Writing Numbers
The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation
Writing Numbers
Deciding whether to write numbers as numerals or as number words is a matter of style. The style for a literary publication may differ from the style for a journalistic publication. The key in all cases is to use a consistent style throughout your writing.
Many publishers of literary works, such as literary journals and fiction books, prefer that you spell out all numbers less than 101, then switch to numerals for 101 and above. In contrast, most newspapers, scientific journals, and popular presses in the United States prefer that you spell out all numbers less than 10, then switch to numerals for 10 and above. For all types of publications, if you use a numeral for one element of a category within a paragraph, you should use a numeral for all other elements of that category within that paragraph.
On its website, the highly regarded Chicago Manual of Style recommends “consistency ‘in the immediate context,’ which you might call ‘within eyeshot’—that is, anywhere you think a reader might be distracted by the inconsistency.” For instance, you might write the following: “We published 10 novels last year, 1 of which included 99 chapters.”
There is no global right or wrong, other than to be consistent within your own writing. If you’re using numerals for 10 and above, stick to that throughout your writing. If you’re choosing numerals just for 101 and above, spell out all smaller numbers throughout your writing.
For more tips on how to treat numbers in writing, see our English Rules web page, Writing Numbers.
Pop Quiz
Assume you are following the rules adhered to by popular presses in the United States.
1A. I needed only five copies of the test, not 50.
1B. I needed only five copies of the test, not fifty.
1C. I needed only 5 copies of the test, not 50.
1D. I needed only 5 copies of the test, not fifty.
2A. Please give Arthur four pencils with erasers and 15 blank sheets of paper to complete the assignment.
2B. Please give Arthur four pencils with erasers and fifteen blank sheets of paper to complete the assignment.
2C. Please give Arthur 4 pencils with erasers and 15 blank sheets of paper to complete the assignment.
2D. Please give Arthur 4 pencils with erasers and fifteen blank sheets of paper to complete the assignment.
3A. We will need three pies to feed 12 students and twelve pies to feed 50 students.
3B. We will need three pies to feed twelve students and twelve pies to feed fifty students.
3C. We will need 3 pies to feed 12 students and 12 pies to feed 50 students.
3D. We will need 3 pies to feed twelve students and 12 pies to feed fifty students.
Answers
1B. I only needed five copies of the test, not fifty.
Since the number five comes first, we follow the standard format of writing out numbers less than 10. Since both numbers are representing copies, to be consistent, we should write out both numbers.
2A. Please give Arthur four pencils with erasers and 15 blank sheets of paper to complete the assignment.
Since the number four comes first, we follow the standard format of writing out numbers less than 10. Since the second number represents sheets of paper, not pencils, we should use numerals as it is 10 or above.
3A. We will need three pies to feed 15 students and twelve pies to feed 60 students.
Since the number three comes first, we follow the standard format of writing out numbers less than 10. Since three represents pies, we will also write out twelve since it, too, represents pies. Since the number of students is above nine, we will use digits to represent 15 and 60.
If the article or the existing discussions do not address a thought or question you have on the subject, please use the "Comment" box at the bottom of this page.
She gets up at four thirty! Should we not use a dash between four and thirty?
According to the Chicago Manual of Style, no hyphen is used with time.
I would like to know how to write out the numbers 138 and 100.38 if they are not monetary numbers, please?
When I was at school (I am not English native speaker?, I was taught that an “and” should only be added between the hundred and ten (twenty……), eg.
123 one hundred and twenty three
123,456 one hundred and twenty three thousand four hundred and fifty six
123.45 one hundred and twenty three point four five
Am I correct? If not, could you please tell me what is the correct way to write out these numbers?? Thanks!
No “and” except to replace a decimal point.
123 = one hundred twenty-three (Do use the hyphen for all compound numbers from twenty-one through ninety-nine.)
23.45 = twenty-three and forty-five hundredths
In UK English, we do write the figure 123 as one hundred and twenty-three. Otherwise it is incorrect. For example, “One hundred and twenty-three people died when the aeroplane crashed.”
Yes, British English rules and spellings sometimes differ from American English.
How does one go about age in writing? Should one spell the age or use numerals? Ex.: “A twenty-year-old student” vs. “A 20-year-old student.” Thanks!
Both “twenty-year-old student” and “a 20-year-old student” are correct.
When writing numbers of different denominations, is consistency the key, e.g., $25 instead of $25.00 and (in the same sentence) $400 (no zeroes).
“I earned $25 for a total of $400 . . . ”
Thank you.
Thank you Jane; this was most helpful.
Yes.
Today, I’ve notice the time of day written without the periods after
6pm. Is this correct?
You can write PM, P.M., p.m., or pm
When writing the age of a person or object, what is the correct placement of hyphens? For example, do you write, “the sixteen-year-old boy” or “the seven-year old program”?
the sixteen-year-old boy
the seven-year-old program
I recommend using “cost of $1 to $3 million.”
How would I correctly write “project cost of $1 to 3 million…” Is the dollar sign needed in the second instance?
I would like to know if you put dashes in between four and a half, etc.
Kris,
Use the hyphen this way: four and one-half
I’m not sure that you would use a hyphen if you write “four and a half.”
When describing the length of an object, which one is correct?
It is 82-metre long. OR It is 82 metres long.
It is an 82-metre-tunnel.
Thanks^^
82 metres long (or meters in American English)
82-metre tunnel
You would want to be consistent: Prince Michael, 12; Paris, 11; and Prince Michael II, 7.
What about consistency with age i.e.
“Prince Michael, 12, Paris, 11, and Prince Michael II, seven,”
is this correct?
cheers
I have a hyphen conundrum.
Which is correct? Or are they both right? And Why?
When I was seven-years-old, my brothers dared me . . .
or
When I was seven years old, my brothers dared me . . .
When the age is used as an adjective followed by a noun, hyphenate.
Examples: He is a seven-year-old boy.
He is seven years old.
why we need Hyphenate all compound numbers from twenty-one through ninety-nine in rule # 15 [now Rule 2a]?
Because that’s the rule.
I’m clear on how to hyphenate ages regarding years. But what do I do when I need to specify months as well?
“Paula is a six-year-and-eight-month-old”
or “Paula is a six-year and eight-month-old”
or “Paula is a six-year-eight-month-old” ?
It would be easiest to say “Paula is six years and eight months old.”
Is this correct in casual and formal writing?
In my 20s and 30s, I rode a bike.
Yes, it is correct to write the following: In my 20s and 30s, I rode a bike.
What is the difference between
She is a 9 year old girl. and She is 9 years old.
Why is year plural in one and singular in the other and why do we add an article ‘a’ and it changes to singular (year)
She is a 9-year-old girl.
Use hyphens to form a compound adjective in front of a noun.
She is 9 years old.
There is no noun following so no hyphens are used.
“She is 9 years old.” Years is not simply a plural, it’s a plural possessive pronoun. Correct punctuation dictates that it is written, “She is 9 years’ old.”
The word years is simply a plural. It is not a pronoun and it does not indicate possession.
Are you supposed to use numerals when using “years old”?
As the post states, “Many publishers of literary works, such as literary journals and fiction books, prefer that you spell out all numbers less than 101, then switch to numerals for 101 and above. In contrast, most newspapers, scientific journals, and popular presses in the United States prefer that you spell out all numbers less than 10, then switch to numerals for 10 and above. For all types of publications, if you use a numeral for one element of a category within a paragraph, you should use a numeral for all other elements of that category within that paragraph.” Therefore, pick a style and remain consistent.
If “years old” are not mentioned in a sentence, would that then mean that ages should be written using the “default” number writing rules of spelling out ages under 10, or should the age be expressed as a numeral regardless?
Ex:
She’s four and hasn’t started first grade. (And, whoops — 1st or first?)
-or-
She’s 4 and hasn’t started first grade.
Thanks in advance. This has proven an *awesome* resource for myself and my transcribers.
You can use either a numeral or a word to express ages under 10. Some resources prefer the word spelled out: She’s four and hasn’t started first grade.
Yes, “first” is preferred over “1st” but it’s not a big deal.
question about writing age…
ok, so “in 1993 he was twenty-six” is correct and “in 1993 he was 26” is incorrect
i know that you said if you have two different categories of numbers, to differentiate between the two, but what is the rule for writing someone’s age in general?
It is fine to write “In 1993 he was 26.”
How could i write the following number:
$1,199.02. What I have to use for the decimal part.
Thanks,
one thousand one hundred ninety-nine dollars and two cents
“and” replaces the decimal point.
