Bengali Numbers 1 to 100
Bengali numbers are harder than most languages' because almost every one from 1 to 100 has its own name — there is no reliable pattern like the English twenty-one, twenty-two. The first twenty are what you actually need; the rest can wait.
| English | Bengali | In English letters |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | এক · ১ | ek |
| 2 | দুই · ২ | dui |
| 3 | তিন · ৩ | tin |
| 4 | চার · ৪ | char |
| 5 | পাঁচ · ৫ | pañch |
| 6 | ছয় · ৬ | chhoy |
| 7 | সাত · ৭ | shat |
| 8 | আট · ৮ | at |
| 9 | নয় · ৯ | noy |
| 10 | দশ · ১০ | dosh |
| 11 | এগারো · ১১ | egaro |
| 12 | বারো · ১২ | baro |
| 13 | তেরো · ১৩ | tero |
| 14 | চৌদ্দ · ১৪ | choudda |
| 15 | পনেরো · ১৫ | ponero |
| 20 | বিশ · ২০ | bish |
| 25 | পঁচিশ · ২৫ | pañchish |
| 30 | ত্রিশ · ৩০ | trish |
| 40 | চল্লিশ · ৪০ | chollish |
| 50 | পঞ্চাশ · ৫০ | poñchash |
| 60 | ষাট · ৬০ | shat- |
| 70 | সত্তর · ৭০ | shottor |
| 80 | আশি · ৮০ | ashi |
| 90 | নব্বই · ৯০ | nobboi |
| 100 | একশো · ১০০ | eksho |
| 1,000 | হাজার | hajar |
| 100,000 (one lakh)not 'hundred thousand' | লাখ | lakh |
| 10,000,000 (one crore)ten million | কোটি | koti |
What a phrasebook will not tell you
There is no pattern — this is the hard part
In English, once you know twenty and one you can say twenty-one. Bengali does not work that way. Every number from 1 to 100 has its own word, and they are irregular enough that native children learn them by chanting. Nobody expects a learner to know all hundred. Learn 1 to 20, then the tens, and say the rest in English — Bangladeshis do this constantly themselves.
Lakh and crore, not million
This is the number thing that actually causes confusion. South Asia counts in lakh (100,000) and crore (10,000,000), and Bangladeshis use these words in English too. A salary of five lakh is 500,000 taka; a project of two crore is 20 million. Written out, the digits are grouped differently as well: 1,00,000 rather than 100,000.
Bengali digits look different from Arabic ones
১ ২ ৩ ৪ ৫ ৬ ৭ ৮ ৯ ০ are the Bengali forms of 1 to 9 and 0. You will see them on bus routes, price boards, exam papers and cricket scoreboards. Note that ৪ looks like an English 8 and ৭ looks like a 9 — the two mistakes every visitor makes.
Saying a phone number
Digits are read one at a time, as in English: 01712 is shunno ek shat ek dui. Shunno (শূন্য) is zero, though many people just say the English 'zero'.
Questions
How do you count 1 to 10 in Bengali?
Ek, dui, tin, char, pañch, chhoy, shat, at, noy, dosh — এক থেকে দশ.
What is a lakh and a crore?
A lakh is 100,000 and a crore is 10,000,000. Bangladeshis use both words when speaking English, so 'two crore taka' means 20 million taka.
Do I need to learn all hundred numbers?
No. Learn 1 to 20 and the tens. Beyond that, Bangladeshis themselves often switch to English numbers, especially for prices and years.
Are Bengali digits used in Bangladesh today?
Yes, alongside Arabic numerals. Bus route numbers, government forms, exam papers and older price boards all use ১২৩; phones and most shops use 123.