and how they differ from cardinal numbers.
By Polarzinho ·
When I finish at the top of the leaderboard, I do not finish "one". I finish first! That is the job of ordinal numbers: they tell the order, the position of something in a line.
Here you get the list from 1st to 100th in words, the suffix rule, the spellings that trip people up and the difference between ordinal and cardinal numbers.
What are ordinal numbers?
Ordinal numbers show order or position: first, second, third. Cardinal numbers show how many: one, two, three.
- Cardinal: I have three bamboo sticks.
- Ordinal: I ate the third bamboo stick in the pile.
Ordinal numbers 1st to 100th
- 1st first · 2nd second · 3rd third · 4th fourth · 5th fifth · 6th sixth · 7th seventh · 8th eighth · 9th ninth · 10th tenth
- 11th eleventh · 12th twelfth · 13th thirteenth · 14th fourteenth · 15th fifteenth · 16th sixteenth · 17th seventeenth · 18th eighteenth · 19th nineteenth · 20th twentieth
- 21st twenty-first · 22nd twenty-second · 23rd twenty-third · 24th twenty-fourth · 25th twenty-fifth · 26th twenty-sixth · 27th twenty-seventh · 28th twenty-eighth · 29th twenty-ninth · 30th thirtieth
- 31st thirty-first · 32nd thirty-second · 33rd thirty-third · 34th thirty-fourth · 35th thirty-fifth · 36th thirty-sixth · 37th thirty-seventh · 38th thirty-eighth · 39th thirty-ninth · 40th fortieth
- 41st forty-first · 42nd forty-second · 43rd forty-third · 44th forty-fourth · 45th forty-fifth · 46th forty-sixth · 47th forty-seventh · 48th forty-eighth · 49th forty-ninth · 50th fiftieth
- 51st fifty-first · 52nd fifty-second · 53rd fifty-third · 54th fifty-fourth · 55th fifty-fifth · 56th fifty-sixth · 57th fifty-seventh · 58th fifty-eighth · 59th fifty-ninth · 60th sixtieth
- 61st sixty-first · 62nd sixty-second · 63rd sixty-third · 64th sixty-fourth · 65th sixty-fifth · 66th sixty-sixth · 67th sixty-seventh · 68th sixty-eighth · 69th sixty-ninth · 70th seventieth
- 71st seventy-first · 72nd seventy-second · 73rd seventy-third · 74th seventy-fourth · 75th seventy-fifth · 76th seventy-sixth · 77th seventy-seventh · 78th seventy-eighth · 79th seventy-ninth · 80th eightieth
- 81st eighty-first · 82nd eighty-second · 83rd eighty-third · 84th eighty-fourth · 85th eighty-fifth · 86th eighty-sixth · 87th eighty-seventh · 88th eighty-eighth · 89th eighty-ninth · 90th ninetieth
- 91st ninety-first · 92nd ninety-second · 93rd ninety-third · 94th ninety-fourth · 95th ninety-fifth · 96th ninety-sixth · 97th ninety-seventh · 98th ninety-eighth · 99th ninety-ninth · 100th one hundredth
The st, nd, rd and th rule
- Numbers ending in 1 take st: 1st, 21st, 101st.
- Numbers ending in 2 take nd: 2nd, 22nd, 102nd.
- Numbers ending in 3 take rd: 3rd, 33rd, 103rd.
- Everything else takes th: 4th, 10th, 100th.
- Exception: 11, 12 and 13 always take th: 11th, 12th, 13th, and also 111th, 112th, 113th.
Tricky spellings
- one → first, two → second, three → third.
- five → fifth, twelve → twelfth (the ve becomes f).
- eight → eighth (only one t is added).
- nine → ninth (the e goes away).
- twenty → twentieth, thirty → thirtieth (the y becomes ie).
- In compound numbers, only the last word changes: twenty-first, ninety-ninth.
Bigger numbers
- 100th one hundredth
- 101st one hundred and first
- 1,000th one thousandth
- 1,000,000th one millionth
When to use them
- Rankings and races: I came 2nd.
- Floors: I live on the 5th floor.
- Dates: January 1st, said "January first".
- Birthdays and anniversaries: my 10th birthday.
- Kings and popes: Henry VIII is "Henry the Eighth".
Ordinals in games
Games are full of ordinals: first place, second level, tenth floor. In Twirldrop I drop down a tower, breaking floors. On screen, 12 floors and a best of 53: I am on the twelfth and aiming for the fifty-fourth.
PolarzinhoThe fifty-third floor is the record. The fifty-fourth is the plan.
Stop! has rankings for today, this week and this month. You can try to be first in each one.
FAQ
How do you write 21st in words?
Twenty-first.
Is it 12th or 12nd?
12th. Numbers ending in 11, 12 and 13 always take th.
How do you spell 9th?
Ninth, without the e.
What is the difference between ordinal and cardinal numbers?
Cardinals count (three bamboo sticks) and ordinals put things in order (the third bamboo stick).
Your turn
Write these in words: 34th, 67th and 88th. Then tell me which floor you live on, as an ordinal.