How To Count From 1 To 100 And Tell Time In Estonian
Author
Numbers are the building blocks of daily communication in any language.
Knowing Estonian numbers helps you shop, make plans, and navigate local schedules.
Counting in Estonian follows a very logical and predictable pattern.
Once you memorize the first ten numbers, building larger numbers becomes incredibly easy.
We’ll cover the numbers from 1 to 100 and then apply them to telling time.
Table of Contents:
Numbers 1 to 10 in Estonian
The numbers from zero to ten are the most important words to memorize.
Every larger number in Estonian is built directly from these core words.
| Number | Estonian |
|---|---|
| 0 | null |
| 1 | üks |
| 2 | kaks |
| 3 | kolm |
| 4 | neli |
| 5 | viis |
| 6 | kuus |
| 7 | seitse |
| 8 | kaheksa |
| 9 | üheksa |
| 10 | kümme |
Numbers 11 to 19 in Estonian
Forming the “teen” numbers in Estonian is perfectly straightforward.
You simply take the numbers 1 through 9 and add the suffix -teist.
This suffix is short for teistkümmet, which historically meant “of the second ten”.
| Number | Estonian |
|---|---|
| 11 | üksteist |
| 12 | kaksteist |
| 13 | kolmteist |
| 14 | neliteist |
| 15 | viisteist |
| 16 | kuusteist |
| 17 | seitseteist |
| 18 | kaheksateist |
| 19 | üheksateist |
Counting tens and reaching 100
To count by tens, you’ll use the suffix -kümmend.
This ending simply means “tens”.
You just attach -kümmend to the base numbers 2 through 9.
| Number | Estonian |
|---|---|
| 20 | kakskümmend |
| 30 | kolmkümmend |
| 40 | nelikümmend |
| 50 | viiskümmend |
| 60 | kuuskümmend |
| 70 | seitsekümmend |
| 80 | kaheksakümmend |
| 90 | üheksakümmend |
| 100 | sada |
To make compound numbers like 21 or 54, you just say the ten word followed by the single digit.
There’s no “and” between the numbers in Estonian.
kakskümmend üks
viiskümmend neli
üheksakümmend üheksa
How to tell time in Estonian
Now that you know your numbers, you can easily tell the time.
The most common way to ask for the time is by asking “How much is the clock?”.
Mis kell on?
To reply with a full hour, you start with kell on (the clock is) followed by the number.
Kell on üks.
Kell on viis.
Estonians use a 24-hour clock for formal situations, schedules, and digital timekeeping.
However, in casual speech, the 12-hour clock is widely used.
When talking about half-hours, Estonian does something that surprises many learners.
The word for “half” is pool.
Instead of saying “half past one”, Estonians say “half of two”.
You’re always looking ahead to the next approaching hour.
Kell on pool kaks.
Kell on pool viis.
For exact minutes, you can simply read the digital numbers out loud.
It’s the easiest and most common method for beginners to use.
Kell on kaheksa viisteist.
Kell on kümme nelikümmend viis.
Alternatively, you can use the word läbi (past) for the first half of the hour.
Kell on kümme minutit läbi kolme.
For the second half of the hour, native speakers often use the word puudu (missing).
Kümme minutit on puudu neljast.
Sticking to the digital readout is perfectly acceptable and understood by everyone.
Once you feel comfortable reciting the basic numbers, you’ll naturally start picking up the more complex time-telling phrases through exposure.
