Using Numbers

Grammar: Using Numbers

* Usage:

- When using numbers in essays and reports, it is important to decide whether to write the number out in full (two hundred thousand four hundred and six) or to use numerals (200,406).

* General Rules:

- There are some rules to follow to make sure you use numbers in the right way.

1) Use words if the number can be written in two words of fewer. Remember that some words require a hyphen.

Ex: twenty-six, thirty-nine. Note: Some guides recommend that numbers up to nine should be written in words, and those over nine written using numerals.

2) You should use numerals if the number modifies a unit of measurement, time or proportion Ex: 5 minutes, 8 kilograms, 54 mph. * Note: Abbreviations of units of measure should always be in the singular. Ex: 8 kg, 17cm, 12,900 km.More Examples:

I live at number forty-eight.

I thought there were nine biscuits left in the tin?

My new car does 0-60 mph in just over 12 minutes.

She broke the long jump record by 17 centimeters.

The prize marrow weighed over 67 kg.

3) Numerals should be used for all larger numbers although the context might determine the precise usage. In technical writing such numbers should always be written using numerals. If the number is less precise, it may be possible to write the number in words.

Ex:

The rock sample measured 17.74 grams when dried.

Most of the students grades were 88.6, with a standard deviation of 14.3.

There are over thirty million people living in Mexico City.

Florida contains several thousand disenfranchised voters.

4) Numerals should always be used for decimals and fractions Ex: 7.625, 1/4 in, 1/2 a pint, 0.75 * Note: if the figures are vague: Ex: ...half the voters in the country..., ...two thirds of the population cannot use a colon correctly.

More Examples:

Following the drying process, 1/2 a gram of copper sulphate was added.

Students spend more than half their disposable income on baked beans.

She beat the world pole-vault record by 1/4 cm.

Nearly a quarter of the world's population survives on less than a dollar a day.

5) Place a hyphen after a unit of measure when the unit modifies a nounEx:

10-foot pole, 6-inch rule, 3-year-old horse.

More Examples:

He tried to retrieve the lost bottle with a 5-foot stick.

I teach a class of angelic 7-year-old children.

The thief was unable to scale the 12-metre fence.

6) There are occasions where combining written numbers and numerals will clear up possible confusion. Where you have two numbers running together, write the shorter one out in words and use numerals for the longer one.

Ex: I have a lovely class of 32 seven-year-old children.

We need another 12 five-litre bottles.

The thief made off with twenty 1000-dollar bills.

He counted out 200 fifty-pence pieces.

* Note: You should avoid beginning a sentence with a number that is not written out. If a sentence begins with a year, write 'The year' before writing out the year in numbers.

Ex: One hundred and seventeen protests were lodged with the ombudsman.

Six hundred and thirty-five nuggets were discovered in the first day of the gold rush.

The year 1849 saw the great gold rush in California.

7) You should always use numerals in the following situations:

a) With dates: Ex: Monday 20 April, 1968.

I will arrive on Tuesday 17 May, 2004.

They are due back from their holiday on Monday 23 June.

b) With fractions, decimals and percentages. The word 'percent' should be written out in words unless it is part of a technical report, in which case it is fine to use the mathematical symbol (%).

Ex: You will need to add 1/2 a teaspoon of treacle.

More than 20 percent of students admit to spending more on pot noodles than on books.

The IQ scores of the children in the control group increased by 25.75 points.

c) With money. The only exception to this is when the amounts are vague. In such cases it is fine to write the numbers out in words.

Ex: The concert tickets cost US 27.50 each.

Consumers spend over US 6 million a year on cokes.

Global ice-cream sales exceeded $ 1.2 million last month.

d) With times. Again, if timings are vague it is fine to write them out in words.

Ex: The plane from London will arrive at 16:45.

I'll see you at around half past seven.

The early morning bus arrived at 05:10 on the dot.

We left the pub at around eight o'clock and got home at around nine.

* Test

- Mark (X) which of the following sentences uses numbers correctly:

1a)

Twenty-five people wrote in with the right answer.

b)

25 people wrote in with the right answer.

c)

Twenty five people wrote in with the right answer.

