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Names Of Numbers In EnglishHere are examples of how to name numbers in English. Cardinal numbers If a number is in the range 21 to 99, and the second digit is not zero, one should write the number as two words separated by a hyphen. In English, the hundreds are perfectly regular, except that the word hundred remains singular regardless of the number preceding it (obviously, one may on the other hand say "Hundreds of people flew in", or the like) So are the thousands, with the number of thousands followed by the word "thousand" | ,000 | one thousand | | ,000 | two thousand | | ,000 | three thousand | | ,000 | four thousand | | ,000 | five thousand | | ,000 | six thousand | | ,000 | seven thousand | | ,000 | eight thousand | | ,000 | nine thousand | | 0,000 | ten thousand | | 1,000 | eleven thousand | | 2,000 | twelve thousand | | 3,000 | thirteen thousand | | 4,000 | fourteen thousand | | 5,000 | fifteen thousand | | 6,000 | sixteen thousand | | 7,000 | seventeen thousand | | 8,000 | eighteen thousand | | 9,000 | nineteen thousand | | 0,000 | twenty thousand | | 1,000 | twenty-one thousand | | 0,000 | thirty thousand | | 5,000 | eighty-five thousand | | 00,000 | one hundred thousand | | 99,000 | nine hundred and ninety-nine thousand (British English)
nine hundred ninety-nine thousand (American English) | | ,000,000 | one million | In informal English, exact numbers larger than one million are seldom named, except perhaps for dramatic effect. There is more than one way of forming intermediate numbers. One way is for when you are counting something. Another way is for when you are using numbers as labels. The second column method is used much more often in American English than British English. The third column is used in British English, but rarely in American English (although the use of the second and third columns is not necessarily directly interchangeable between the two regional variants). | ||"How many marbles do you have?"||"What is your house number?"||"Which bus goes to the high street?" | | 01 | "A hundred and one." | "One-oh-one."
Here, "oh" is used for the digit zero. | "One-oh-one." | | 09 | "A hundred and nine." | "One-oh-nine." | "One-oh-nine." | | 10 | "A hundred and ten." | "One-ten." | "One-one-oh." | | 17 | "A hundred and seventeen." | "One-seventeen." | "One-one-seven." | | 20 | "A hundred and twenty." | "One-twenty." | "One-two-oh." | | 52 | "A hundred and fifty-two." | "One-fifty-two." | "One-five-two." | | 08 | "Two hundred and eight." | "Two-oh-eight." | "Two-oh-eight." | | 34 | "Three hundred and thirty-four." | "Three-thirty-four." | "Three-three-four." | Note: When writing a check (cheque), the number 100 is always written "one hundred". It is never "a hundred". Note that in American English, it is non-standard to use the word and before tens and ones. It is instead used as a verbal delimiter when dealing with compound numbers. Thus, instead of "three hundred and seventy-three", Americans usually say (and write) "three hundred seventy-three". For details, see American and British English differences. Long scale (formerly used in British English) designates a system of numeric names in which the word billion means a million million (and a trillion is a million million million and so on). Short scale (always used in American English and almost always used in British English) designates a system of numeric names in which the word billion means a thousand million (and a trillion is a thousand thousand millon and so on). Here are some approximate large numbers in American English: | uantity | Written | Pronounced | | ,200,000 | 1.2 million | one point two million | | ,000,000 | 3 million | three million | | 50,000,000 | 250 million | two hundred and fifty million | | ,000,000,000 | 1 billion | one billion (a billion is 1000 times 1 million) | | ,400,000,000 | 6.4 billion | six point four billion | | ,000,000,000,000 | 1 trillion | one trillion (a trillion is 1000 times 1 billion, or 1 million times 1 million) | In British English, 1,000,000,000 is a thousand million or a billion. The older word milliard is very rarely heard. Traditionally, British English followed the 'long scale' numbering system, although in recent years the 'short scale' usage has become increasingly common. For example, the UK