Writing French numbers

[Cat]

This morning I had to write a cheque. Nothing new in that, but when I handed to Mr Cat to deliver, he looked at it and said that I had made some mistakes.

He says that when writing, for example 2510, I shouldn't make the milles or the cents plural, so it would be deux mille cinq cent dix, and not deux milles cinq cents dix .

But, if the thousands aren't followed by another number, 2000 for example, then I should add the S, so deux milles, and if then hundreds aren't followed by anything that again I could add the S, so for 2500 it would be deux mille cinq cents.  But, if the hundreds have more numbers behind them (for 2510  for example) then deux mille cinq cent dix.

So...

2000 = deux milles

2500 = deux mille cinq cents

2510 = deux mille cinq cent dix

And that the plural of euro is euro (no S) [:'(]

Should I believe him?

[Christine Animal]

No Cat, mille never takes an s

so, deux mille    (Clair will correct if I am wrong).

For cents Mr. Cat is correct.

 

I was also told that euro never takes an s as it is a Greek word.  So, just to be snobby, I never put an s.  But the banks do on the cheques.   [:P]

 

C'est très compliqué !

 

[Clair]

I'm all for marital harmony and all that and I'm sure Mr Cat is trying to help you, but he's partly right, so partly wrong...

mille is always singular:

1000 = mille

2000 = deux mille

2007 = deux mille sept

cent takes on the plural form (s) if not followed by any other number:

100 = cent

200 = deux cents

105 = cent cinq

205 = deux cent cinq

2587 = deux mille cinq cent quatre-ving sept

see here: http://www.aidenet.eu/grammaire05d.htm

Edit: frozen fingers syndrome... [:-))]

[Cat]

Thanks Clair and Christine, but it does beg the question why we use the plural for cents and not for mille?

And it's made me think of another question now.  If cent (plural) is followed by another word (euro, ans or fois, for example) would it still retain its S?  Deux cents fois or deux cent fois, the second looks better to me, but I'm not certain?

In other words, does cents only take the S if it is the very last word or number?

 

 

[Clair]

[quote user="Cat"]In other words, does cents only take the S if it is the very last word or number? [/quote]

You've got it! [:D]

[Suze01]

[quote user="Cat"]

Thanks Clair and Christine, but it does beg the question why we use the plural for cents and not for mille?

 

[/quote]

But we don't pluralise thousand in English either ie: three thousand two hundred, we don't say three thousands.

[Anton Redman]

The answers just because. Why is it vingt et un but vingt-deux. Why do the Swiss, Belgiums Canadiens etc all hapilly use huitante while France sticks with quatre vingt.

Some English spelling is Victorien affectations - taking thinks back to Latin roots. I treat writting American English as a another language but cannot for the life of me see why English is the only langauge with a 'u' in colour' 

[Christine Animal]

[quote user="Clair"][quote user="Cat"]In other words, does cents only take the S if it is the very last word or number? [/quote]
You've got it! [:D]
[/quote]

Now you've got me !  [:-))]

Deux cents only takes an s if on it's own, without another number behind as in deux cents, but deux cent cinquante

but deux cents euro or deux cents francs, I've always written with an s, no number behind, but a word.  [8-)]

My American friend who speaks French once asked us if it was quatre enfants or quatres enfants, you sometiimes get mixed up with it all.  Of course it's quatre enfants, a number doesn't change (except with cent !  [:P]).

Anton Redman, quatre-vingts takes an s, (four twenties), but quatre-vingt deux does not.   [:D]

OMG  [6]

 

[Cat]

[quote user="Christine Animal"]

Anton Redman, quatre-vingts takes an s, (four twenties), but quatre-vingt deux does not.   [:D]

OMG  [6]

 

[/quote]

So, the next obvious question that must be asked...

Quatre-vingt euro, or quatre-vingts euro?  Does the same"very last word or number"  rule apply?

[blink]

[Clair]

Christine, you're right and I should have made the distinction when I replied to Cat.

You're talking about nouns ( quatre cents enfants) ,as opposed to numbers (quatre cent cinq enfants)

 Final word here, under "Les accords": http://www.leconjugueur.com/frlesnombres.php

[Christine Animal]

Are you still with us Pads ?  Look what you've started !   [:D]

 

[Christine Animal]

Sorry Pads, yours is the other thread !   [:'(]   [:$]

 

[Cat]

[:$]

[chessfou]

[quote]In other words, does cents only take the S if it is the very last word or number?[cat][/quote]

No, not the last "word" buy yes the last number, although "number" may not be the best word to use because of:

sept cents millions de chinois, or

quatre-vingts millions

- "millions" is not a number but a "nom commun"

The rule is "les adjectifs numéraux cardinaux (un, deux, trois, cinq, douze, mille etc.) sont invariables, sauf vingt et cent, qui prennent un <<s>> s'ils sont multipliés et non suivis d'un autre adjectif numéral cardinal."

[Julaud, 2004; Le petit livre de la grammaire facile]

Same source points out that "euros" is the plural of "euro" and that "deux heuros" is bad pronunciation, "deux-z-euros" being correct.

[Christine Animal]

It seems that for the euro plural there is not an s on the coins and bank notes as other European countries do not put an s.  But grammatically in France, the only country, there is an s.

http://fr.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20060821015608AA5So9k

 

[Chancer]

[quote user="Anton Redman"]

. Why do the Swiss, Belgiums Canadiens etc all hapilly use huitante while France sticks with quatre vingt.

[/quote]

In regions bordering Belgium i.e. Nord, Pas De Calais etc "octante" is often used for 80 and "nonante" for 90 (perhaps with two n's?)