You are at a hotel front desk in Cartagena. The receptionist hands you a key card and says: "Su habitacion esta en el quinto piso, habitacion quinientos tres." (Your room is on the fifth floor, room 503.) You nod - quinto means fifth, you got that. Then she adds: "El desayuno está incluido. Se sirve en el segundo piso, de seis y media a nueve y media." (Breakfast is included. It is served on the second floor, from 6:30 to 9:30.) You understand segundo - second. She continues: "Ah, y tenemos un descuento del veinte por ciento en el spa esta semana." (We have a 20% discount on the spa this week.) Veinte por ciento - twenty percent. Three different number systems in thirty seconds: ordinals, fractions embedded in time, and percentages.
Los numeros cardinales son solo el comienzo. (Cardinal numbers are just the beginning.) Real fluency means handling ordinals, fractions, and percentages - the numbers that organize Colombian daily life.
In this lesson, you will master ordinal numbers (primero through decimo and beyond), learn how Colombians express fractions and portions, understand percentages as they appear in discounts, tips, and financial contexts, and practice using all three systems in real Colombian situations.
1. Ordinal Numbers: First Through Tenth
Ordinal numbers in Spanish tell you the position or order of something. In Colombian daily life, you hear them for floors, addresses, dates, and rankings.
Number
Spanish (masculine)
Spanish (feminine)
Abbreviation
1st
primero (primer)
primera
1.o / 1.a
2nd
segundo
segunda
2.o / 2.a
3rd
tercero (tercer)
tercera
3.o / 3.a
4th
cuarto
cuarta
4.o / 4.a
5th
quinto
quinta
5.o / 5.a
6th
sexto
sexta
6.o / 6.a
7th
séptimo
séptima
7.o / 7.a
8th
octavo
octava
8.o / 8.a
9th
noveno
novena
9.o / 9.a
10th
décimo
décima
10.o / 10.a
Two important notes:
Primero and tercero drop the final -o before masculine nouns: el primer piso (the first floor), el tercer día (the third day)
Ordinals agree in gender: la primera vez (the first time), el segundo piso (the second floor)
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Myth: Colombians use ordinal numbers for everything above tenth
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After décimo (10th), Colombians almost always switch to cardinal numbers. Nobody says 'decimoquinto piso' for the 15th floor - they say 'piso quince.' Floor 22 is 'piso veintidós,' not 'vigésimo segundo.' Ordinals above décimo exist in formal/legal Spanish but are almost never used in daily conversation.
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Quick Check-in
2. Where You Hear Ordinals in Colombia
Ordinals are not abstract grammar - they are woven into everyday Colombian situations.
Floors in buildings - pisos:
"Voy al tercer piso." (I am going to the third floor.)
"La oficina queda en el octavo piso." (The office is on the eighth floor.)
Colombian addresses use ordinals constantly: "Calle primera con carrera tercera" (First Street with Third Avenue)
"Queda en la quinta con dieciocho" - a very Bogota way of saying 5th Avenue with 18th Street
Dates - only for the first:
"El primero de enero" (January 1st) - ordinal used only for the first of the month
All other dates use cardinals: "El dos de febrero,""El quince de marzo"
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Navigating a Colombian Office Building
You arrive at a building in Bogota's financial district for an appointment. The security guard asks: "¿A qué piso va?" (What floor are you going to?) You check your phone: "Al séptimo piso, oficina setecientos cinco." (The seventh floor, office 705.) He writes something in his clipboard: "Nombre y cédula, por favor." You give your name and passport number. He hands you a visitor badge: "Listo. Los ascensores están a la derecha. Séptimo piso." In the elevator, you press 7. The screen reads: "Piso 7." You arrive and see a sign: "Oficinas 701-710 → / Oficinas 711-720 ←."
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What does 'PB' mean in a Colombian elevator?
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PB stands for 'Planta Baja' - ground floor. Colombian buildings often number floors starting from PB (ground), then 1 (which would be the 2nd floor in American counting), 2, 3, etc. Some buildings also use 'S1' or 'S2' for underground parking levels - 'sótano uno' and 'sótano dos' (basement one and two).
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3. Fractions: Halves, Thirds, and Quarters
Fractions come up in cooking, time, measurements, and everyday descriptions. Colombian Spanish uses them naturally and frequently.
Fraction
Spanish
Example
1/2
medio/media or la mitad
"Media hora" (half an hour)
1/3
un tercio
"Un tercio de la torta" (a third of the cake)
1/4
un cuarto
"Un cuarto de kilo" (a quarter kilo)
3/4
tres cuartos
"Tres cuartos de hora" (45 minutes)
1/5
un quinto
"Un quinto de la población"
2/3
dos tercios
"Dos tercios del país"
The most common fraction in daily life is medio/media:
"Media libra de queso" (half a pound of cheese) - at the deli counter
"Medio litro de agua" (half a liter of water) - at a restaurant
"Media hora" (half an hour) - talking about time
"Son las dos y media" (It is 2:30) - telling time
Reflection
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What is the difference between 'medio' and 'la mitad'?
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Both mean 'half' but are used differently. 'Medio/media' is an adjective that goes with a noun: 'media hora' (half an hour), 'medio kilo' (half a kilo). 'La mitad' is a noun meaning 'the half' or 'half of': 'la mitad del precio' (half the price), 'la mitad de la torta' (half of the cake). In bargaining, 'la mitad' is powerful: 'Le doy la mitad' (I will give you half).
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4. Percentages: The Numbers Behind Discounts and Tips
Percentages are everywhere in Colombian commerce - discounts, tips, taxes, interest rates. The key phrase is simple: por ciento (percent).
