Numeral (linguistics)

In linguistics, a numeral in the broadest sense is a word or phrase that describes a numerical quantity. Some theories of grammar use the word "numeral" to refer to cardinal numbers that act as a determiner that specify the quantity of a noun, for example the "two" in "two hats". Some theories of grammar do not include determiners as a part of speech and consider "two" in this example to be an adjective. Some theories consider "numeral" to be a synonym for "number" and assign all numbers (including ordinal numbers like "first") to a part of speech called "numerals".^[1]^[2] Numerals in the broad sense can also be analyzed as a noun ("three is a small number"), as a pronoun ("the two went to town"), or for a small number of words as an adverb ("I rode the slide twice").

Numerals can express relationships like quantity (cardinal numbers), sequence (ordinal numbers), frequency (once, twice), and part (fraction).^[3]

^ Charles Follen: A Practical Grammar of the German Language. Boston, 1828, p. 9, p. 44 and 48. Quote: "PARTS OF SPEECH. There are ten parts of speech, viz. Article, Substantive or Noun, Adjective, Numeral, Pronoun, Verb, Adverb, Preposition, Conjunction, and Interjection.", "NUMERALS. The numbers are divided into cardinal, ordinal, proportional, distributive, and collective. [...] Numerals of proportion and distribution are [...] &c. Observation. The above numerals, in fach or fäl´tig, are regularly declined, like other adjectives."
^ Horace Dalmolin: The New English Grammar: With Phonetics, Morphology and Syntax, Tate Publishing & Enterprises, 2009, p. 175 & p. 177. Quote: "76. The different types of words used to compose a sentence, in order to relate an idea or to convey a thought, are known as parts of speech. [...] The parts of speech, with a brief definition, will follow. [...] 87. Numeral: Numerals are words that express the idea of number. There are two types of numerals: cardinal and ordinal. The cardinal numbers (one, two, three...) are used for counting people, objects, etc. Ordinal numbers (first, second, third...) can indicate order, placement in rank, etc."
^ "What is a numeral?". Archived from the original on 2016-11-25. Retrieved 2017-03-06.

[1] Charles Follen: A Practical Grammar of the German Language. Boston, 1828, p. 9, p. 44 and 48. Quote: "PARTS OF SPEECH. There are ten parts of speech, viz. Article, Substantive or Noun, Adjective, Numeral, Pronoun, Verb, Adverb, Preposition, Conjunction, and Interjection.", "NUMERALS. The numbers are divided into cardinal, ordinal, proportional, distributive, and collective. [...] Numerals of proportion and distribution are [...] &c. Observation. The above numerals, in fach or fäl´tig, are regularly declined, like other adjectives."

[2] Horace Dalmolin: The New English Grammar: With Phonetics, Morphology and Syntax, Tate Publishing & Enterprises, 2009, p. 175 & p. 177. Quote: "76. The different types of words used to compose a sentence, in order to relate an idea or to convey a thought, are known as parts of speech. [...] The parts of speech, with a brief definition, will follow. [...] 87. Numeral: Numerals are words that express the idea of number. There are two types of numerals: cardinal and ordinal. The cardinal numbers (one, two, three...) are used for counting people, objects, etc. Ordinal numbers (first, second, third...) can indicate order, placement in rank, etc."

[GloL-3] "What is a numeral?". Archived from the original on 2016-11-25. Retrieved 2017-03-06.

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