I have to write a report and I want to combine the sentence to include the age and gender of the child.
Right now it looks like this….
Bobby is a 10 years old and 3 months old male.
I’ve tried a bunch of variations of this and none of them look quite right. How should I write that sentence?
“Bobby is a 10-year, 3-month-old male.”
OR
“Bobby is a 10 1/4-year-old male.”
wouldn’t it be more precise to say “Bobby is a male child, aged 10 years and 3 months.” ?
That is certainly another option, but we would not call it more precise.
I’m from Brazil. Sorry but I do not write well. I’m learning your language. How I can write this?
We examined 102 12 year old children from public schools in Manaus.
Is it correct in English these numbers together? Or I need to write someone … well I don’t know how to write the word, will be in full “por extenso”, like twelve?
Thank you, in advance.
102 12-year-old children
OR
102 twelve-year-old children
Jane,
Please, I have two doubts:
1st. Are there rules about numbers and the degree symbol?
e.g.
… and different temperatures of 30°C for the white one, and 10, 20 and 35°C for the purple one…
or
… and different temperatures of 30°C for the white one, and 10ºC, 20ºC and 35°C for the purple one…
2nd- How I use numbers and the symbol of percentage?
…80 and 95% of the respondents or 80 percent and 95 percent of …
Thank you in advanced
It is best to write these examples as follows: 10ºC, 20ºC, and 35°C AND
80 percent and 95 percent OR
80% and 95%
Otherwise, your reader will not know what you are talking about until the end.
I have some douts again about numbers and symbols:
(1) patients scored the pain levels 24, 48, 72 and 120 hours after using the tab…
(2) … available for 48-72 hours before… or … available for 48 and 72 hours before…
(3) She retorned at 24-h (is it correct?) yesterday
Thank you
1. Patients scored the pain levels 24, 48, 72, and 120 hours after using the tab. (I advise using the comma before “and” in a series to avoid any confusion: Commas, Rule 1)
2. “48-72 hours before” is correct If you mean continuously over that period of time. “48 and 72 hours before” is correct if you mean only at those two points in time.
3. She returned at 2400 hours yesterday. (That would be correct for military time, if you’re stating what time she returned.) or
She returned after 24 hours. (If you are stating how long it was before she returned.)
I have a question about the singular/ plural use in age.
Isn’t it common to say, “She is one years old” ?
But is this correct? Would you pluralize the age of one
just as we singularize,”My ten-year-old” ?
Thank you in advance for your assistance.
No, do not pluralize year. Examples:
She is one year old. My daughter is one year old. My one-year-old. My one-year-old daughter. My ten-year-old. My ten-year-old daughter.
But
My daughter is ten years old.
You could also say “she is a year old.”
How about when I’m listing a series of ages, all of which will share the same ‘years-old’ at the end of the list – do a put a hanging hyphen at the end of each number?
Ex: 10-, 11- and 12-year-olds.
-or-
10, 11 and 12-year-olds.
Thank for doing this, by the way.
AP Stylebook recognizes this as a suspensive hyphen. It is used when hyphenated words occur in sets of two or more and the first or second part of the compound is only used once.
10-, 11-, and 12-year olds
Is this correct?
A group of 7.5 — to 12-year-old children
Or, should it be written this way?
A group of 7.5- to 12-year-old children…
The use of a decimal number seems awkward in this sentence. It would seem more natural to use fractions when speaking of ages. Also, in the phrase “A group of 7 1/2- to 12-year-old children,” the hyphenated phrasal adjective “7 1/2- to 12-year-old” seems to be slightly confusing to the reader. According to The Chicago Manual of Style 5.91, “If a phrasal adjective becomes awkward, the sentence should probably be recast.” I would, therefore, reword to say, “A group of children ranging in ages from 7 1/2 to 12 years old.”
So you’re saying on an earlier post that if someone is giving a range of ages that it should be written 13 to 19 year olds, not 13-to-19 year olds?
Thank you.
You could write “13- to 19-year-olds.” It is called a suspended hyphen. Or, you could rewrite the sentence in non-adjectival form as children ranging in age from 13 to 19 years old.
Are both of these correct?
one-quarter liter pottery pitchers
and
1/4-liter pottery pitchers
Thanks!
Always spell out simple fractions and use hyphens with them.
one-quarter-liter pottery pitchers
I often hear people say August of 2008. Is this written out like that? I always change it to August 2008. Thanks!
You’re right, when writing dates, the word “of” need not be included. However, many people do insert the word of when speaking about a date.
How does this look?
Requirements for a 17-year-old student requesting to enroll in JCJC Adult Basic Education/GED Preparation Classes:
It looks correct as written.
MLA requires that all numbers below 100 be spelled out. Is is exclusive to APA that numbers above 10 may be expressed in Arabic digits?
Not all authorities agree on the rules. The Chicago Manual of Style (9.2) advises spelling out whole numbers from zero through one hundred. The use of numerals above 10 is not exclusive to APA. The U.S. Government Printing Office Style Manual (12.4) states, “A figure is used for a single number of 10 or more with the exception of the first word of the sentence.”
Grammarbook‘s Rule 1 likewise recommends spelling out single-digit whole numbers and using numerals for numbers greater than nine.
What’s the rule with writing people’s height?
For example, “He’s already 6 feet 1 inch tall.” Is that correct? If not, how would I do that properly?
Thanks
AP Stylebook advises using figures and spelling out inches, feet, etc. to indicate height. Therefore,”He’s already 6 feet 1 inch tall” is correct.
I’m writing about my son’s “two month” checkup, “three month,” etc. Is it spelled out or numerical. Also, it it hyphenated? Thank you. Helpful site!
It would be spelled out and hyphenated.
“two-month checkup”
“three-month checkup”
oops!
what I meant was…Which is right?
A man in his early fifty’s…or
A man in his early fifties…
Thanks!
“A man in his early fifties” would be right.
How would you write in a report that a child can skip count in twos, fives and tens, if it is abbreviated? 2’s or 2s
Some authorities would write 2s without an apostrophe, while others prefer 2’s.
But is it better to write “early fifties” or “early 50s?”
Either choice would be acceptable.
Which one is correct: fifteen-year marriage or fifteen year marriage
In our blog post titled “Numbers as Adjectives” the rule says, “Generally, hyphenate between two or more adjectives when they come before a noun and act as a single idea. This rule can also be applied when a number and a measurement unit taken together form an adjective, that is, when they describe another object.” Therefore, fifteen-year marriage would be correct.
At work I have to spell out dollar amounts in professional documents, but we have a disagreement on which is the correct way.
I believe to write it in check format is proper:
“One thousand, seven hundred sixty-three and 42/100 dollars ($1,763.42)”
But it is argued that :
“One thousand, seven hundred sixty-three dollars and forty-two cents ($1,763.42)” is also correct.
we always incude the numerical representation in parentheses for clarity. Is there a truely correct way? or is it just aesthetic?
Thanks!
Our recommended format is covered in Rule 7 of Writing Numbers: One thousand seven hundred sixty-three dollars and forty-two cents.
When writing numbers as if you were counting, do you put a semicolon after each number? Example: One, one thousand; two, one thousand: three, one thousand and so on.
You would not need to use semicolons if you did not use commas after one, two, three, etc. One one thousand, two one thousand, three one thousand…
First, thank you for having such a great online resource. I’ve found myself coming to your site often and just ordered your book off Amazon. I have come to you today with a couple of questions until your book arrives. I have 2 passages in my writing, in which I am questioning how I refer to a character’s age. They read as follow:
Passage 1
Cara, 12, sat motionless in her seat belt, her blonde hair washing over her lifeless face in the icy water. Lori, 7, was out of her seatbelt and pressed against the ceiling.
Passage 2
Marilyn’s eyes darted to 5-year-old Katelyn who was strapped into her car seat in the middle.
Given that (12) is not a single digit, the rules seem to dictate that it needs to be spelled out, but I’m not sure since in the very next line I refer to another child at age (7), which follows a rule to use a numeral for a single digit. Are these correct the way I have then? Or do I need to spell out (12), (7) and (5). Also is the punctuation correct? Character name (comma) age (comma) rest of sentence.
Thank you in advance for your skill and insight.
Associated Press style says to use numerals for all ages. Chicago style says to write all ages out as words. It’s your call. Setting the characters’ ages off in commas is consistent with Rule 11 of “Commas” since giving the characters’ names sufficiently identifies them. Good luck with your writing; sounds like you’re dealing with a tragic event.
