Counting to ten in Maltese
One to ten, for prices, platforms, rooms and how many beers. Play the ten Maltese words against the clock, with a note on how locals really use each one after every answer. All ten are written out below.
All 10 Maltese phrases in this lesson
- WieħedWEE-et
- One
- Tnejntnayn
- Two
- TlietaTLEE-ta
- Three
- ErbgħaER-ba
- Four
- ĦamsaHAM-sa
- Five
- SittaSIT-ta
- Six
- SebgħaSEB-a
- Seven
- TmienjaTMEEN-ya
- Eight
- DisgħaDIS-a
- Nine
- GħaxraASH-ra
- Ten
"Wieħed" is the masculine form. For feminine nouns (like "birra" or "kafè tazza") use "waħda" (WAH-da). When ordering or counting objects, choose the correct gender to sound natural.
The "tn" cluster at the start is pure Semitic and has no English equivalent: press the tip of your tongue to the ridge behind your teeth for both sounds in quick succession.
Notice the Semitic pattern: tnejn (2), tlieta (3). The "tl" cluster is softer than it looks. Stress falls on the first syllable in everyday speech.
The "għ" is nearly silent and just slightly deepens the vowel. In rapid speech Maltese people often pronounce this as simply "erba". Either version will be understood at a market stall.
The breathed "ħ" at the start is the same sound as in "ħafna" (many). Ħamsa shares its Semitic root with Arabic "khamsa" and Hebrew "chamesh". The hand gesture for five reinforces it nicely.