11 in French
onze
Spellings verified June 2026 · page updated 2 October 2026
The number that refuses elision
“Eleven in French” is onze, the number 11. Hear it spoken below.
NUMERAL
11
FRENCH
onze
IPA
/ɔ̃z/
Ordinal form
Ranking things rather than counting them: 11 becomes onzième, written 11e in figures.
MASCULINE
onzième
11e
FEMININE
onzième
11e (same word as the masculine)
French writes the abbreviation with a plain e, never ème: 11e. The Académie française allows two irregular pairs: premier and première abbreviate 1er and 1re, and second and seconde abbreviate 2d and 2de. Full rules on the ordinal numbers reference.
Counting around 11
Real sentence examples
“Il est onze heures du matin.”
“Le onze novembre est un jour férié en France.”
“Le onze de France entre sur le terrain.”
Pronunciation and morphology notes
Onze comes from Latin "undecim", not "dix-un". Its defining quirk is that it blocks elision and liaison: you say "le onze" (never "l'onze") and "le onze novembre" with no liaison, exactly as if it began with an aspirate h. It is one of the rare vowel-initial French words that refuses elision. "Le onze" also nicknames a football team (eleven players).
Frequently asked questions
How do you say eleven (11) in French?
Eleven in French is "onze" (the number 11).
How is onze (11) pronounced in French?
In the International Phonetic Alphabet, "onze" is transcribed /ɔ̃z/. Use the audio button on this page to hear the standard French pronunciation.
What is the ordinal form of 11 in French?
The ordinal for 11 is "onzième", abbreviated 11e. The form is the same in the masculine and the feminine.
How is 11 used in a French sentence?
A natural example is: "Il est onze heures du matin."
Related numbers
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