kümnes

Kümnes is the Estonian ordinal numeral meaning “the tenth” in a sequence. It is derived from the cardinal ten, kümme, and is used to indicate the position of an item relative to others.

In ordinary use, kümnes functions as an adjective that agrees with the noun it modifies. It can appear in phrases such as kümnes elanik (the tenth inhabitant) or kümnes peatükk (the tenth chapter) and marks order in lists, rankings, chapters, and other ordered series.

The word is written with the umlauted vowel ü as kümnes. Like other Estonian ordinal numerals, it declines to reflect case and number, not gender, and thus its form changes with the noun’s case.

Etymology and related forms: Kümnes derives from kümme (ten) with the ordinal suffix -nes. It has cognates in Finnic languages, notably Finnish kymmenes. The Estonian orthography preserves historical forms and vowel harmony.

See also: Estonian numeral system, ordinal numerals, kümme.