2a)

In my class there are 27 12 year old children.

b)

In my class there are twenty-seven 12 year-old children.

c)

In my class there are 27 twelve-year-old children.

3a)

Nineteen-ninety-four was a fantastic year.

b)

The year 1994 was fantastic.

c)

19 ninety-four was a fantastic year.

4a)

The distance from London to Auckland is eighteen thousand four hundred and twenty-six km.

b)

The distance from London to Auckland is 18,426 kms.

c)

The distance from London to Auckland is 18,426 km.

5a)

Mr Titchmarsh was very proud of the 18-foot sunflower.

b)

Mr Titchmarsh was very proud of the eighteen foot sunflower.

c)

Mr Titchmarsh was very proud of the 18 foot sunflower.

5a)

Our journey took us over nine thousand kms.

b)

Our journey took us over 9,000 km.

c)

Our journey took us over 9,000 kms.

6a)

We need six 50-watt bulbs for our new flat.

b)

We need 6 50-watt bulbs for our new flat.

c)

We need 6 fifty-watt bulbs for our new flat.

1. General Rules:

Rule 1 - The numbers one through ten should be spelled out; use figures for numbers greater than ten.

Ex. I want five copies or I want 15 copies.

Rule 2 - With a group of related numbers where one number is above 10 in a sentence, write the numbers all in figures. Use words if all related numbers are 10 or below.

Correct - I asked for 5 pencils, not 50.

Correct - My ten cats fought with his one cat. His cat won.

Incorrect - I asked for five pencils, not 50.

Rule 3 - If the numbers are unrelated, then you may use both figures and words. One through ten should again be spelled out.

Ex. I asked for 30 pencils for my five employees. My nine cavities are exceeded in number by my 14 teeth. My ten toes exceed in number my one nose.

Rule 4 - Always spell out simple fractions and use hyphens with them.

Ex. One-half of the pies have been eaten. A two-thirds majority is required for that bill to pass in Congress.

Rule 5 - A mixed fraction can be expressed in figures unless it is the first word of a sentence.

Ex. We expect a 5 1/2 percent wage increase. Five and one-half percent was the maximum allowable interest.

Rule 6 - The simplest way to express large numbers is best but be careful to be consistent within a sentence.

Ex. 4 million dollars OR $4 million OR four million dollars (not $4,000,000)

Correct - You can earn anywhere from $500 to $5,000,000.

Incorrect -You can earn anywhere from $500 to $5 million.

Correct - You can earn from five hundred to five million dollars.

Incorrect -You can earn from $500 to five million dollars.

Rule 7 - Write decimals in figures. Put a zero in front of a decimal unless the decimal itself begins with a zero.

Ex. The plant grew 0.79 of a foot in one year. The plant grew only .07 of a foot this year because of the drought.

Rule 8 -When writing out large numbers of five or more digits before the decimal point, use a comma where the comma would appear in the figure format. Use the word and only where the decimal point appears in the figure format.

Ex. $15,768.13 (Fifteen thousand, seven hundred sixty-eight dollars and thirteen cents) $1054.21 (One thousand fifty-four dollars and twenty-one cents) * Note: The comma is now commonly omitted in four-digit whole numbers.

Rule 9 - The following examples apply when using dates:

Ex. The meeting is scheduled for June 30. The meeting is scheduled for the 30th of June. We have had tricks played on us on April 1. The 1st of April puts some people on edge.

Rule 10 - Write out a number if it begins a sentence.

Ex. Twenty-nine people won an award for helping their communities. That 29 people won an award for helping their communities was fantastic!

