Numbers

Zulu Lesson 6 (Numbers and School)

Duration: 30 mins

Lessons Zulu Lessons
Linguistic Zulu Vocabulary
Culture Zulu Phrases
Structure Zulu Grammar

The 6th lesson teaches counting in cardinal and ordinal numbers in Zulu. I also included a vocabulary list about school and finally common daily phrases. I will try to give examples using both vocabulary and grammar. That way it will be easy for you to see the words when they are separate and when they are in a sentence. Going through the whole page should take about 30 min. Make sure to read the pronunciation and hear the audio as well. If you have any question about this course, please email me directly at Zulu Classes.

Numbers

Knowing how to count in Zulu is essential and should be one of first things to learn. By simply knowing numbers from 1 to 9 you could express large numbers in a simplified way. Cardinal numbers are for counting such as "1, 2, 3 ...". Ordinal numbers represent order or rank such as "1st, 2nd, 3rd ...".

Below is a list of the first 20 cardinal and ordinal numbers that you might come across or use very often. The table contains 3 columns (English, Zulu, and Audio). Make sure you repeat each word after hearing it by either clicking on the audio button or by reading the pronunciation. That should help with memorization as well as improving your pronunciation.

Numbers in Zulu

Numbers Zulu Audio
Onekunye
Firstokokuqala
Twokubili
Secondumzuzwana
Threekuthathu
Thirdokwesithathu
Fourkune
Fourthokwesine
Fivekuhlanu
Fifthokwesihlanu
Sixisithupha
Sixthokwesithupha
Sevenisikhombisa
Seventhokwesikhombisa
Eightisishiyagalombili
Eighthokwesishiyagalombili
Nineisishiyagalolunye
Ninthokwesishiyagalolunye
Tenishumi
Tenthokweshumi
Elevenishumi nanye
Eleventhokweshumi nanye
Twelveishumi nambili
Twelfthokweshumi nambili
Thirteenishumi nantathu
Thirteenthokweshumi nantathu
Fourteenishumi nane
FourteenthOkweshumi nane
Fifteenishumi nanhlanu
FifteenthOkweshumi nanhlanu
Sixteenishumi nesithupha
SixteenthOkweshumi nesithupha
Seventeenishumi nesikhombisa
SeventeenthOkweshumi nesikhombisa
Eighteenishumi nesishiyagalombili
EighteenthOkweshumi nesishiyagalombili
Nineteenishumi nesishiyagalolunye
NineteenthOkweshumi nesishiyagalolunye
Twentyamashumi amabili
TwentiethOkwamashumi amabili
Thirty three (31)Amashumi amathathu nantathu
One hundred (100)Ikhulu
Three hundred and sixty (360)Amakhulu amathathu namashumi ayisithupha
One thousand (1000)Inkulungwane
Two thousand and fourteen (2014)Izinkulungwane ezimbili neshumi nane
One millionIsigidi
Oncekanye
Twicekabili

Now we will try to implement some of the numbers above into full Zulu sentences. That way you will be able to use the word not only by itself but embedded in a structure.

Zulu Numbers in a Sentence

Numbers Zulu Audio
I'm 30 years oldNgineminyaka engamashumi amathathu
I have 2 sisters and 1 brotherNginosisi ababili nobhuti oyedwa
English is my first languageIsingisi ulimi lwami lokuqala
Her second language is SpanishUlimi lwakhe lwesibili iSpanishi

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact me using the Zulu contact form on the header above.

Vocabulary List about School

Below is a list of 26 words related to school and classrooms. If you can memorize them by heart, you will be able communicate to a teacher/students many objects in your class.

School Words in Zulu

School Zulu Audio
AnswerImpendulo
Bookincwadi
Booksizincwadi
Chairisihlalo
Deskitafula
Dictionaryisichazamazwi
LaptopIzilimi
Libraryumtapowolwazi
Notebook (paper notebook)Inothibhukhi
Pageikhasi
Paperiphepha
Penipeni
Pencilipensela
Questionumbuzo
SchoolIsikole
Studentumfundi
Teacheruthisha
UniversityIyunivesithi

Daily Conversation in Zulu

Finally, a couple bonus sentences that you might find useful. For a complete list of commonly used sentences, please visit our Zulu Phrases page. Enjoy!

Common Expressions in Zulu

English Zulu Audio
I have a questionNginombuzo
To listenUkulalela
To readUkufunda
To speakUkukhuluma
To thinkUkucabanga
To understandUkuqonda
To writeUkubhala
What's the name of that book?Yini igama laleyo ncwadi?
What do you do for a living?Uziphilisa ngani?
I'm a (teacher / artist / engineer)Ngingu (Thisha/umculi/unjiniyela)
Oh! That's good!Oh! Kuhle lokho!
Can I practice with you?Ngingaprakthiza nawe?

Fun Facts

Language Quote: Approximately one new word is added to the English language every two hours and around 4,000 new words are added to the English dictionary every year.

Congratulations! You finished your 6th lesson in Zulu about numbers, and school terms. Are you ready for the next lesson? We recommend Zulu Lesson 7. You can also simply click on one of the links below or go back to our Learn Zulu homepage.

Lessons Zulu Lessons
Linguistic Zulu Vocabulary
Culture Zulu Phrases
Structure Zulu Grammar