Egyptian numbers have two forms: one for counting out loud, and a shorter one used right before a noun.
The numbers
| Egyptian | Counting | Before a noun | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | صفر | sifr | |
| 1 | واحد | waa7id | (see below) |
| 2 | اتنين | itneen | (see below) |
| 3 | تلاتة | talaata | talat |
| 4 | أربعة | arba3a | arba3 |
| 5 | خمسة | khamsa | khamas |
| 6 | ستة | sitta | sitt |
| 7 | سبعة | sab3a | saba3 |
| 8 | تمانية | tamanya | taman |
| 9 | تسعة | tis3a | tisa3 |
| 10 | عشرة | 3ashara | 3ashar |
The short form drops the final -a: talat kutub (three books), khamas da2aayi2 (five minutes).
One and two
You don't say "one" or "two" in front of a noun.
- One: use the noun on its own. Add waa7id (or waa7da for feminine) after it for emphasis.
- Two: use the dual ending -een.
- عايز كتاب واحد3aayiz kitaab waa7idI want one book.
- عندي أختين3andi ukhteenI have two sisters.
Three to ten take the plural
- تلات كتبtalat kutubthree books
- سبع سنينsaba3 siniinseven years
A few plurals beginning with a vowel take an extra -t- after the number: talattiyyaam (three days), arba3tushhur (four months), khamastalaaf (five thousand).
Writing the numbers
Egypt mostly uses Eastern Arabic digits, written left to right like Western ones: ٠ ١ ٢ ٣ ٤ ٥ ٦ ٧ ٨ ٩.