Silly note but fun. I went back to Amazon and found your book on Kindle so i canceled my purchase for the hard copy and ordered the Kindle version. Its great I’m paging through it on my PC version of Kindle. Thanks. I look forward to your response.
Does “up to age 13” include 13?
The phrase “up to” indicates a limit or boundary. Most likely it would only include age 13 if it said, “up to and including age 13.” It can, however, be ambiguous and open to interpretation, so it may be best to inquire specifically
After reading through all your eye-opening responses to inquiries about “Writing Numbers”, I’m still left with a question which has been of much debate at my workplace, so I decided to submit it.
Which is/are correct:
“He’s willing to pay eleven five for the car”
“He’s willing to pay eleven, five for the car”
“He’s willing to pay 11 – 5 for the car”
“He’s willing to pay 11, 5 for the car”
I look forward to your insightful response. Thank you.
Uh, oh, looks like I’m under pressure to be insightful in my explanation.
If you were writing this out formally, you would write either:
“He’s willing to pay $11,500 for the car.” OR
“He’s willing to pay eleven thousand five hundred dollars for the car.”
As for your informal, but commonly spoken, way of expressing the dollar figure, we feel that either of the following would be acceptable:
“He’s willing to pay eleven-five for the car.” OR
“He’s willing to pay eleven five for the car.”
Using numbers in this case would probably be too confusing.
how do I write 4’6” in an essay? Is it “She was four-feet-six-inches tall or she was four feet and sic inches tall or what?
The rule in our blog “Writing Numbers as Adjectives” says, “Generally, hyphenate between two or more adjectives when they come before a noun and act as a single idea. When measurements are not acting as adjectives, hyphens are not needed.” Since four feet six inches is not in front of a noun, you do not need to hyphenate.
She was four feet six inches tall. OR
She was 4 feet 6 inches tall.
Which one is the correct way to write a monetary amount?
Michelle, can you lend me $5 until tomorrow?
Michelle, can you lend me $5.00 until tomorrow?
Michelle, can you lend me five dollars until tomorrow?
Thank-you
The style manuals do not seem to agree on words vs. numbers in regard to monetary amounts. AP Stylebook recommends figures with the dollar sign and the Chicago Manual of Style says that references to money should be spelled out for whole numbers of one hundred or less. All of your examples are correct. The best strategy is to be consistent.
Working for a University of Medical students and we continue to have an ongoing discussion on the age and how to properly write it out. I have done so much research and feel even more confused, as most research shows both ways and says that it is one’s preference on how to do it. The easier to read is what most say…can you help?
A 20 year-old student was examining…..
A 20-year-old student was examining…..
A twenty year-old student
A twenty-year-old student
Once you reply, is there any site or book that you can refer us to that really shows that one is proper and the other isn’t and that it’s not just a preference…?
Our blog “Hyphens with Numbers” addresses part of your question. The rule states, “When you’re combining two or more words to form a compound adjective in front of a noun, put hyphens between these words.” Regarding whether to write out numbers or use numerals, Rule 1 in our Grammarbook “Writing Numbers” section says, “Spell out single-digit whole numbers. Use numerals for numbers greater than nine.” Rule 2 states, “Be consistent within a category. For example, if you choose numerals because one of the numbers is greater than nine, use numerals for all numbers in that category. If you choose to spell out numbers because one of the numbers is a single digit, spell out all numbers in that category. If you have numbers in different categories, use numerals for one category and spell out the other.”
Therefore, A 20-year-old student is correct.
You are right that not all authorities agree. For example, the Chicago Manual of Style (9.2) says, “In nontechnical contexts, Chicago advises spelling out whole numbers from zero through one hundred and certain round multiples of those numbers.” On the other hand, AP Stylebook says for ages, “Always use figures.” Since you are in the medical field, you may also wish to consult the AMA Manual of Style.
I almost always include an “s” when I say “one years old”. For example, “Her baby is one years old.” My wife is an English teacher and always corrects me, “Her baby is one year old.” However my wife is not a native speaker like me (as I). Who´s right? Have I been using this term wrong my whole life? I said both ways are correct.
Your wife is correct. Since one is singular, use the singular word year.
Her baby is one year old.
Wouldn’t it also be okay: “Her baby is a year old.”
Yes, you could say that, however, it is a little less formal when written.
If I wanted to change this phrase “I went on a 25-month vacation,” by separating it into years and months, would I write “I went on a two-year and one-month vacation?”
The rule in our “Numbers as Adjectives” blog states, “Generally, hyphenate between two or more adjectives when they come before a noun and act as a single idea.” Based on this rule, you would write, “I went on a two-year-and-one-month vacation.” Since this is a bit awkward, you may want to revert to your original sentence, “I went on a 25-month vacation.”
…he continues to be the biggest HERO to his 4 children, Nina-age 15, Nadia-16, Raul III-age-21 and Saul, just 5 years old.
What is the correct way to write the above sentence? It has the number of children (4) or (four), and their respective ages. Should their ages be hyphenated or not? Should the five year old be (5) or (five). I just don’t know where to begin.
Also is it correct to write the ‘five year old’ or the ‘five years old?’
We recommend: He continues to be the biggest hero to his four children: Nina, age 15; Nadia, 16; Raul III, 21; and Saul, 5.
which is correct? i graduated four-year-course or i graduated for years course?
Neither of those sentences is grammatically correct. A college class is often referred to as a course and it would be highly unlikely to take four years to complete. You might say, “I graduated after a four-year program in engineering/history/biology/etc. at X University/College” or “I graduated after a four-year course of study in engineering/history/biology/etc. at X University/College.”
All Age Pinewood Derby or All Ages Pinewood Derby?
All Ages Pinewood Derby
My boss likes to say our people have 20+ years in the energy business. Should the + be a superscript?
The use of a plus sign after a number to indicate more than is a very informal usage. We have never seen it used as a superscript. A more formal way to express this would be: Our people have over 20 years in the energy business. (It’s unclear from either expression whether this experience is collective or individual.)
I have seen the plus sign before the number as well, like +20 years, but still read “20 plus years.” While informal, is that correct?
We have not seen this, so we suppose that you could say that “+20 years” is informal as well as a bit awkward. Perhaps you could read it as “over 20 years” or “more than 20 years.”
What is the correct way to write the age range and use of hyphens in the following sentence where the purpose is to identify if a person is a parent/guardian of a child who is aged between thirteen and seventeen?
Also, should the word “year” be pluralised?
Are you a parent or a legal guardian of a 13-17 years old child?
OR
Are you a parent or a legal guardian of a 13-17-year-old child?
Your sentence could benefit from some rewording because it has two different but similar punctuation marks in close quarters. The first one is an en dash, roughly the width of an n, and is a little longer than a hyphen. It is used for periods of time when you might otherwise use to. The second one is a hyphen, which is used between two or more adjectives when they come before a noun and act as a single idea. The sentence looks a little confusing written this way: Are you a parent or a legal guardian of a 13–17-year-old child?
We recommend rewording to:
Are you a parent or legal guardian of a child 13–17 years old? or
Are you a parent or legal guardian of a child 13 to 17 years old?
Can we say : I`m nine and a half years old?
Rule 4 in our “Writing Numbers” section says, “A mixed fraction can be expressed in figures unless it is the first word of a sentence.” Therefore, you can either write “I’m nine and one-half years old,” or “I’m 9 1/2 years old.” It is common in American spoken English to use the less formal, “I’m nine and a half years old,” but it should not be written that way in spite of Two And A Half Men.
I recently was involved in an argument w/ couple co-workers with the correct
usage of numbers in sentences.
I was informing them what they were doing wasn’t grammatically correct,
however even after reading the rules from the following:
https://www.grammarbook.com/contact.asp
I’m sure they will still insist that since there wasn’t a rule against it,
it would be fine.
Is the following grammatically correct?
The two (2) satellites with the traveling wave tubes have been screened and
tested?
I was under the impression having the redundancy of the #2 after spelling it
out was incorrect, please clarify?
Thank you.
Our blog “Writing Numbers as Words” asks the same question and provides a rule of thumb:
Isn’t it unnecessary to have both numerals and words for the same number? For example: “We will need 220 (two hundred twenty) chairs.”
Rule of Thumb: There are two reasons for using both: 1. You are more likely to make an error when typing a numeral than when typing a word AND much less likely to spot the error when proofreading. 2. If your document is dense, has a lot of numbers, or contains large numbers, the numerical form helps your readers scan information quickly.
So by typing a combination of a numeral and a word, you are almost guaranteed accuracy and ease of reading.
