Dear members,
It would be appreciated if you could make a question for this answer.
Donald Trump is the 45th President of the United States.
Is it right to say what US president number is he?
It really sounds awkward to me.
Thanks,
Amir
This is a question which has evoked various responses over decades. It has been asked on this forum as well if my serves me right. But no definite answer has been given yet, for such a question is not usually asked by native speakers as I understand.
However, what I’d suggest is this: What is Trump’s ordinal position as president of the US? This would also look a bit unnatural though.
Thank you so much for your answer, but then again I am curious to know how I can ask someone what is his ordinal number in his family. In other words the question of this answer. I am the third child of a family of five children.
Thanks,
Amir
I think this is definitely an aspect where the English language is lacking.
I think the best option is: “What number President is Donald Trump?” , which does sound somewhat awkward, but it will get the meaning across I think. If you ask someone “Are you the oldest child in your family or the youngest?”, you will get the answer you are looking for - something like “Actually, I am the third oldest out of five.”
Here are some discussions about this topic, nobody was really able to come up with a good answer in my opinion:
I fully support your view. But in other languages, especially in the Indian ones, there are specific words to mean it. (something like ‘Howth’, so to say).