Ordinal Numbers in Russian

Overview

Ordinal numbers (first, second, third...) in Russian function as adjectives and decline like adjectives in gender, number, and case. At the B1 level, ordinals are important for dates, addresses, floor numbers, centuries, and ranking -- all common in everyday and formal contexts.

Russian ordinals are formed from cardinal numbers with adjective-like endings. The first few ordinals are irregular (первый, второй, третий), while higher ordinals follow more predictable patterns. In compound ordinals (like "twenty-first"), only the last word becomes an ordinal -- all preceding words remain cardinals.

A key practical application is dates: Russian uses ordinal numbers in the genitive case for dates (пятого марта = of the fifth of March). This construction appears daily in calendars, appointments, and official documents.

How It Works

Common Ordinals

Number	Ordinal	Meaning
1	первый	first
2	второй	second
3	третий	third
4	четвёртый	fourth
5	пятый	fifth
6	шестой	sixth
7	седьмой	seventh
8	восьмой	eighth
9	девятый	ninth
10	десятый	tenth
20	двадцатый	twentieth
100	сотый	hundredth

Compound Ordinals

Only the last word is ordinal:

• 21st: двадцать первый
• 135th: сто тридцать пятый

Dates (Genitive Case)

Question	Answer
Какое сегодня число?	Сегодня пятое марта. (nominative)
Когда?	Пятого марта. (genitive)

Declension (Like Adjectives)

Ordinals decline like regular adjectives: первый, первого, первому, первый/первого, первым, первом. Exception: третий follows the soft pattern: третьего, третьему, etc.

Examples in Context

Russian	English	Note
первый этаж, вторая дверь	first floor, second door	Attributive use
Сегодня пятое марта.	Today is March 5th.	Nominative for "today is"
в двадцать первом веке	in the twenty-first century	Prepositional case
Я живу на третьем этаже.	I live on the third floor.	Prepositional after на
пятого января	on January 5th	Genitive for "on a date"
второй раз	the second time	Masculine
в первую очередь	first of all	Accusative feminine
третье место	third place	Neuter
двадцать второго декабря	on December 22nd	Compound, genitive
Это мой первый день.	This is my first day.	Nominative

Common Mistakes

Making all parts of compound ordinals into ordinals

• Wrong: двадцатый первый (both words ordinal)
• Right: двадцать первый (only last word is ordinal)
• Why: In Russian compound ordinals, only the final number word takes the ordinal form.

Using nominative for "on a date"

• Wrong: Я приеду пятое марта.
• Right: Я приеду пятого марта. (genitive)
• Why: Specific dates in Russian use the genitive case of the ordinal number.

Incorrect declension of третий

• Wrong: третьего pronounced as "tretyego"
• Right: Pronounced "tretyevo" (г as [v] in genitive ending -его)
• Why: Like adjectives, the genitive ending -его/-ого is pronounced with [v].

Practice Tips

• Practice saying dates in Russian: today's date, your birthday, holidays. Use genitive for "on" dates.
• Describe floor numbers and room numbers: Я живу на пятом этаже, в комнате номер двести три.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Numbers 1-20 -- cardinal number vocabulary