Thus, you or your coworkers would need to decide whether your document meets these criteria for required accuracy and ease of reading or not.
I have been unable to find anything concrete on how to hyphenate numbers over one hundred that also modify a noun.
ex: one hundred thirty-one text messages
or: one-hundred-thirty-one text messages
I know that normally you would hyphenate the entire compound adjective, but I was not sure if this applied to numbers as well. What do you think?
Thanks.
Our blog “Numbers as Adjectives” has more information and examples on this topic. Only hyphenate between a number and a measurement unit taken together when they form a compound adjective such as a one-hundred-thirty-one-page report. When measurements are not acting as compound adjectives, hyphens are not needed. Your example is a simple number, therefore, the only hyphen required is in thirty-one.
one hundred thirty-one text messages
I couldn’t locate anything in your column about how to refer to time in a fiction novel. Here’s how I’d do it.
It was about six thirty in the evening. NOTE: The reason I don’t hyphenate is that the sentence really means: It was about six hours thirty minutes in the evening. In this case “hours” and “minutes” are understood but not written.
However I would write: She turned thirty-six today. This is because there’s nothing understood between the “thirty and the “six”. Of course “years” is understood after “thirty-six”.
“What time is it?” Pete asked.
John glanced down at his watch. “It’s exactly 6:36 pm.”
“Thanks.”
The blogs (columns) are often expansions on only individual rules contained on our website. Your questions are covered by the rules in the Writing Numbers section of GrammarBook.com. Rule 12 says, in part, “Normally, spell out the time of day in text even with half and quarter hours. Example: She gets up at four thirty before the baby wakes up.” Rule 13 says “Use numerals with the time of day when exact times are being emphasized or when using A.M. or P.M. Example: Monib’s flight leaves at 6:22 A.M.” Rule 15 says “Hyphenate all numbers from twenty-one through ninety-nine.”
Many years ago I worked for the Dallas Morning News. This was before I retired to teaching school in later years. I always understood that the word only could convey different things depending on its location in the sentence.
“I only needed five copies of the test.” Since it preceeds the verb I take that to mean that none of the other teachers needed any copies of the test. I only or only I…..I alone needed the copies. However if it had read, I needed only five copies of the test, it would have referred, not to me, but to the number which I needed. Other teachers may have needed other numbers. We
don’t know, but it is a possibility.
You are correct that the placement of the word only in a sentence can convey different subtle or not so subtle meanings. In the case of Pop Quiz question No. 1, we don’t know whether that particular person was speaking just for himself or herself or not. Of course, for our purpose of determining whether to write out the numbers or use numerals, it doesn’t matter.
We do think that the wording “I needed only five copies of the test, not fifty” more clearly conveys that is the number of tests that particular person needed. We are going to change the wording accordingly in the blog.
Is this correct grammer? It’s in an ad for a dog:
“I’m 1 year & 4 months old”
or should it be “I’m 1 year 4 months old”
Thank you so much!
I’m 1 year and 4 months old, or 1 year 4 months old.
How about fractions as referenced in recipes? Should I write:
“Cut into 1/2-inch slices.” or,
“Cut into 1/2 inch slices.”
Thanks in advance.
The rule in our blog Hyphens with Numbers states, “When you’re combining two or more words to form a compound adjective in front of a noun, put hyphens between these words.” Since the measurement is a compound adjective describing the noun slices, use a hyphen.
Cut into 1/2-inch slices.
NOTE: Although our Fractions, Decimals, and Money blog says, “Always spell out simple fractions and use hyphens with them,” for recipes AP Stylebook says, “Always use figures.”
On wedding invites the year is written out and includes the word “and”, for example Two Thousand and Twelve. This always annoys me when I see it because I don’t believe the “and” is correct. Am I right?
In British English, the year is pronounced two thousand and twelve rather than the American English form two thousand twelve. Americans often consider British English more formal, therefore you will often see British spellings appear in invitations, especially wedding invitations. (By the way, many prefer twenty twelve to the ponderous two thousand and twelve.)
I’ve been seeing two ways to write height across the board, which is correct according the Chicago Manual of Style? I have seen 5’4 and 5’4″.
The Chicago Manual of Style’s abbreviation table 10.69 says, “In the following examples, note that the proper symbols for foot and inch are prime (′) and double prime (″), not the single (’) and double (”) quotation mark:
LENGTH
in. or ″ inch
ft. or ′ foot
Therefore, write 5′4″. In Word, find the prime and double prime marks using Insert, Symbol.
When do we say each of these:
11 year old
11 years old
11 year olds
cause I have been reading articles and found these three representation of age and got confused.
I really appreciate your time and effort
The general rule is to use hyphens in the compound noun eleven-year-old and its plural form, eleven-year-olds. Do not use hyphens in eleven years old.
Examples:
That is an eleven-year-old table.
The spelling bee winner was an eleven-year-old.
The phrase eleven-year-olds refers to more than one person who is eleven years of age.
Example:
The winner was a team of eleven-year-olds.
The phrase eleven years old is used to describe a person, animal, or thing that is eleven years old.
Examples:
Our house is eleven years old.
Mark’s son is eleven years old.
Great resource. As an editor I pop by here from time to time, rather than pore over my CMOS tome. I thought it would be good to point out, as I did not see it mentioned here, that CMOS recommends that ALL numbers be written out in dialogue or at the start of a sentence. For example: He was born in 1958. But: Nineteen fifty-eight was the year he was born. Or: John said, “He was born in nineteen fifty-eight.”
Thanks for the great site.
Our Rule 16 of Writing Numbers states, “Write out a number if it begins a sentence.” Thank you for pointing out the dialogue rule.
The 1st to 4th February are our Father King funeral, and I am on leave on 5th February 2013.
Should we use plural or singular verb after the duration with date.
Our rule of Dashes says, “An en dash, roughly the width of an n, is a little longer than a hyphen. It is used for periods of time when you might otherwise use to…To form an en dash with most PCs, type the first number or word, then hold down the ALT key while typing 0150 on the numerical pad on the right side of your keyboard. Then type the second number or word.” Also, our Rule 8 of Writing Numbers states, “The following examples apply when using dates:
Examples:
The meeting is scheduled for June 30.
The meeting is scheduled for the 30th of June.”
Therefore, if we understand your intention correctly, we recommend rewording to the following:
February 1–4 are the dates for Father King’s funeral and I am on leave on February 5, 2013.
Is it possible to take a shortcut when writing ages in terms of years and months old? For instance, could a boy who was eleven-years and four-months old be written as 11-4 or 11:4 or 11;4?
I’ve seen it in all forms in the context of special education assessment reports where a number of developmental milestones were met at different ages and listed.
Thanks.
In formal English, we know of no shorthand way of expressing this. You may write either “a boy who was eleven years and four months old” or “a boy who was 11 years and 4 months old.” Since the age is not being used as an adjective (11-year-old boy), there are no hyphens. However, sometimes certain occupations, academic disciplines, etc. adopt specific terms that are accepted or understood by practitioners within that discipline.
This is probably more about prepositions than numbers per se. When writing out an age range how does one describe a group that includes people who are 35≤ age ≤50?
You could write “people 35-50 years old.” Another option is “35- to 50-year-olds.” It is called a suspended hyphen. Or, you could rewrite the sentence in non-adjectival form as people ranging in age from 35 to 50 years old.
Could you please tell me what the correct form of this sentence is?!
In this company, the amount of equity share capital in five years is equal to 7.18 and the highest amount of fixed assets, total assets are presented in 2010-11.
Thank you
Sorry, we are not versed in financial terminology, and therefore do not feel qualified to edit your sentence. The phrase total assets are presented in 2010-11 makes no sense to us at all.
how about a series of thousands with decimal places? ex.
Danny earned 1,987.09, 8,968.09, 8,937.78 and 7,937.21. is this right?
Our Rule 4 of Semicolons says, “Use the semicolon to separate units of a series when one or more of the units contain commas.” Since your series contains commas, and assuming you are referring to money, write “Danny earned $1,987.09; $8,968.09; $8,937.78; and $7,937.21.”
I am learning a lot from you. I would like to ask you what is the best way of writing “I feel like I’m awake 24/7 the past 7 or 8 months now?” Should I write the numerical fraction as 24/7 and spell out 7 or 8, i.e.,
“24/7 the past seven or eight months now” or
“24/7 the past 7 or 8 months now”
Please let me know. Thanks.
Since “24/7″ is a common expression, it should be written as numerals. Therefore, write “24/7 the past seven or eight months now,” but avoid starting your sentence with “24/7.”
