Ordinal numbers show the precise location of anything or someone at a given location. When the number of objects/people is provided in a list, the order in which they appear is determined by ordinal numbers. The numbers 1,2,3,4,5,6…1,2,3,4,5,6… can have different names too. In this article, we will learn the different ways to write numbers. For example, we never say ‘the 1 girl standing in the front row is the tallest girl’; instead, we will say ‘the first girl standing in the front row is the tallest girl’.

Have you noticed any change in both sentences? Everything is the same, except ‘1′‘1′ and ‘first’, and also, the last sentence seems to be more appropriate than the former one. That’s it. Here we will learn how to write cardinal numbers as ordinal numbers.

Story and Potluck Picnic on Ordinal Numbers

Once, a sports teacher named “Doraemon” conducted a race competition between three best friends, Cardinal, Ordinal and Nominal. The teacher asked Cardinal to count and tell how many participants were there in the race? Cardinal started counting and replied there were (3) participants. Then the teacher asked Nominal to assign a unique number identity to all the (3) participants. Nominal assigned the unique number to Cardinal as (C001,) Ordinal as (O002) and himself as (N003).

Later, after the race, the teacher asked Ordinal to announce the result. The Ordinal number said, Nominal secured the first place in the race, Cardinal secured the second place in the race, and I secured the third place in the race competition. The sports teacher announced that you all three together made me incredibly proud.

So, kids, now, it’s your turn to make your teacher proud. Hop with me in my flying car.

And let’s go and visit zoo animals who are having a potluck party.

Once in a forest, at a potluck for ‘six,’ Each brought a dish, and their meeting was fixed

Rabbit came a-hopping, the ‘first’ of the lot
But oh, in the hurry, his tiffin he forgot!

‘Second’ was deer, golden and swift
With tender green grass, bagged like a gift

Monkey came “third” with a bunch of banana
And guess what, he brought them from Havana

‘Fourth’ came cow, swinging her tail
Happy she could bring her yummy chocolate cake

A bundle on his trunk, Elephant came ‘fifth’
The bundle was of sugarcane, oh, what a thrill

Sparrow was ‘sixth’ with the cob or corn
‘Seventh’ was the bull with so big horns

Classification of English Numbers

English numbers are classified into three types of numbers.

If we speak in simple words, cardinal numbers give us the exact quantity of an object. For example,

The picture shows that there are \(6\) animals in the picture. Hence, \(6\) or six is the cardinal number.

Ordinal numbers give us the exact position of any object in the list. For example,

The given figure shows us the exact position of each fruit and easily we can tell that the position of the apple is eighth in the figure.

And lastly, nominal numbers are the numbers used only as a name or to identify something. Look at the given figures below and try to figure out what stands unique in those figures.

Any guesses, so far?????
Of course, YES, the unique numbers in the above figure are nominal.
Now, you might be wondering how to remember which type of English number means what???

I have a solution for that problem as well.
To remember, you must become a ‘CON’.
Con like this??

Nah, Nah, you are getting wrong!!!! 
Check out the picture given below and learn the simple way to memorize it.

What are Ordinal Numbers?

The numbers which tell us about the precise position of an object are called ordinal numbers. Ordinal numbers tell the position of an object rather than its quantity. If the number of objects is specified in a list, the position of the objects is defined by ordinals. If in simple words we speak of, ordinal numbers are used to tell the order of things.

Let us understand it with the help of some easy examples.

1. Lionel Messi is the first footballer to win \({6^{th}}\) Ballon d’Or
2. That was your tenth chocolate!!
3. Happy \({35^{th}}\) anniversary
4. Pokémon stays on the third floor of the apartment
5. Priya stood first in the race

Examine the image given below,

In the figure, we can specify the position of every child who is all set to go for a picnic.

Ordinal Numbers

Ordinal number words are those words representing position or rank in the exact order they appear in a list. We use the ordinal number for specifying the position of something.

For instance, Preethu stood first in the class, Joyita came third in the sack race, the storybook is kept at the fifth place from last.

Ordinal Numbers 1-100

As of now, we are pretty informative about ordinal numbers and very much aware of how to write them. So, let’s sit tight for a while and form a table to write ordinal numbers from \(1\) to \(100\).

