81 in French
quatre-vingt-un
Spellings verified June 2026 · page updated 2 October 2026
No "et", no plural s
“Eighty-one in French” is quatre-vingt-un, the number 81. Hear it spoken below.
NUMERAL
81
FRENCH
quatre-vingt-un
IPA
/katʁ.vɛ̃.œ̃/
Breakdown
Regional variants
FR France
quatre-vingt-un
CH Switzerland
huitante et un
Vaud, Valais, Fribourg
Ordinal form
Ranking things rather than counting them: 81 becomes quatre-vingt-unième, written 81e in figures.
MASCULINE
quatre-vingt-unième
81e
FEMININE
quatre-vingt-unième
81e (same word as the masculine)
SWITZERLAND
huitante et unième
Vaud, Valais, Fribourg
French writes the abbreviation with a plain e, never ème: 81e. 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 81
Real sentence examples
“Il y a quatre-vingt-un élèves inscrits.”
“Le numéro quatre-vingt-un est libre.”
Pronunciation and morphology notes
Two rules at once: (a) no "et" connector before "un" (unlike vingt et un, trente et un, etc.); (b) no plural-s on vingt because another number follows. This is the most-failed dictation form for non-native learners.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say eighty-one (81) in French?
Eighty-one in French is "quatre-vingt-un" (the number 81). It is built as 4 x 20 + 1 = 81 (no "et" connector).
How is quatre-vingt-un (81) pronounced in French?
In the International Phonetic Alphabet, "quatre-vingt-un" is transcribed /katʁ.vɛ̃.œ̃/. Use the audio button on this page to hear the standard French pronunciation.
Is 81 said differently in Belgian or Swiss French?
Yes. In Metropolitan France 81 is "quatre-vingt-un", but in Swiss French it is "huitante et un" (Vaud, Valais, Fribourg).
What is the ordinal form of 81 in French?
The ordinal for 81 is "quatre-vingt-unième", abbreviated 81e. The form is the same in the masculine and the feminine. In Switzerland it is "huitante et unième".
How is 81 used in a French sentence?
A natural example is: "Il y a quatre-vingt-un élèves inscrits."
Related numbers
Want to convert another number, or hear it spoken in Belgium / Swiss French?