The question of how to write 24/7 is exactly what landed me on your page, but my question is for how to write it in dialogue when a character is saying it. Generally numbers are written out in dialogue, with the exception of years, so would this be “twenty-four seven” or still “24/7”? Thank you!
Because the expression is so widely seen and understood using numerals, we lean toward writing the expression as “24/7” in dialogue. It would not be wrong for a writer to exercise personal preference and write the expression out. We have not come across any standard way of doing it, whether as twenty-four/seven; twenty-four, seven; or even twenty-four-seven as examples.
Thank you for your awesome work!
How do I hyphenate “163-year-old building” if I write out the numerals?
One-hundred-sixty-three-year-old building seems excessive.
You might want to use numerals for numbers over 100 unless you are writing the first word or words in a sentence (and “163-year-old building” is not likely to start a sentence). Writing “163-year-old building” should be fine.
When using composite adjectives such as the following examples is the ‘s’ required or not? I think not.
A two years old child
A ten minutes TV program
A two hours lesson with a native-tongue teacher
A two hundred and fifty meters high building
A fifteen hundred miles river
A fifty-five tonnes truck
Do not use an s in these examples. Also, hyphenate between two or more adjectives when they come before a noun and act as a single idea. There are varying philosophies regarding writing numbers or using numerals. Find a formula that works for you, and be consistent. Many book publishers would recommend:
a two-year-old child
a ten-minute TV program
a two-hour lesson with a native-tongue teacher
a 250-meter-high building
a 1,500-mile-long river
a 55-ton truck
9/9/13
Within a character’s speech in a novel, should one say “hundred and fifty-dollar bills” or “hundred- and fifty-dollar bills”?
It’s that hanging hyphen in the latter example that bothers me. But without it, is there ambiguity?
Thanks.
Clarification: Full sentence is :
“He had almost fifty thou on him, mostly in hundred and fifty-dollar bills.”
A suspended hyphen after the word hundred is necessary to make the sentence grammatically correct.
How would you handle this sentence in a nonfiction book, This is not a technical book or an informational book but rather a life story. Should the weight and height be spelled out or left as numerals?
This breed is a rather small dog, weighing between 35 to 40 pounds with a height of 17 to 20 inches.
Should this read “thirty-five to forty pounds with a height of seventeen to twenty inches”?
Thank you for your time and assistance.
It is strictly a style choice whether to use numerals or spell out the numbers. The most important thing is to be consistent.
When using the greater than equal than symbol such as the example below should I keep the symbol followed by the 7 or should it all be spelled out or a combination of the two – symbol plus word seven?
Frequent night time bottle-feeding with milk is associated with, but not consistently implicated in, early childhood caries (ECC). Breastfeeding > 7 times daily after 12 months of age is associated with increased risk for ECC.
Spelling out numbers vs. using figures is largely a matter of writers’ preference. The most important thing is to be consistent. Symbols may be used in lieu of words but it may be more clear for the reader to understand if it is written out.
Some souces indicate that when two numbers are adjacent, spell one out to avoid confusion: He bought three-hundred 3.6 GHz computers.
Would that rule also apply to the 2 in this sentence: On June 14, 2011, 2 days before the event, he filed his application.
Spelling out numbers vs. using figures is largely a matter of writers’ preference and authorities have different approaches and rules. The writer could change the adjacent number if he or she thinks there is cause for misreading the sentence. It is not usual in formal writing to use a numeral instead of “two days before the event.”
I have problems with sentences like i am 20 years old and i am a 20 year old , are both of these correct, if the first one is correct then is it used in american english only ? or is it also used in the british english.
Both sentences are used in both American and British English. In the sentence “I am a 20-year-old,” the phrase 20-year-old should be hyphenated.
Our graphic artist tells us that we should use “.75 yards” in our price book instead of “.75 yard”. Is this correct? At what point does “yard” become plural? I say it is when the yardage is greater than 1, but she disagrees.
We recommend “0.75 yards.” Only “1 yard” is singular.
Sorry for bothering you again, I have another question, which one of these sentences is correct? : I have no pens or I don’t have any pens. I have always used the second one but I have also heard people say I have no pens, as far as I am able to understand the sentence ; I have no pens should be incorrect as first we are giving affirmation to the second person by saying ‘I have’ then suddenly we add ‘no’ pens to the sentence. Please tell me which one is correct and if both are correct then please help me in understanding the logic behind the first one.
Both sentences are correct. They are commonly accepted constructions. To really upset your sense of logic, do an internet search on the old American song “Yes! We Have No Bananas.”
I create holiday cards for families and they often like to list the children’s ages after their names. Would this be correct:
Kate (5), Clare (3), Charles (3-months)
I specifically want to know about the 3-months. Should it be 3 months or three months or three-months? Usually space is limited.
Thank you!
There should not be a hyphen in 3 months. To be consistent, either spell out or use numerals for all ages, even in the case of days, weeks, and months.
Your a lot of help. I’ve learn so much from you and this site. However, I still have a lot of other questions that I have not been about to find the answer to. So here it goes…
Is this correct:
“I’m a forty-five-year-old male,”?
And if I write out the age, for this person, and later down the story, a few paragraphes, I write another person’s age, do I have to also write it the same manner of style that I choise to write the first person’s age?
Also, what if later downt the story I write it this way:
“I have three kids, my son, David, 16, my daughter, Amy,12, and my youngest child, John, 5.
Do I word out their ages too, since I wrote the first person’s age out first? Also, did I write that sentense out correctly (I already know I have to pick either writing the word or writing in numeral form, which I did)?
Is it: I’m 6 feet, 6-feet, 6 ft, 6-ft, 6′, six feet, or six-feet tall?
I think that’s all for now. :p
Thanks.
“I’m a forty-five-year-old male” is correct. Spelling out numbers vs. using figures is largely a matter of writers’ preference. Consistency is important, however, since you mention the word “story,” we assume you are writing a work of fiction. In writing a work of fiction, you do not necessarily need to write every person’s age in the same manner throughout the entire story. Aurthors of fiction do not always follow strict grammar rules.
Regarding your sentence about the children, the name David is an appositive since it is essential to the noun son because you have more than one son. Therefore, no comma is used. Assuming you only have one daughter, the commas surrounding Amy are correct.
Use a colon to introduce a series of items. Also one of our rules of semicolons states, “Use the semicolon to separate units of a series when one or more of the units contain commas.” Therefore, you could write:
I have three kids: my son David, 16; my daughter, Amy,12; and my youngest child, John, 5. OR
I have three kids: my son David, sixteen; my daughter, Amy, twelve; and my youngest child, John, five.
“I’m six feet tall” or “I’m 6 feet tall” are both correct.
Is this written correctly?
John just paid $33 thousand for his new car.
We recommend using either numerals or spelled out numbers and being consistent.
John just paid $33,000 for his new car. OR
John just paid thirty-three thousand dollars for his new car.
(However, when the number is in the millions, many writers write “$5 million” or “33 million miles from Earth.”)
Which version is correct for ranges of age? This is for medical writing.
The study population ranged from 2 to 65 years of age.
The study population ranged from two to 65 years of age.
Spelling out numbers vs. using figures is a matter of preference. The important thing is to be consistent.
The study population ranged from 2 to 65 years of age. OR
The study population ranged from two to sixty-five years of age.
I have a listing of items in quotations. Is the proper format putting the comma before or after the second quotation mark, such as:
“member 1,” “member 2,” and “member 3” OR
“member 1”, “member 2”, and “member 3”
I have a document I am revising that has it both ways and it is confusing me. Now I am second guessing what I’ve always done.
In American English periods and commas always go inside quotation marks.
“member 1,” “member 2,” and “member 3″
How do I write ‘1700 dollars’ in a legal transcript?
Which – if any – of these are correct?
Seventeen hundred dollars
Seventeen-hundred dollars
17 hundred dollars
1700 dollars
$1700
The very brief instructions state that numbers, in general, over 10 should be written as numerals, not words, so so far I have put it as ’17 hundred dollars’ but I don’t know…this does not look quite right?
Thanks in advance!
Although we are not experts in legal documents, if the instructions for preparing the legal transcript specifically state “numerals,” we recommend writing $1,700.
Here is my question:
“He is an 80-year-old soon to be 81-year-old man…”
Is it just this simple?
My instinct is to rewrite it as:
“He is an 80-year-old, soon to be 81-year-old, man…”
I don’t feel that the “soon to be” part of the sentence is essential, because he is not 81; he is 80. But then it doesn’t look right to me when I see it written out.
