-(i)nchi

Ordinal Numbers -(i)nchi

Level 2

bir → birinchi (first), ikki → ikkinchi (second), uch → uchinchi (third). The ordinal goes before its noun like an adjective: ikkinchi qavat (the second floor).

How It Works

Uzbek makes every ordinal with one ending, so there are no irregular words like English first and second.

  • After a consonant: -inchi. bir → birinchi, uch → uchinchi, toʻrt → toʻrtinchi, besh → beshinchi, sakkiz → sakkizinchi, oʻn → oʻninchi, yuz → yuzinchi.
  • After a vowel: -nchi. ikki → ikkinchi, olti → oltinchi, yetti → yettinchi, yigirma → yigirmanchi.

Because Uzbek endings do not follow vowel harmony, the vowel of the ending is always i.

Long numbers. Only the last word takes the ending: yigirma birinchi asr (the twenty-first century), yuz oʻninchi (110th).

Asking the order. necha + -nchi → nechanchi asks for a place in a sequence, a question English has no single word for: Nechanchi qavatda yashaysiz? (Which floor do you live on?) The answer uses an ordinal: Toʻrtinchi qavatda (On the fourth).

With figures. When the number is written in digits, a hyphen replaces the ending: 5-sinf is read beshinchi sinf (fifth grade). See raqam + chiziqcha (tartib son). Dates work the same way; see hafta kunlari, oylar, sanalar.

The first time. birinchi marta means for the first time; see marta.

Examples (6)

  1. Bu mening birinchi darsim.

    This is my first lesson.

    Word by Word: This my first lesson-my.

  2. Biz ikkinchi qavatda yashaymiz.

    We live on the second floor.

    Word by Word: We second floor-on live.

    ikki ends in a vowel, so it takes -nchi.

  3. Nechanchi qavatda yashaysiz?

    Which floor do you live on?

    Word by Word: Which-in-order floor-on you-live?

    necha + -nchi asks for a place in order.

  4. Uchinchi eshikni oching.

    Open the third door.

    Word by Word: Third door-the open.

  5. Oʻgʻlim beshinchi sinfda oʻqiydi.

    My son is in fifth grade.

    Word by Word: Son-my fifth class-in studies.

  6. Yigirma birinchi asrda yashayapmiz.

    We are living in the twenty-first century.

    Word by Word: Twenty first century-in we-are-living.

    Only bir, the last word, takes the ending.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding -inchi after a vowel.

    Ikkiinchi qavatda yashaymiz.
    Ikkinchi qavatda yashaymiz.

    ikki ends in a vowel, so only -nchi is added: ikkinchi. The same goes for oltinchi and yettinchi.

  • Putting the ending on every part of a long number.

    Yigirmanchi birinchi asr
    Yigirma birinchi asr

    Only the last word of the number takes the ending. Yigirma stays as it is.

  • Writing both the hyphen and the ending after digits.

    5-inchi sinf
    5-sinf

    After digits the hyphen already stands for the ending, so nothing else is added. Read it as beshinchi sinf.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

-(i)nchiLevel 2Ordinal Numbers -(i)nchi

Learn This First

Builds on Tens, Hundreds and Thousands and How Many.

Words in This Pattern

birinchiikkinchiuchinchitoʻrtinchibeshinchioltinchiyettinchisakkizinchitoʻqqizinchioʻninchi