Learn Indonesian: Numbers 1–20

Learning numbers is an essential step in mastering Indonesian, as they are used constantly for everything from asking prices at a market to sharing your phone number or telling the time. This lesson covers the foundational numbers from one to twenty, providing the building blocks you will need for all larger figures. Indonesian numbering is remarkably logical and consistent, making it one of the more straightforward systems for English speakers to learn once the first ten digits are memorized.

You will start with the base numbers from one, or satu (sah-too), to ten, which is sepuluh (suh-poo-looh). One key pattern to notice is the use of the prefix "se-", which often replaces "satu" to mean "one" or "a" in compound words. You see this in both sepuluh and sebelas (suh-buh-lahs), the word for eleven. For the rest of the teens, you simply take the base digit and add the word belas (buh-lahs), which functions similarly to the English suffix "-teen." For instance, thirteen is expressed as tiga belas (tee-gah buh-lahs), literally "three teen." This logic continues as you move into the tens; to say twenty, you combine the word for two, dua (doo-ah), with the word for tens, puluh (poo-looh), to create dua puluh (doo-ah poo-looh). Mastering these initial twenty words will give you the confidence to navigate many everyday interactions and mathematical concepts in Indonesian.