Ugh. My brain tends to enjoy commas and I end up second-guessing myself a lot…please help!!
Thanks!
The phrases “80-year-old, soon to be 81-year-old” are two phrasal adjectives requiring a comma to separate them. It is the same as if you wrote, “He is a happy, healthy man.” There should be no comma before the word “man.”
Hey, if you are referring to a hockey game is you are referring to three game sevens would you say 3 game 7s or 3 games 7’s with an apostrophe.
Thank you.
and *
We recommend spelling out “three.” As for game 7s vs. game 7’s, many editors would demand an apostrophe, others would not.
Which is correct?
Grandfather is 85 years old today.
Grandfather is eighty-five years old today.
Both of your sentences are grammatically correct.
I create holiday cards for families and they often like to list the children’s ages after their names. Would this be correct:
Kate (5), Clare (3), Charles (3-months)
I specifically want to know about the 3-months. Should it be 3 months or three months or three-months? Usually space is limited.
Since you have used the numerals 5 and 3 for the ages (years implied) of the first two children, you should also use a numeral for the third:
Kate (5), Clare (3), Charles (3 months)
Which is correct?
Children age six to seventeen explore the farm
Children ages six to seventeen explore the farm
Children aged six to seventeen explore the farm
The first two sentences are correct with periods at the end. You could add “years” or “years old” to these sentences to be more specific. The third sentence is a bit awkward but is grammatically correct.
What if the article has larger numbers, and therefore the protocol of using numerical representations instead of spelling out the numbers is chosen, but there is a sentence stating ” 2 or 3 treatments at one-month intervals”?
Should that then read 2 to 3 treatments at 1- month intervals?
Thank you for your assistance.
As we discuss in the eleventh edition of the Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation, writing numbers is a complex topic, with many exceptions. Even the leading guidebooks for writers, the Associated Press Stylebook and the Chicago Manual of Style, have different approaches. To us, using numerals for single-digit numbers looks tacky. We recommend that you try spelling out “two or three treatments at one-month intervals” and see if it looks all that jarring with the bigger numerals.
How to write a negative range of numbers? For example, I have to mention power output of a radio, which is -25db to -28db. Knowing the fact that -28db is lower than -25, do I mention this as -28db to -25db or -25db to -28db?
Thanks!
Grammatically speaking, there is no specific rule related to your question. If there is a standard practice in this area, follow it. We have commonly seen a negative range expressed as you have done: -25db to -28db.
I have a question. Is 12th, 13th, etc., acceptable by Chicago standards or should the numbers be spelled out?
Thank you!
Chicago advises spelling out whole numbers from zero through one hundred and certain round multiples of those numbers. Therefore, write twelfth and thirteenth, unless it is a part of a street address, as in “1305 12th Street” (if that is how the city writes it), or part of a date, such as “December 12.”
Does “It was the best selling novel of the year.” Need a hyphen???
Yes, the compound adjective “best-selling” requires a hyphen.
When listing a class for advertisement, what is the proper way to punctuate the age range suggested for the class?
Ex:
Introductory Class (6 months – 18 months)
or
Introductory Class (6-months to 18-months)
Thanks for your help!
In an effort to avoid any kind of confusion, we recommend writing your choice of the following:
Introductory Class (6 months-18 months)
Introductory Class (6 months to 18 months)
Introductory Class (six months-eighteen months)
Introductory Class (six months to eighteen months)
Which is correct?
1) “This is a 4 year old” or “This is is a 4-year-old.”
2) “He is a 4-year-old” or “He is a 4 year old.”
Either “a four-year-old” or “a 4-year-old” is acceptable. More information on this topic can be found in our blogs Hyphens with Numbers, Hyphenating Between Words, and Numbers as Adjectives.
You are a big help!
can you help me how to correctly write the sentence:
Eleven plus eleven equals twenty two.
thank you in advance!
Our Rule 2a of Writing Numbers says, ” Hyphenate all compound numbers from twenty-one through ninety-nine.” Therefore, write “Eleven plus eleven equals twenty-two.”
How would you write 10:04 pm?
The way you wrote it is fine. For other acceptable options, please see the note under Rule 4a of Writing Numbers.
is it school year ’12-13 or school year ’12-’13?
We recommend 2012-13 or 2012-2013.
I know that’s recommended, and I thank you for that. But when someone says “school year ’12-13,” how do you recommend writing that?
We have no rules covering this nor have we been able to find any authoritative source covering this particular situation. Since the term would be used in an informal context, it is up to you. Our previous response was for formal writing.
Proper way to write date on formal invite
on Friday, the nineteeth day of June
Two thousand and fifteen
In formal prose we prefer writing either “Friday, the nineteenth of June, two thousand fifteen,” “Friday, the nineteenth of June, twenty fifteen,” “ Friday, June 19, 2015,” or “Friday, the 19th of June, 2015.” However, invitations have their own sets of rules and styles and are not always the same as formal writing. Whether to use punctuation or follow grammar rules is up to you.
At work I’m completing a license agreement. What is the grammatically correct why to say the following:
2-Two Year Options OR 2 Two-Year Options
Our blog post Hyphens with Numbers has more information on this topic. The term “two-year” or “2-year” is a compound adjective. If you want to write “2 two-year options” or “two 2-year options,” go ahead. (The latter, with a capital T, must be used if it begins a sentence, as per our Rule 1 of Writing Numbers.) But the Associated Press would make it “two two-year options.”
I am still confuse how to write age in english….please help me choose where is the right one!
I was seven years old
I was seven year old
syuld year with ‘s’?
The plural noun years would be correct in your example .
What do you do with number ranges that are a power of 10? For example,
2.2–2.0 × 109 (please read that as “ten to the ninth power”)
Should you repeat the power on each side of the en-dash?
2.2 × 109–2.0 × 109
Should you spell out “to” instead of using the en-dash?
Thanks!
We’re not experts on mathematical notation, so we will answer from a perspective of how these numbers might be expressed most clearly to us. We recommend a hyphen, not a dash, to show number ranges. If you are concerned that a hyphen could be mistaken for a minus sign, then use to. We recommend including the power of 10 with both numbers since omitting it could lead to confusion over what the first number is. Finally, we are more used to seeing ranges expressed from smaller to larger (although your situation may be different). Therefore, we recommend: 2.0×109 to 2.2×109.
When writing someone’s age, do you write digits or spell it out?
‘At seventy, he looked a lot older. She, on the other hand, just turned fifty-four last week.’
‘At 70, he looked a lot older. She, on the other hand, just turned 54 last week.’
Spelling out numbers vs. using numerals is largely a matter of writers’ preference. Our recent post “Numbers: Words or Numerals?” gives more information on this topic.
Wedding invitation:
“We love children, too, however, no children under
13-years of age can attend this event.”
“We love children, too, however, no children under
13 years of age can attend this event.”
“We love children, too, however, no children under the age of 13 can attend this event.”
Which is correct/preferred?
There is no preferred style for wedding invitations. It is a matter of preference. The following are grammatically correct:
We love children too, however, no children under thirteen years of age can attend this event.
We love children too, however, no children under 13 years of age can attend this event.
We love children too, however, no children under the age of thirteen can attend this event.
We love children too, however, no children under the age of 13 can attend this event.
Which is right
The British population,aged 60 and over is wealthy
Or the British population aged …etc
No comma is necessary.
In writing room numbers as dialogue, should I say “Room 7.” / “Room Seven.” or “room seven.”
Capitalize the word room when used with the number of the room. Most rooms use numerals for the name. Therefore, we recommend writing “Room 7.”
This dream was the perfect six years old dream? Or six year’s old dream?
It is unclear whether the dream was six years old or was the dream of a six-year-old child. Therefore, write either “This dream was the perfect six-year-old dream” or “This dream was the perfect six-year-old’s dream.”
Which of the following is grammatically correct: six-and-a-half-month-pregnant belly or six-and-a-half-month pregnant belly. Many thanks for any help!
It might be a better idea to reword your sentence to avoid using such a long compound adjective. If not, write “six-and-a-half-months-pregnant belly.”
Hi, I am writing a text about a computer system. Can I say “a 15-year-old computer system”? For some reason, the hyphens make it look like I’,m talking about a person rather than an object – or am I wrong?
Compound adjectives can be used with all kinds of nouns. Therefore, your hyphenated phrase is correct.
I am writing a piece on several ages 9-10 year old children. How do I write “9-10 year old children?”
You could write 9- to 10-year-old children or children ranging in age from 9 to 10 years old. (Note the space after the 9-.)
