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CARDINAL NUMBERS If a number is in the range 21 to 99, and the second digit is not zero, one should write the number as two words separated by a Hyphen . In English, the Hundred s are perfectly regular, except that the word ''hundred'' remains in its singular form regardless of the number preceding it (obviously, one may on the other hand say "hundreds of people flew in", or the like) So are the thousands, with the number of thousands followed by the word "thousand" In informal English, exact numbers larger than one million are seldom named, except perhaps for dramatic effect. There is more than one way of forming intermediate numbers. One way is for when you are counting something. Another way is for when you are using numbers as labels. The second column method is used much more often in American English than British English . The third column is used in British English, but rarely in American English (although the use of the second and third columns is not necessarily directly interchangeable between the two regional variants). In other words, the British dialect can seemingly adopt the American way of counting, but it is specific to the situation (in this example, bus numbers). Note: When writing a Cheque (or ''check''), the number 100 is always written "one hundred". It is never "a hundred". Note that in American English , it is non-standard to use the word and before tens and ones. It is instead used as a verbal delimiter when dealing with Compound Numbers . Thus, instead of "three hundred and seventy-three", Americans usually say (and write) "three hundred seventy-three". For details, see American And British English Differences . For numbers above a million, there are two different systems for naming numbers in English:
Although British English has traditionally followed the long-scale numbering system, the short-scale usage has become increasingly common in recent years. For example, the UK Government and BBC websites use the newer short-scale values exclusively. Here are some approximate composite large numbers in American English: Often, large numbers are written with (preferably Non-breaking ) Half-space s or thin spaces separating the thousands (and, sometimes, with normal Space s or Apostrophe s) instead of Comma s—to ensure that confusion is not caused in countries where a Decimal Comma is used. Thus, a million is often written 1 000 000. In some areas, a Point (. or ·) may also be used as a Thousands' Separator , but then, the Decimal Separator must be a comma. SPECIALISED NUMBERS A few numbers have special names (in addition to their regular names):
Combinations of numbers in most sports scores are read as in the following examples:
Tennis Score s (and related games') are a law unto themselves. ORDINAL NUMBERS Here are some Ordinal numbers. ''Zeroth'' only has a meaning when counts start with zero, which happens in a Mathematical or Computer Science context. Ordinal numbers such as 21st, 33rd, etc, are formed by combining a ''cardinal'' ten with an ''ordinal'' unit. Higher ordinals are not usually written in words. They are written using digits and letters as described below. Here are some rules that should be borne in mind.
These ordinal abbreviations are actually hybrid contractions of a numeral and a word. 1st is "1" + "st" from "first". Similarly, we use "nd" for "seco'''nd'''" and "rd" for "thi'''rd'''". In some older publications, the ordinal abbreviation for "second" and "third" is simply, "d"
Any ordinal name that doesn't end in "first", "second", or "third", ends in "th". DATES Years before 2000 are read as follows: The year 2000 is read "two thousand". Years after 2000 have no set system as of yet for expressing them; however, the second form of zeroth-decade year pronunciation is more common (that is, 2003 to be said as "two thousand (and) three"), and post-2010 dates are often said as normal (2010 would be "twenty ten"). Note that years are exceedingly rarely read as ordinal numbers, as " {Link without Title} in the one thousand one hundred and ninety-seventh year of our Lord" (that is, 1197), and this is considered archaic.
Compare:
The comma before the year is optional. It is usually used in American English (September 4, 2004) but now seldom used in British and International English (4 September 2004). In abbreviations of month names, such as "Aug" for August, the period or full stop is often left out. For an explanation of British, American and International usage for dates written in numbers, such as 14/03/2004 or 3/14/2004 or 2004-03-14, see Calendar Date . FRACTIONS AND DECIMALS Here are some common fractions: Alternatively, and for greater numbers, one may say for 1/2 "one over two", for 5/8 "five over eight", and so on. (This form is not common in British English.) Numbers with a decimal point may be read as a cardinal number, then "and", then another cardinal number followed by an indication of the significance of the second cardinal number (not common in British English); or as a cardinal number, followed by "point", and then by the digits of the fractional part. The indication of significance takes the form of the denominator of the fraction indicating division by the smallest power of ten larger than the second cardinal. This is modified when the first cardinal is zero, in which case neither the zero nor the "and" is pronounced, but the zero is optional in the "point" form of the fraction.
In English the decimal point was originally printed in the center of the line (0ยท002), but with the advent of the typewriter it was placed at the bottom of the line, so that a single key could be used as a full stop/period and as a decimal point. In many non-English languages a full-stop/period at the bottom of the line is used as a thousands separator with a comma being used as the decimal point.
A space is required between the whole number and the fraction, however, if a special fraction character is used like "½", then the space can be done without, e.g.
See also English-language Numerals . WHETHER TO USE DIGITS OR WORDS According to most copy editors and English teachers, the numbers zero through nine should be "written out" – meaning instead of "1" and "2", one would write "one" and "two". :Example: "I have two apples." (Preferred) :Example: "I have 2 apples." After "nine", one can head straight back into the 10, 11, 12, etc., although some write out the numbers until "twelve". :Example: "I have 28 grapes." (Preferred) :Example: "I have twenty-eight grapes." Another common usage is to write out any number that can be expressed as one or two words, and use figures otherwise. :Examples: ::"There are six million dogs." (Preferred) ::"There are 6,000,000 dogs." ::"That is one hundred twenty-five oranges." ::"That is 125 oranges." (Preferred) Numbers at the beginning of a sentence should also be written out. The above rules are not always used. In literature, larger numbers might be spelled out. On the other hand, digits might be more commonly used in technical or financial articles, where many figures are discussed. In particular, the two different forms should not be used for figures that serve the same purpose; for example, it is inelegant to write, ''"Between day twelve and day 15 of the study, the population doubled."'' EMPTY NUMBERS Colloquial English has a small vocabulary of empty numbers that can be employed when there is uncertainty as to the precise number to use, but it is desirable to define a general range: specifically, the terms "umpteen", "umpty", and "zillion". These are derived etymologically from the range affixes:
The prefix "ump-" is added to the first two suffixes to produce the empty numbers "umpteen" and "umpty": it is of uncertain origin. There is a noticeable absence of an empty number in the hundreds range. Usage of empty numbers:
See also Placeholder Name . USAGE NOTES While there are a number of "rules" about ways of expressing numbers, the essential requirement must always be to avoid ambiguity. Different authorities don't always agree; for example the following sentence was found in a perfectly respectable document. "It has sold 10,000,000 copies. It was number 21 on a recent list of the 100 most important non-fiction books of the 20th century." This sentence is perfectly clear, and it is unlikely that any reader would change his attitude toward the author because of these "errors". With the rise of computers, use of the name of the letter "O" to signify both the letter "O" and numeric zero has become ambiguous. If numbers are typed into the computer as spoken, problems may arise if the numbers are used for anything other than simple display. If a house number is shown on screen as "12O" instead of "120", no harm is done. But if this error is made in a telephone number to be dialed, or in calculations, problems will arise. The simplest solution is always to say "zero" or "nought". Numeric dates, as normally abbreviated, are ambiguous: the forms "mm/dd/yy", "dd/mm/yy" where "yy" may be a 2- or 4-digit year, are used in different places; in the US, the former is used, and is reflected in the spoken convention for dates there, for example ''"October Fourth, Two Thousand Five"'', whereas in Britain, the latter naming convention is used, and would be spoken as ''"(The) Fourth of October, Two Thousand and Five"''. The international standard, with the form yyyy-mm-dd avoids ambiguity and 2005-07-09 means the 9th of July 2005. SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS
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