Language/Belarusian/Vocabulary/Numbers-and-Time

Belarusian Vocabulary → Basics → Numbers and Time

As a native Belarusian speaker and language teacher with 20 years of experience, I'm excited to introduce you to the Belarusian language. In our lesson today, we'll cover basic numbers and telling time in Belarusian. It's essential to grasp fundamental concepts to build a strong foundation in the language, so let's get started.

Counting in Belarusian

Belarusian uses a system similar to many other Slavic languages, featuring the Cyrillic alphabet. When counting in Belarusian, there are a few hard-to-pronounce consonants and intonation to consider as well. Attached below is the table of numbers from 1-20 in Belarusian.

Belarusian	Pronunciation	English
адзін	ah-DZIN	one
два	dva	two
тры	try	three
чатыры	cha-TY-ry	four
пяць	pyats	five
шэсць	shes-tsyn	six
сем	syem	seven
восем	vah-SEM	eight
дзевяць	dzye-VYATS	nine
дзесяць	dzye-SYATS	ten
адзінаццаць	ah-DZEE-na-tsats	eleven
дванаццаць	dvah-na-tsats	twelve
трынаццаць	try-na-tsats	thirteen
чатырнаццаць	cha-TYR-na-tsats	fourteen
пятнаццаць	pyat-na-tsats	fifteen
шаснаццаць	shas-na-tsats	sixteen
семнаццаць	syem-na-tsats	seventeen
васімнаццаць	va-SIM-na-tsats	eighteen
дзевятнаццаць	dzye-VYAT-na-tsats	nineteen
дваццаць	dvats-tsats	twenty

It's worth noting that the word for "one" changes when describing masculine and feminine nouns. For example, "Adzіn chalavek" means "one man", while "Adzіna kniha" means "one book."

Once you've mastered numbers up to 20, counting higher is a breeze. Belarusian also uses a base 10 system, so be sure to remember the word for 10(дзесяць), 100(сто), and 1000(тысяча).

Telling Time in Belarusian

Telling time in Belarusian is also straightforward. Here's a brief example of how to express the time in Belarusian, including some examples.

Belarusian	Pronunciation	English
Колькі гадзін?	kohl-KEE GA-dzeen?	What time?
Гэта другая гадзіна.	GEA-ta DRU-ha-ya GA-dzeen-a	It's two o'clock. (Literally: "It's the second hour.")
Гэта паў на шостую.	GEA-ta POW na SHOS-tsu-yu	It's half past six. ("It's half on the seventh.")
Гэта дзесяць хвілін на дзьве.	GEA-ta dzye-SYATS hvil-EE-nan dzvye	It's ten minutes to two. ("It's ten minutes on two.")

You'll need to get used to the numbers, but the intonation is also vital to notice. Remember, it's a good idea to practice like a native speaker; try to ask, "Kolki hadzin?" (колькі гадзін?) instead of the literal English translation.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You've just learned the basic numbers and time in Belarusian. Keep practicing numbers up to 20, and don't forget the words for 10,100, and 1000. Telling time is a relatively straightforward concept, and with enough practice, you'll be able to speak like a native speaker in no time.

Table of Contents - Belarusian Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

  ---

Basics

• Introducing Yourself
• Numbers and Time

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Nouns

• Gender
• Cases
• Plurals

  ---

Family

• Family Members
• Family Events

  ---

Verbs

• Present Tense
• Infinitives
• Past Tense
• Imperative

  ---

Food

• Ingredients
• Traditional Dishes

  ---

Belarusian Holidays

• New Year's
• Kupalle

  ---

Adjectives

• Gender Agreement
• Comparatives
• Superlatives

  ---

Transportation

• Public Transportation
• Traveling by Car

  ---

Belarusian Folklore

• Belarusian Mythology
• Famous Folktales

  ---

Prepositions

• Locative Prepositions
• Prepositional Case

  ---

Environment

• Nature
• Climate
• National Symbols

Related Lessons

• Public Transportation
• Body and Medecine
• Health
• Months of the year
• Introducing Yourself
• Geography
• Idiomatic Expressions
• Fruits
• Family Events

Sources

• Belarusian language - Wikipedia
• Belarusian online - Learn Belarusian langauge online with LinGo Play
• The First Belarusian Dictionary by Ivan Nasovič - Wikipedia