dix-sept
/di.sɛt/
The French word for seventeen is dix-sept.
dix-sept is used as a cardinal number to represent the quantity seventeen.
Meaning: cardinal number (num)
What does it mean word for word?
The word is a compound of dix (ten) and sept (seven).
How do you pronounce it?
/di.sɛt/. It has 2 syllables.
Did you know?
- In French, the number dix-sept is the last number in the teens that follows a simple additive structure before the complex multiplication patterns of soixante-dix and quatre-vingt-dix begin in the higher tens.
- The word sept itself is one of the few numbers in French that contains a silent 'p' in its standard pronunciation, a trait that remains in dix-sept.
- If you are counting from 11 to 16, the numbers are unique words like seize, but dix-sept marks the exact point where French switches to a predictable 'ten-plus-number' formula.
Examples in context
- Il a dix-sept ans.He is seventeen years old.This sentence is useful for expressing a person's age using dix-sept.Tatoeba #8030917 by theachaean, translation #10351583 by Balamax
- Elle a dix-sept ans.She's seventeen years old.Tatoeba #7555301 by Aiji, translation #2765316 by CK
- J'ai également dix-sept ans.I am seventeen years old, too.Tatoeba #472206 by sacredceltic, translation #262325 by CK
- Le concert commencera à dix-sept heures.The concert will start at seventeen o'clock.
- J'ai dix-sept ans aujourd'hui!I'm seventeen years old today!
- Je suis arrivé au lycée à dix-sept heures et j'ai rencontré mes amis pour étudier.I arrived at school at seventeen o'clock and met my friends to study.
- 18 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Léa and Hugo are checking the price of a book in a shop.
- HugoC'est combien, ce livre ?How much is this book?
- LéaIl coûte dix-sept euros.It costs seventeen euros.
- HugoAh, c'est un bon prix.Ah, that is a good price.
- LéaOui, je le prends.Yes, I'll take it.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “seventeen” translations and entries dix-sept, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