I’ve just read an article about a ’26 year old couple’. They are both aged 26. To me it means they have been together for 26 years. Is it correct grammar? Would it be less clumsy to write ‘a couple, both aged 26’?
Writing “a 26-year-old couple” is grammatically correct. We agree that “a couple, both aged 26” is less likely to be misinterpreted.
Sometimes I see numbers written like this, and I wonder if/when it is the appropriate way to write numbers:
“We have three (3) red shirts and five (5) white ones still available.”
Grammatically speaking is there ever a time when including the numerical number in parentheses is warranted?
Our post Writing Numbers as Both Numerals and Words discusses this topic. In general, we do not recommend this practice.
What is grammatically correct:
Increasing age or growing age?
Can we use increasing age sometimes depending on condition?
Thanks
The word increasing is a better choice of adjective than growing to describe the word age. We cannot answer your second question without seeing an example of a complete sentence.
Please help! The phrase cannot be recast or reworded in any way. Trying to get a definitive answer on where the hyphens go. Bob is a 2 year 3 month old child. Is it 2-year-3-month-old child (with hyphens between the entire phrase) or 2-year 3-month-old child (with no hyphen between year and 3, and if so, why?). Thank you!
Write “Bob is a 2-year, 3-month-old child” or “Bob is a two-year, three-month-old child.” Please see our posts Hyphens with Numbers and Numbers as Adjectives for more information.
which of the following numbers is correctly written i read in twelve class or i read in class twelve?
If you are referring to a schedule of classes, and you mean the twelfth class in a schedule, you could write “class twelve.” If you are referring to a room number, you would write “room twelve.”
How would I say this correctly:
“The company self-imposed a limit of eight units out of twenty-four”
Would it be better to say:
“The company self-imposed a limit of eight out of twenty-four units”
Look forward to your response. Thank you.
Both examples are grammatically correct.
Jane hi!
Start of sentence, no article whatsoever, would this be correct if spelled out?
Twenty-four-hour tape done in April showed tachycardia.
Yes (but such a sentence would not be acceptable in formal writing).
For writing ages such as 7 years and 3 months either in text or on such as a graph-age equivalence do I write (7.3) or (7.03) or (7:03) or (7-03) or (7;3). I have had lots of different advice
In text we recommend writing the age out as you have done. For a graph, 7.25 would be mathematically correct.
Hello! I’m trying to figure something out. In manual I’m editing, the writer constantly writes numbers the following way: “If the xxx has four (4) or more employees, …”. I’ve been crossing out the numeral in parenthesis since the number is below 10. I was wondering if this form of writing out numbers is common in manuals/guides and if I should leave them be or if I should continue crossing out the numerals in parenthesis.
Our post Writing Numbers as Both Numerals and Words says, “If your document is dense, has a lot of numbers, or contains large numbers, the numerical form helps your readers scan information quickly. So by typing a combination of a numeral and a word, you are almost guaranteed accuracy and ease of reading.”
Therefore, it’s a matter of judgment.
Hi everybody. I can’t understand how old the queen is in this ironical sentence:
“She’s a hundred and forty seventeen years old”. Is 147? Why seventeen? (It is spoken language).
Thank you so much for the reply.
antonella
The sentence is not so much ironic as it is nonsense.
I am asked to teach a class and these two sentences are in a quiz for students to say whether they are correct:
1. There were approximately 55 people at the picnic
2. There are 55 people at the party
Are these correct or should they be spelt out in the sentences?
The sentences are not correct because there are no periods at the ends. If you are asking about the number 55, as we explain in the post, “There is no global right or wrong, other than to be consistent …”
My age is 5 years 4 months.
Is this correct?Or i have to write as “My age is 5 years and 4 months”
We recommend writing “My age is 5 years and 4 months” or “My age is five years and four months.”
Just a question about writing ages. For a fiction novel, I’ve been using the ‘words for less than 10, numerals for 10 and above’ rule for writing numbers so far. Then I came to this piece of dialogue:
“Shay, you are, what, thirteen or fourteen? Fifteen maybe?”
“Fourteen.”
Convention would tell me that the written numbers at the start of the sentences should stay words and not numeric, but the prior rule would suggest that these ages should be numerals because they are greater than 10. Should I keep this dialogue as it is for the sake of consistency, or is it appropriate to change part of it to numerals? To take this idea further, would it be wiser to simply use 100 as the benchmark instead of 10 as it is a fiction work? What do you recommend?
Thanks in advance!
Our Rule 1 of Writing Numbers, “Spell out all numbers beginning a sentence,” should take precedence. After that, be consistent by choosing whether you will follow Associated Press guidance and spell out all numbers less than 10, or follow Chicago Manual of Style guidance and spell out all numbers less than 101. Since it is a work of fiction, we recommend following CMOS.
Could you please help me with this? Not sure which is the correct way to write this.
My 11-and 7-year-old sons laugh all the time.
or
My 11 and 7-year-old sons laugh all the time.
Is there a hyphen after 11 before and? Thanks so much!!
Yes, there is a suspended hyphen after 11, followed by a space.
My 11- and 7-year-old sons laugh all the time.
Sentence: He is booked for seven days ambulatory ECG.
A friend of mine asks if it’s ‘seven days’ ambulatory ECG’. My answer was no apostrophe, like two hours late but can’t explain it fully.
Please help me explain.
Thank you in advance.
We are not experts in medical terminology. Our recommendations are based only on clear grammatical communication. We recommend:
He is booked for
seven days of ambulatory ECG (monitoring?)
seven-day ambulatory ECG (monitoring?)
seven-days’ ambulatory ECG (monitoring?)
I feel like my coworker tends to be “comma crazy” and so we argue about if it’s grammatically necessary to include commas. Help us settle?
Is it:
Watch your favorite team battle it out on one of Adams’ six, 60″ TVs.
or
Watch your favorite team battle it out on one of Adams’ six 60″ TVs.
or
Watch your favorite team battle it out on one of Adams’ six 60″-TVs.
(originally, it had ” as -inch, but I changed it to match an ad below it which lists things out:
– All games in one location!
– Six 60″ TVs
– Great food and drinks!)
In advertising, I have always been more casual/informal, but we are now producing a publication with more full sentences, but still limited on space.
Neither the comma nor the hyphen is necessary. (See Hyphenation With Numbers and Units of Measure.)
In my novel, a lady selling diamonds, would I spell out the weight in my dialogue?
Point seven five carats
.75 carat
Less than one carat or carats ie .75 carat or carats
Our post Fractions, Decimals, and Money says, “Write decimals in figures. Place a zero in front of a decimal as a courtesy to the reader.” Therefore, write “less than one carat” or “0.75 carats.”
I have a question about the proper way to display numbers in a sentence when both a date and quantities under 10 are included. In this example below, should five and three be displayed as numerals since that’s the format of the date?
The computer terminals were not delivered until June 12, five weeks after the promised delivery date; and when I wrote to complain to your sales manager, it took another three weeks for him to simply acknowledge my letter.
Your example is written correctly. Dates are almost always expressed as numerals and do not affect other numerical expressions in the sentence.
When writing a dollar amount as an adjective, do you follow the same hyphen rules as with other numbers as adjectives? Example,
He led the execution of a 28-million dollar training budget…
or how about, He led the execution of a $28-million training budget…
Thank you!
The number 28 million should not be hyphenated. It would only be hyphenated if expressed as twenty-eight million.
I’ve just read a BBC news article. It mentions the ages of three victims from a recent bridge collapse using the classic rule of writing numbers under the value of ten as words instead of numerals. Apart from the terrible tragedy, it reads terribly:
“… Three children, aged eight, 12 and 13 were among the dead.”
Consistency and flow is more important than following arbitrary rules. I don’t understand why this rule exists in the first place.
We’re not thrilled about how that reads either. However, as we note in the article “Deciding whether to write numbers as numerals or as number words is a matter of style.” We would prefer CMOS‘s recommendation, (see the third paragraph) of “consistency ‘in the immediate context,’ ” which would lead us to write “Three children, aged 8, 12, and 13, were among the dead.” Also see our post Numbers: Words or Numerals?
When including a range of percentages in a sentence, should the % symbol be listed once or twice? e.g., 10-20%, or 10%-20%?
The Chicago Manual of Style’s Rule 9.17 says, “For expressions including two or more quantities, the abbreviation or symbol is repeated if it is closed up to the number but not if it is separated.”
Therefore, write 10%–20%. (Also note that CMOS recommends using an en dash when signifying “up to and including.”)
Question: See page 24, line 3, through page 26, line 1.