Percentage
Spanish
Common Context
8%
ocho por ciento
Restaurant IVA
10%
diez por ciento
Standard tip (propina)
19%
diecinueve por ciento
General IVA on goods
20%
veinte por ciento
Common sale discount
30%
treinta por ciento
Good sale discount
50%
cincuenta por ciento
Major clearance sale
How percentages appear in Colombian life:
"Descuento del treinta por ciento" (30% discount) - on a store sign
"Incluye el diez por ciento de propina" (Includes the 10% tip) - on a restaurant bill
"El IVA es del diecinueve por ciento" (The IVA is 19%) - buying electronics
"La tasa de interés es del uno punto cinco por ciento mensual" (The interest rate is 1.5% monthly) - at the bank
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A Sale at Falabella
You are browsing a department store and see a red sign: "¡REBAJAS! Hasta 50% de descuento en ropa seleccionada." A salesperson approaches: "¿Le puedo ayudar? Todo lo que tiene etiqueta roja tiene el cuarenta por ciento de descuento." (Can I help you? Everything with a red tag has a 40% discount.) You pick up a jacket tagged at $180,000. You calculate: 40% off means $108,000. You ask: "¿Esta chaqueta tiene el cuarenta por ciento?" She checks: "Sí, señor. Le quedaría en ciento ocho mil." (Yes, sir. It would come to 108,000 for you.)
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How do you quickly calculate a 10% tip in Colombian pesos?
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The easiest trick: drop the last three zeros from the subtotal, then multiply by 10. Or even simpler: just move the decimal point. A $45,000 meal has a 10% tip of $4,500. A $120,000 dinner has a $12,000 tip. Colombians calculate this instinctively. Practice with a few real numbers and it becomes automatic.
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Self-Rating
5. Quick Conversion Practice
Calculating a Discount in Colombian Pesos
Read the discount sign
You see: "30% de descuento." The item costs $90,000 COP.
Find 10% first
10% of $90,000 = $9,000. This is your building block.
Multiply for the discount
30% = 3 x 10% = 3 x $9,000 = $27,000 discount.
Subtract from the original
6. Combining Systems: Real-World Practice
In real Colombian life, ordinals, fractions, and percentages often appear together. Here are situations where you need to combine them.
At a hotel:
"Su habitación está en el sexto piso. El check-out es a las doce y media. Si sale después, se cobra el cincuenta por ciento de una noche adicional." (Your room is on the sixth floor. Check-out is at 12:30. If you leave later, 50% of an extra night is charged.)
At a pharmacy:
"Tome media pastilla, tres veces al día, por cinco días." (Take half a pill, three times a day, for five days.)
At a real estate office:
"El apartamento está en el tercer piso. El primer mes se paga al cincuenta por ciento. El deposito es un tercio de la renta mensual." (The apartment is on the third floor. The first month is paid at 50%. The deposit is a third of the monthly rent.)
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How do Colombians say decimal numbers like 1.5 or 3.75?
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Using 'punto' or 'coma' depending on context. In everyday speech: 'uno punto cinco' or 'uno coma cinco.' Remember: Colombia uses commas for decimals in writing (1,5 instead of 1.5) but in spoken language, both 'punto' and 'coma' are understood. For money: 'mil quinientos' rather than 'uno coma cinco mil.'
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7. Common Mistakes to Avoid
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Myth: You need ordinals for all floor numbers in Colombian buildings
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Above the 10th floor, Colombians use cardinal numbers: 'piso quince' (floor 15), not 'decimoquinto piso.' Even for floors 1-10, you will often hear cardinals in casual speech: 'Voy al piso cinco' is as common as 'Voy al quinto piso.' The key is that you understand both - ordinals in formal contexts, cardinals in casual ones.
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Top errors English speakers make:
Forgetting gender agreement: la primera (not el primera)
Not dropping the -o from primero/tercero before masculine nouns: el primer piso (not el primero piso)
Using ordinals above 10th in casual speech (Colombians do not)
Saying "porciento" as one word (it is two words: por ciento)
Confusing medio (half/adjective) with la mitad (half/noun)
Quick Check-in
8. Key Takeaways
Ordinals from primero to decimo are essential - after that, Colombians switch to cardinal numbers in everyday speech
Two ordinals have special short forms - primero becomes primer and tercero becomes tercer before masculine nouns
Medio/media is the most common fraction - you will use it for time (y media), weight (medio kilo), and portions (media libra)
Percentages use por ciento - master 8%, 10%, 19%, and common discount percentages (20%, 30%, 50%) for shopping and dining
Gender agreement applies to ordinals and medio - la primera vez, media hora, el tercer piso
Summary Checklist
Can you say ordinal numbers from first to tenth in both masculine and feminine forms?
Can you explain when Colombians stop using ordinals and switch to cardinal numbers?
Can you express halves, thirds, and quarters in Spanish?
Can you calculate and state a percentage discount in Colombian pesos?
Can you avoid the five common mistakes listed in Section 6?
This Week's Practice
Daily Actions for This Week
Monday-Tuesday: Practice ordinals 1st through 10th in context. Describe the floors of a building: "El primer piso, el segundo piso..." all the way up. Then switch to feminine: "La primera calle, la segunda avenida..."
Wednesday-Thursday: Focus on fractions. Practice ordering at a market: "Media libra de queso, un cuarto de kilo de jamón, medio litro de leche." Say each phrase five times until it flows naturally.
Friday: Work with percentages. Take five prices ($15,000 / $35,000 / $80,000 / $120,000 / $250,000) and calculate 10%, 20%, and 30% discounts. Say each result aloud in Spanish.
Weekend: Combine all three. Describe your hotel: "Estoy en el quinto piso. El desayuno es a las siete y media. Hay un descuento del veinte por ciento en la segunda noche." Make up three similar descriptions.
$90,000 - $27,000 = $63,000. Say it: "Sesenta y tres mil pesos."