\({1^{st}}\): First	\({11^{th}}\): Eleventh	\({21^{st}}\): Twenty-First	\({31^{st}}\): Thirty-First	\({41^{st}}\): Forty-First
\({2^{nd}}\): Second	\({12^{th}}\): Twelfth	\({22^{nd}}\): Twenty-Second	\({32^{nd}}\): Thirty-Second	\({42^{nd}}\): Forty-Second
\({3^{rd}}\): Third	\({13^{th}}\): Thirteenth	\({23^{rd}}\): Twenty-Third	\({33^{rd}}\): Thirty-Third	\({43^{rd}}\): Forty-Third
\({4^{th}}\): Fourth	\({14^{th}}\): Fourteenth	\({24^{th}}\): Twenty-Fourth	\({34^{th}}\): Thirty-Fourth	\({44^{th}}\): Forty-Fourth
\({5^{th}}\): Fifth	\({15^{th}}\): Fifteenth	\({25^{th}}\): Twenty-Fifth	\({35^{th}}\): Thirty-Fifth	\({45^{th}}\): Forty-Fifth
\({6^{th}}\): Sixth	\({16^{th}}\): Sixteenth	\({26^{th}}\): Twenty-Sixth	\({36^{th}}\): Thirty-Sixth	\({46^{th}}\): Forty-Sixth
\({7^{th}}\): Seventh	\({17^{th}}\): Seventeenth	\({27^{th}}\): Twenty-Seventh	\({37^{th}}\): Thirty-Seventh	\({47^{th}}\): Forty-Seventh
\({8^{th}}\): Eighth	\({17^{th}}\): Eighteenth	\({28^{th}}\): Twenty-Eighth	\({38^{th}}\):Thirty-Eighth	\({48^{th}}\): Forty-Eighth
\({9^{th}}\): Ninth	\({19^{th}}\): Nineteenth	\({29^{th}}\):Twenty-Ninth	\({39^{th}}\):Thirty-Ninth	\({49^{th}}\):Forty-Ninth
\({10^{th}}\): Tenth	\({20^{th}}\): Twentieth	\({30^{th}}\): Thirtieth	\({40^{th}}\): Fortieth	\({50^{th}}\): Fiftieth
Come on!!! Boost up your energy!!! Let’s continue writing after \({50^{th}}\)
\({51^{st}}\): Fifty-First	\({61^{th}}\): Sixty-First	\({71^{st}}\): Seventy-First	\({81^{st}}\): Eighty-First	\({91^{st}}\): Ninety-First
\({52^{nd}}\): Fifty-Second	\({62^{nd}}\): Sixty-Second	\({72^{nd}}\): Seventy-Second	\({82^{nd}}\): Eighty-Second	\({92^{nd}}\): Ninety-Second
\({53^{rd}}\): Fifty-Third	\({36^{rd}}\): Sixty-Third	\({73^{rd}}\): Seventy-Third	\({83^{rd}}\): Eighty-Third	\({93^{rd}}\): Ninety-Third
\({54^{th}}\): Fifty-Fourth	\({64^{th}}\): Sixty-Fourth	\({74^{th}}\): Seventy-Fourth	\({84^{th}}\): Eighty-Fourth	\({94^{th}}\): Ninety-Fourth
\({55^{th}}\): Fifty-Fifth	\({65^{th}}\): Sixty-Fifth	\({75^{th}}\): Seventy-Fifth	\({85^{th}}\): Eighty-Fifth	\({95^{th}}\): Ninety-Fifth
\({56^{th}}\): Fifty-Sixth	\({66^{th}}\): Sixty-Sixth	\({76^{th}}\): Seventy-Sixth	\({86^{th}}\): Eighty-Sixth	\({96^{th}}\): Ninety-Sixth
\({57^{th}}\): Fifty-Seventh	\({67^{th}}\): Sixty-Seventh	\({77^{th}}\) : Seventy-Seventh	\({87^{th}}\): Eighty-Seventh	\({97^{th}}\): Ninety-Seventh
\({58^{th}}\): Fifty-Eighth	\({68^{th}}\): Sixty-Eighth	\({78^{th}}\): Seventy-Eighth	\({88^{th}}\): Eighty-Eighth	\({98^{th}}\): Ninety-Eighth
\({59^{th}}\): Fifty-Ninth	\({69^{th}}\): Sixty-Ninth	\({79^{th}}\): Seventy-Ninth	\({89^{th}}\): Eighty-Ninth	\({99^{th}}\): Ninety-Ninth
\({60^{th}}\): Sixtieth	\({70^{th}}\): Seventieth	\({80^{th}}\): Eightieth	\({90^{th}}\): Ninetieth	\({100^{th}}\): Hundredth