Cardinal numbers

Ordinal numbers

0

oh, zero, love, nought

---

1

One

1stfirst

2

Two

2ndsecond

3

Three

3rdthird

4

Four

4th

fourth

5

Five

5th

fifth

6

Six

6th

sixth

7

seven

7th

seventh

8

eight

8th

eighth

9

Nine

9th

ninth

10

Tem

10th

tenth

11

Eleven

11th

eleventh

12

Twelve

12th

twelfth

13

Thirteen

13th

thirteenth

14

Fourteen

14th

fourteenth

15

Fifteen

15th

fifteenth

16

Sixteen

16th

sixteenth

17

Seventeen

17th

seventeenth

18

Eighteen

18th

eighteenth

19

Nineteen

19th

nineteenth

20

Twenty

20th

twentieth

21

twenty-one

21sttwenty-first

30

Thirty

30th

thirtieth

40

Forty

40th

fourtieth

50

Fifty

50th

fiftieth

60

Sixty

60th

sixtieth

70

Seventy

70th

seventieth

80

Eighty

80th

eightieth

90

Ninety

90th

ninetieth

100

a/one hundred

100th

one hundretieth

1,000

a/one thousand

10,000

ten thousand

100,000

a/one hundred thousand

1,000,000

a/one million

1,000,000,000

a/one billion

Writing Numbers Rules:

1) Days and Years

December 12, 1965 or 12 December 1965A.D. 1066in 1900in 1971-72 or in 1971-1972the eighties, the twentieth centurythe 1980's or the 1980s

2) Dates Don't use a comma in dates giving only the month and year.

January 1995

Use two commas to set off the year in dates giving the month, day, and year.

Does July 5, 1909, ring a bell?

Use an en-dash instead of a hyphen between the first and second number to denote inclusive dates.

When the century or the millenium changes, all the digits are repeated.

The 19992000 catalog is for sale at the bookstore.

This course isn't offered in 20002001.

When writing inclusive dates between 2001 and 2009, don't include the 0 after the en-dash.

The professor will be on leave during 20034.

Except in formal invitations, use cardinal rather than ordinal numbers for the date.

The ceremony is scheduled for October 16, 2001.

3) Time of Day

8:00 A.M. (or) a.m. (or) eight o'clock in the morning4:30 P.M. (or) p.m. (or) half-past four in the afternoon

4) Addresses

16 Tenth Street 350 West 114 Street

5) Identification Numbers

Room 8Channel 18Interstate 65Henry VIII

6) Page and Division of Books and Plays

page 30chapter 6in act 3, scene 2 (or) in Act III, Scene II

7) Decimals and Percentages

a 2.7 average13 1/4 percent.037 metric ton

8) Large Round Numbers

four billion dollars (or) $4 billion16,500,000 (or) 16.5 million

9) Grade Point Average Carry grade point averages to two digits after the decimal.

Ex: 2.50 (not2.5)

4.00 (not4.0)

10) Money Use figures for fractional amounts over one dollar. Use zeros after the decimal point for whole-dollar amounts only when they appear in the same context with fractional amounts.

Ex: The ticket prices are $5.00 for general admission, $3.50 for students and senior citizens.

$7.95

$2

$10

$579

$4,020

$100,000

$1.5 million

In tables, use one formateither with or without decimalsconsistently. Use a label (e.g., Dollars) to avoid repeating the same symbol (e.g., $) over and over.

Ex: More than, Fewer than

Don't use overor underwhen referring to numbers; use more thanor fewer than.Overand underrefer to spatial relationships. More thanand fewer thanrefer to quantity or to units you can count. But see alsoless or fewer and over or more than under Troublesome Terms.

Ex:More than 16,000 students received the letters.

Fewer than a dozen students received the letters.

11) Percent Percentis one word. Always use figures with it. Use decimals, not fractions. The % symbol may be used in scientific data or tables.

8.25 percent (not 8-1/4 percent)

Notes on Usage:

a) Repeat numbers in legal or commercial writing.

The bill will not exceed one hundred (100) dollars.

b) Numbers in series and statistics should be consistent.

two apples, six oranges, and three bananasNOT: two apples, 6 oranges, and 3 bananas115 feet by 90 feet (or) 115' x 90'scores of 25-6 (or) scores of 25 to 6The vote was 9 in favor and 5 opposed

c) Write out numbers beginning sentences.

Six percent of the group failed.NOT: 6% of the group failed.

d) Use a combination of figures and words for numbers when such a combination will keep your writing clear.

Unclear: The club celebrated the birthdays of 6 90-year-olds who were born in the city. (may cause the reader to read '690' as one number.) Clearer: The club celebrated the birthdays of six 90-year-olds who were born in the city.