Or see page 24, line 3 through page 26, line 1.
There’s no particular rule on this, but we would recommend inclusion of all the commas. They improve readability.
When writing “In my twenty four and a half years,” where would the hyphens go?
Our Rules 2a, 2b, and 5 of Writing Numbers give us several options:
in my twenty-four and one-half years
in my twenty-four and a half years
in my 24 1/2 years
Please punctuate correctly:
He will serve 2 four-year terms.
He will serve two, four-year terms.
We side with The Associated Press Stylebook in recommending He will serve two four-year terms.
Writing He will serve 2 four-year terms OR … two 4-year terms could also convey your intended meaning.
I wish to know the proper way to read dates in a textbook while I am recording them. For “June 8, 2012,” I don’t feel it needs to be read as June “eighth” since it is not printed that way and these are textbooks, not social discourses.
There is no rule stating that dates need to be read a certain way. It is not necessary to use the ordinal form when reading a single date or a list of dates. When the date is used in a sentence, the ordinal form might sound better to you depending on the sentence.
Please, I’m Brazilian
Which is correct to say?
1 – “diagnosed with bipolar disorder II type at nine years old”
2 – “diagnosed with bipolar disorder II type at 9 years old”
3 – “diagnosed with bipolar disorder 2 type at 9 years old”
4 – “diagnosed with bipolar disorder 2 type at the age of 9 years old”
…. or?
Thanks.
We are not experts in the medical field; however, from what we understand, the following is grammatically correct:
“diagnosed with bipolar II disorder since nine years old.”
Please, is this grammatically correct?
“Artist diagnosed with bipolar II disorder at the age of 8 years.”
We recommend writing the following:
“The artist was diagnosed with bipolar II disorder at the age of eight years.”
Please, how do I write this, in figure or in a sentence when they did not call out the dollars on the first figure?
“I think the amount was 10 or 15 thousand dollars.”
“I think the amount was $10,000.00 or $15,000.00.”
“I think the amount was 10/$15,000.00.”
Your first sentence could be acceptable as an informal expression that assumes everyone understands that you’re not talking about ten dollars. You could write in numerals as you have done or words: I think the amount was ten or fifteen thousand dollars.
To be formal and ensure there will be no misunderstandings, write:
I think the amount was ten thousand or fifteen thousand dollars. OR
I think the amount was 10 thousand or 15 thousand dollars. OR
I think the amount was $10,000 or $15,000.
There is no need for decimal points because it’s apparent you’re speaking of approximate, round numbers.
Please, is this correct in formal writing?
“A 36-year-old former trans woman who chose to detransition four years ago.”
As the post states, “Deciding whether to write numbers as numerals or as number words is a matter of style.” Therefore, you may write either “thirty-six-year-old” or “36-year-old.”
Which is correct: “two zero and two fours” or “two zero and two four”?
You appear to be referring to plural nouns; therefore, write “two zeros and two fours.”
Which is correct?
There are 1,000s of people. OR
There are thousands of people.
There are thousands of people.
I’m sending a birthday note to my friend’s mom who is 104 years old. Which is correct: Happy birthday to the most beautiful one hundred and four years “young” lady that I know, or happy birthday to the most beautiful one hundred-four years “young” lady that I know?
Our Rule 8a of Writing Numbers says, “When writing out a number of three or more digits, the word and is not necessary.” Also, our post Numbers as Adjectives says, “Generally, hyphenate between two or more adjectives when they come before a noun and act as a single idea. This rule can also be applied when a number and a measurement unit taken together form an adjective, that is, when they describe another object.” In addition, our post Numbers: Words or Numerals? points out that the two most influential style and usage guides recommend using numerals for 104. Therefore, we recommend writing:
Happy Birthday to the most beautiful 104-year-young lady I know.
OR, if you want to write the number out:
Happy Birthday to the most beautiful one hundred four-year-young lady I know.
Are a number of days spelled out? “I arrived at my destination eighteen days after leaving my home,” or “I arrived at my destination 18 days after leaving my home”?
As the post states, “There is no global right or wrong, other than to be consistent within your own writing. If you’re using numerals for 10 and above, stick to that throughout your writing. If you’re choosing numerals just for 101 and above, spell out all smaller numbers throughout your writing.”
I have made an examination Chicago Style Workout 17: Hyphens, Part 1
https://cmosshoptalk.com/2017/07/25/chicago-style-workout-17-hyphens-part-1/
We can say using hyphen is never limited
All cases results are normally true except the last one below
A number plus a percentage is always hyphenated.
50-percent
a 10-percent raise
• a. True
• b. False YES
False. See CMOS 7.85, section 1, s.v. “number + percentage”: “Both noun and adjective forms always open.”
We are unsure what your question or point may be, but the example cited is consistent with our post Hyphenation with Numbers and Units of Measure.
When writing ages with grade levels…
For children age three through 6th grade.
For children age 3 through 6th grade.
Which would be correct? Or do we write out sixth grade?
Thank you.
For the sake of consistency, we recommend “for children age three through sixth grade.”
Should there be a hyphen after “then” in the following sentence? The then 16-year-old woman gave her baby up for adoption.
You will find more insight in our post Hyphens with Numbers. No hyphen is required.
If I am writing, “we built two two-story buildings” would it be written like that, or is there a rule for when 2 numbers are in a row? would it be “We built 2 two-story buildings?”
Thank you!
As a visual courtesy to the reader, we recommend writing “two 2-story.”
Should you use the # sign for each number in a sentence (example: teeth #7, #8, #9 are being extracted…)?
There are a number of acceptable options. It’s a matter of style choice.
teeth #7, #8, #9
teeth Number 7, Number 8, Number 9
teeth Numbers 7, 8, and 9
teeth No. 7, No. 8, No. 9
How would I write the following?
£1,345,567
£3,479.50
1,194.5 feet
10 feet
The style manuals recommend using numerals for your first three examples. Therefore, they are written correctly. Your last example is also written correctly unless you are following the Chicago Manual of Style. In that case, write “ten feet.” See our Rules for Writing Numbers.
Great resource, thank you. I am writing the below sentence but want it to be clear and simple. I would like the age range part of the sentence to be clear but not wordy. Is it correct to write it this way?
The need for more auditions is ongoing. Teachers, students, and parents 18 to 65 years of age are especially helpful as potential cast members.
Your sentence is grammatically correct. You could also write “Teachers, students, and parents 18–65 years of age are especially helpful as potential cast members.” See our post Staying on Target with Ranges.
When describing a negative outcome should the “-” be used?
It dropped -4%.
vs
It dropped 4%.
I was taught two negatives make a positive, therefore, the correct answer is, “It dropped 4%.” Is this correct?
Since the word drop means “fall,” the negative sign is not necessary.
“It dropped 4%.” (“It fell 4%.”)
In the Holy Bible, I had been taught to use a comma for two verses, and a dash when referring to more than two verses. Is this correct?
Example: Please read John 1:1,2.
Example: Please read John 1:1-3.
The Chicago Manual of Style recommends using an en dash:
Please read John 1:1–2.
Please read John 1:1–3.
The Associated Press Stylebook recommends using a hyphen:
Please read John 1:1-2.
Please read John 1:1-3.
See our post Dashes vs. Hyphens for more information.
Which is the correct phrase? “All of twenty years old,” “All of twenty years,” or “All of twenty”?
If you are referring to someone’s age, we prefer “all of twenty years old” for clarity.
We have a list that references items on display. Some are listed singly; others are listed as part of a group. Example:
1. Item One
2. Item Two
3-4. Items Three and Four
or should it punctuate this way
3.-4. Items Three and Four
Only one period is necessary.
3-4. Items Three and Four
Is this sentence correct?
Education is provided remotely: 4 weeks; 1-, 2- or 3-year packages.
Your numeric consistency is intact. From our perspective, the sentence would benefit from clearer description and punctuation. For example:
Education is provided remotely: 4 weeks in 1-, 2- or 3-year packages.
Four-week education is provided remotely in 1-, 2- or 3-year packages.
Education is provided remotely: 1-, 2- or 3-year packages.
Note also that daily formal writing would include a serial comma: “…1-, 2-, or 3-year packages.” Marketing content often omits this comma.
I belong to a group that the people are aged 50 years or older. The group is called +50. I think it should be called 50+. I was told that +50 is grammatically correct. Is this true?
Social groups may have their own preference and reason for naming the collective a particular way. In this case we would treat the reference as “50+” because “+50” can suggest that 50 is being added to something as opposed to something being added to 50.