drei
/dʁaɪ̯/
The German word for three is drei.
drei is the cardinal number 3. When referring to the digit or figure 3 as a noun, the capitalized form Drei is used.
Meaning: cardinal number 3 (num)
Is it said differently in some regions?
In parts of Bavaria, the variation drai is used instead of drei.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
As a cardinal number, drei is indeclinable and does not change its form regardless of the gender or case of the noun it modifies.
How do you pronounce it?
/dʁaɪ̯/
Did you know?
- In traditional German carnival celebrations, particularly in the Rhineland, the 'triumvirate' of leaders is known as the Dreigestirn, embodying the number three as a symbol of power.
- The English word 'three' and the German 'drei' are so closely related that they are practically 'linguistic twins', both descending directly from the Proto-Indo-European root *tréyes.
- While drei is the standard word, the digit 3 is often used in German shorthand as 3. to denote the third position in a sequence, acting as an ordinal number.
Examples in context
- Es ist fast drei.It is almost three.This sentence shows how to use drei when talking about time.Tatoeba #1315391 by al_ex_an_der, translation #31620 by CK
- Er hat drei Kühe.He has three cows.This sentence shows how to use drei to count animals.Tatoeba #9985795 by wolfgangth, translation #8480976 by CH
- Er hat drei Autos.He has three cars.This sentence shows how to use drei to count objects.Tatoeba #8875664 by wolfgangth, translation #8480974 by CH
- Drei TageThree days
- Dreierlei KleiderThree types of dresses
- Drei FreundeThree friends
- Dreier-AusflugThree-person trip
- 3923 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hannah and Julian are ordering drinks at a cafe.
- HannahWir brauchen drei Gläser Wasser, bitte.We need three glasses of water, please.
- JulianGerne, kommt sofort.Sure, coming right up.
- HannahJulian, hast du drei Euro für mich?Julian, do you have three euros for me?
- JulianJa, hier sind sie.Yes, here they are.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “three” translations and entries drei, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries drei, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