PRACTICE EXERCISES:

A) Write the the name of cardinal and ordinal numbers:

NumbersCardinalOrdinal

13

25

36

42

51

63

77

89

94

101

226

345

B) Complete the blank spaces with the correct numbers:

1) My phone number is _______________________ .

2) We expect a __________ this wage increase year.

3) A company manager can earn from US$ _______ up to US$ ______________.

4) The meeting is schedule for the ________ of June.

5) The total investment was US$ _____________________ .

6) US$ _________________ correspond to ____ % of the total investment.

7) Class starts at ___________ am in room _________.

8) His birthday date is on the _________ of July.

9) Is September ________, _____________ an important date in Brazil?

10) The ceremony is schedule for the ________ of October, __________.

C) Correct any errors in number usage in the following sentences by writing the correction to the left of the sentence. If the sentence is correct, mark C on the line to the left.

________ 1.351 people attended the performance.

________ 2.There were one hundred and thirty-five pieces in the puzzle.

________ 3.Class started at eight-thirty A.M. in Room Twenty.

________ 4.In the sixties there were sit-ins at 100's of colleges.

________ 5.Every afternoon at two o'clock the chimes rang.

________ 6.The stock deal, which involved $4.5 billion, paid a twelve and a half percent dividend.

________ 7.The Lafayette television station is Channel Eighteen.

________ 8.They needed eight ten-foot poles for the construction.

________ 9.The vote was 126 in favor of the action and only sixteen opposed.

________ 10.The assignment was to read chapter 6, pages 31-39.

________ 11.Only fifty percent of high school students go on to college.

________ 12.We were assigned a report of about 10 pages in length.

The errors in number usage are corrected here.

Three hundred and fifty-one 1.351 people attended the performance.

135 2.There were one hundred and thirty-five pieces in the puzzle.

8:30 a.m. 3.Class started at eight-thirty A.M. in Room Twenty.

hundreds 4.In the sixties there were sit-ins at 100's of colleges.

Correct 5.Every afternoon at two o'clock the chimes rang.

12.5 6.The stock deal, which involved $4.5 billion, paid a twelve and a half percent dividend.

18 7.The Lafayette television station is Channel Eighteen.

Correct 8.They needed eight ten-foot poles for the construction.

16 9.The vote was 126 in favor of the action and only sixteen opposed.

Correct 10.The assignment was to read chapter 6, pages 31-39.

50 11.Only fifty percent of high school students go on to college.

ten 12.We were assigned a report of about 10 pages in length.

Exercise 1: Each sentence contains at least one error. Correct them. 1) I bought 3 computers.

______________________________________________________________________________

2) I bought three computers and 20 printers.

______________________________________________________________________________3) 10 people came to the meeting at 10 o'clock.

______________________________________________________________________________4) They have sold four million copies of this software so far. ______________________________________________________________________________5) The 1st new computer system is ordered already. ______________________________________________________________________________6) I've tried this 2 or 3 times. ______________________________________________________________________________7) This sentence is 6 words long. ______________________________________________________________________________8) This increases processing speed by five per cent. ______________________________________________________________________________9) The screen is 32.56 cm wide and eight cm tall. ______________________________________________________________________________10) Look in lab number seven. ______________________________________________________________________________11) Chapter 7 of this book begins on page 1,230. ______________________________________________________________________________12) The probability of getting this relationship by chance is less than 0.05. ______________________________________________________________________________13) 2 or three weeks ago that bug was fixed. ______________________________________________________________________________14) They voted by a 2/3 majority. ______________________________________________________________________________15) When the result is multiplied by one hundred, you get a percentage. ______________________________________________________________________________16) The first and tenth lines of the matrix contain 0s ______________________________________________________________________________17) Two two-part modules were added. ______________________________________________________________________________18) All of these 8's have to be written as words. ______________________________________________________________________________19) Please wait outside Room Seven. ______________________________________________________________________________20) This chip has a drawing speed of eight ns/pixel with 32 bits per pixel. ______________________________________________________________________________12