How to count in Tok Pisin

Enter a number and read it spelled out in Tok Pisin.

Language overview

Tok Pisin is an English creole language spoken in Papua New Guinea. With about 4 million speakers, it is one of Papua New Guinea’s official languages, the two others being English and Hiri Motu. Tok Pisin is also known as New Guinea Pidgin, Melanesian Pidgin English and Neo-Melanesian.

Tok Pisin numbering rules

  • Digits from zero to nine are specific words where one can recognize English digit names in their pronunciation, namely siro [0], wan [1], tu [2], tri [3], foa [4], faiv [5], sikis [6], seven [7], et [8], and nain [9].
  • The tens are built from the multiplier number, followed by the ending -pela (which also transforms the digits into adjectives), then the word ten, except for ten itself: ten [10], tupela ten [20], tripela ten [30], fopela ten [40], faipela ten [50], sikispela ten [60], sevenpela ten [70], etpela ten [80], and nainpela ten [90].
  • From eleven to ninety-nine, the numbers are built by saying the ten, then the digit separated by a space, with the exception of ten which becomes wanpela ten (e.g.: wanpela ten tu [12], sikispela ten seven [67]).
  • The hundreds are built by putting the multiplier unit before the word hundred (handet): wan handet [100], tu handet [200], tri handet [300]… The thousands follow the same structure, the word for thousand being tausen: tausen [1,000] (with no one unit), tu tausen [2,000], tri tausen [3,000]…
  • One million is said wan milien and the millions follow the same rule as the thousands.

Numbers list

1 – wan
2 – tu
3 – tri
4 – foa
5 – faiv
6 – sikis
7 – seven
8 – et
9 – nain
10 – ten
11 – wanpela ten wan
12 – wanpela ten tu
13 – wanpela ten tri
14 – wanpela ten foa
15 – wanpela ten faiv
16 – wanpela ten sikis
17 – wanpela ten seven
18 – wanpela ten et
19 – wanpela ten nain
20 – tupela ten
30 – tripela ten
40 – fopela ten
50 – faipela ten
60 – sikispela ten
70 – sevenpela ten
80 – etpela ten
90 – nainpela ten
100 – wan handet
1,000 – tausen
one million – wan milien

Other supported languages

Supported languages by families
As the other currently supported languages are too numerous to list extensively here, please select a language from the following select box, or from the full list of supported languages.