Spanish vocabulary · Beginner
How to Say Five in Spanish
Cinco · noun · SEEN-koh
Five in Spanish is 'cinco,' one of the first numbers every Spanish learner memorizes. Unlike English, Spanish numbers are invariable—'cinco' never changes form regardless of what it describes. It appears in countless expressions, from telling time ('las cinco' = five o'clock) to the famous celebration 'Cinco de Mayo.'
Say SEEN-koh with stress on the first syllable. The 'c' before 'i' produces an 's' sound in Latin America or a 'th' sound (as in 'think') in central Spain. The final 'o' is a clean, short vowel.
Tengo cinco hermanos y somos muy unidos.
I have five siblings and we're very close.
How Native Speakers Use Cinco
Real example sentences across three contexts you'll actually run into.
Telling time
Son las cinco de la tarde, ya es hora de salir.
It's five in the afternoon, it's time to leave.
Using 'cinco' in time expressions, always preceded by 'las.'
Counting items
Necesito cinco huevos para hacer el pastel.
I need five eggs to make the cake.
Basic counting usage in an everyday cooking context.
Age
Mi hija cumple cinco años la próxima semana.
My daughter turns five next week.
Discussing age, where 'cinco años' means five years old.
Avoid These Mistakes When Using Cinco
Mispronouncing as 'sinko'
Incorrect: Writing or thinking of it as 'sinko'
Correct: The correct spelling is always 'cinco'
English speakers sometimes spell it phonetically as 'sinko' due to the 's' pronunciation of 'c' before 'i' in Latin American Spanish, but the only correct spelling uses 'c' in both positions.
Adding gender agreement
Incorrect: Cincos libros están en la mesa.
Correct: Cinco libros están en la mesa.
Unlike some languages, Spanish cardinal numbers (except 'uno/una' and compounds like 'veintiuno/a') do not change for gender or typically take plural form when used as quantifiers.
Lock in Five Vocabulary with the Parrot Method
Why word lists alone don't stick
Memorizing a translation feels productive, but most learners forget 70% of what they studied within 48 hours. Vocabulary needs spaced repetition AND real-world exposure to transfer to long-term memory.
See Cinco used by native speakers
Parrot's short-form videos feature native speakers using cinco in real situations. Context-based exposure beats flashcards, you hear Tengo cinco hermanos y somos muy unidos. while watching someone live the moment, connecting meaning, sound, and rhythm at once.
Save, review, repeat, stay consistent
Tap any word to save it. Parrot's spaced-repetition system surfaces it right before you'd forget, no manual flashcard creation. The watch, parrot back, save, review cycle turns recognition into fluency at 2.7x the speed of traditional study.
Common Questions About Five in Spanish
- What is 'Cinco de Mayo' actually about?
- Cinco de Mayo (May 5th) commemorates Mexico's unexpected military victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla in 1862, and while it is widely celebrated in the United States, in Mexico it is primarily a regional holiday observed most enthusiastically in the state of Puebla rather than a major national celebration.
- How do you say 'high five' in Spanish?
- A high five is called 'choca esos cinco' (literally 'slap those five,' referring to fingers) or simply 'chócala' in most Spanish-speaking countries, and in some regions you'll also hear 'dame cinco' (give me five) as a direct calque from English.
- What comes after 'cinco' in the number sequence?
- The numbers following cinco are seis (6), siete (7), ocho (8), nueve (9), and diez (10), completing the single-digit numbers, and for numbers incorporating five you'll use quince (15), cincuenta (50), and quinientos (500).