Exhausted????
Well, that was too much to grab everything at once.
Take a KIT-KAT break and let’s resume our journey!!!!

Ordinal Numbers Chart

A chart that distinguishes the cardinal numbers from ordinal numbers from \(1\) to \(20\) is given below for an easy understanding.

English Number	Cardinal Number	Ordinal Number
\(1\)	One	First
\(2\)	Two	Second
\(3\)	Three	Third
\(4\)	Four	Fourth
\(5\)	Five	Fifth
\(6\)	Six	Sixth
\(7\)	Seven	Seventh
\(8\)	Eight	Eighth
\(9\)	Nine	Ninth
\(10\)	Ten	Tenth
\(11\)	Eleven	Eleventh
\(12\)	Twelve	Twelfth
\(13\)	Thirteen	Thirteenth
\(14\)	Fourteen	Fourteenth
\(15\)	Fifteen	Fifteenth
\(16\)	Sixteen	Sixteenth
\(17\)	Seventeen	Seventeenth
\(18\)	Eighteen	Eighteenth
\(19\)	Nineteen	Nineteenth
\(20\)	Twenty	Twentieth

Solved Examples

Q.1. Jyoti, Priya, Preethu, Rachna and Joyita are standing in a queue. Who is standing in the second position?
Ans: From the given, we can deduce that Jyoti is standing in the first place, Priya is standing in the second place, Preethu is in third place, Rachna is in fourth place and Joyita is in fifth place. Thus, Priya is standing in second place.

Q.2. What will be the position of \(‘B’\) in FOOTBALL?
Ans: In the given word, count the position of each alphabet. The first letter is \(‘B’,\) the second letter is \(‘O’.\) Similarly, count the position of each alphabet. We can see that ‘B’ falls in the fifth position.
Thus, the position of \(‘B’\) in FOOTBALL is the fifth position.

Q.3. Books are our best friends. What is the seventh letter in the above sentence?
Ans: In the given sentence, the first letter is \(‘B’.\) The second letter is \(‘o’\) followed by the third letter \(‘o’.\) Similarly, count the position of the given letters in order, like, first, second, third, fourth etc. So, after counting till seventh, we can see that the letter r is in seventh place.
Therefore, the seventh letter in the above-given sentence is r.

Q.4. How will you express the position of the singer standing in the middle in ordinal numbers?

Ans: The position of the singer who is standing in the middle can be expressed in ordinal numbers as the second position.

Q.5. How to write zero in ordinal numbers?
Ans: Zero can be written as zeroth in the ordinal numbers. For example, the zeroth law of Thermodynamics.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q.1. What is the ordinal of \(12\)?
Ans: Ordinal of \(12\) is the twelfth.

Q.2. Is zero an ordinal number?
Ans : Zero is a cardinal number, the ordinal number for zero is zeroth.

Q.3. What is ordinal number?
Ans : The number which tells us about the precise position of an object is called an ordinal number. Ordinal number tell the position of an object rather than its quantity. 

Q.4. How do you write \(13\) in ordinal numbers?
Ans : Ordinal number for \(13\) is thirteenth \(\left( {{{13}^{th}}} \right)\)

Q.5. What is the ordinal number for \(36\)?
Ans : Ordinal number for \(36\) is thirty-sixth \(\left( {{{36}^{th}}} \right)\)

In this article, we learned about the ordinal number. We also learned the classification of English numbers, which are, cardinal numbers, ordinal numbers and nominal numbers. We understood the definition of each type of English number and thoroughly learned how to write numbers in cardinal as well as in ordinal. We also learned the easy way to remember the definition of cardinal numbers, ordinal numbers and nominal numbers.