Government and BBC websites use the short-scale values exclusively, with 1,000,000,000 being termed a billion. Often, large numbers are written with half-spaces instead of commas to separate thousands. Thus, a million is 1 000 000. In Commonwealth English, it can also be a point (.), but then, the decimal point becomes a comma. Ordinal numbers Here are some ordinal numbers. | th | zeroth (see below for usage) | | st | first | | nd | second | 20th | twentieth | | rd | third | 30th | thirtieth | | th | fourth | 40th | fortieth | | th | fifth | 50th | fiftieth | | th | sixth | 60th | sixtieth | | th | seventh | 70th | seventieth | | th | eighth (only one "t") | 80th | eightieth | | th | ninth (note spelling) | 90th | ninetieth | | 0th | tenth | | 1th | eleventh | | 2th | twelfth (note spelling) | | 3th | thirteenth | | 4th | fourteenth | | 5th | fifteenth | | 6th | sixteenth | | 7th | seventeenth | | 8th | eighteenth | | 9th | nineteenth | Zeroth has no formal meaning, and may be considered mathematical or computer science jargon. Ordinal numbers such as 21st, 33rd, etc, are formed by combining a cardinal ten with an ordinal unit. | 1st | twenty-first | | 5th | twenty-fifth | | 2nd | thirty-second | | 8th | fifty-eighth | | 4th | sixty-fourth | | 9th | seventy-ninth | | 3rd | eighty-third | | 9th | ninety-ninth | Higher ordinals are not usually written in words. They are written using digits and letters as described below. Here are some rules that should be borne in mind. The suffixes -th, -st, -nd and -rd are usually written raised above the number itself (as superscript). - If the ten's digit of a number is 1, then write "th" after the number. For example: 13th, 19th, 112th, 9311th.
- If the ten's digit is not equal to 1, then use the following table:
| f the unit's digit is: | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | | rite this after the number | th | st | nd | rd | th | th | th | th | th | th | - For example: 2nd, 7th, 20th, 23rd, 52nd, 135th, 301st.
These ordinal abbreviations are actually hybrid contractions of a numeral and a word. 1st is "1" + "st" from "first". Similarly, we use "nd" for "second" and "rd" for "third". In some older publications, the ordinal abbreviation for "second" and "third" is simply, "d" - For example: 42d, 33d, 23d
Any ordinal name that doesn't end in "first", "second", or "third", ends in "th". Dates Years before 2000 are read as follows: 1066> | ten sixty-six | | 1492 | fourteen ninety-two | | 1500 | fifteen hundred | | 1502 | fifteen oh two (note the "oh" for zero)
or fifteen hundred and two | | 1776 | seventeen seventy-six | | 1990 | nineteen ninety | The year 2000 is read "two thousand". Years after 2000 have no set system as of yet for expressing them; however, the second form of zeroth-decade year pronunciation is more common (that is, 2003 to be said as "two thousand (and) three"), and post-2010 dates are often said as normal (2010 would be "twenty ten"). Note that years are exceedingly rarely read as ordinal numbers, as "... in the one thousand one hundred and ninety-seventh year of our Lord" (that is, 1197), and this is considered archaic. - In British, European and International (covering most of the world) English, the day comes before the month and the ordinal suffix is always vocalised and often appended: "the 1st of October 1984". In writing, the and especially of, while vocalised, are generally left out from the written date, particularly when the date stands alone, such as when writing cheques: 1st October 1984. The full form was common in older English, as can be seen in old English literature. The three main written forms are therefore:
- The 25th of January 2005 (old English extended form rarely used now in written form, but still fully used for all three forms in spoken English)
- 25th January 2005 (omitting "the" and "of")
- 25 January 2005 (omitting the ordinal suffix)
- In North American English, the day usually comes after the month and the ordinal suffix is rarely written, but optionally vocalized: "September 4, 1990" (read "September four(th), nineteen ninety"). The British form is still used for certain dates such as the Fourth of July.
Compare: - Today is (the) 14th (of) March 2004. (Read:) (British and international form, read "Today is the fourteenth of January, two thousand and four").
- We signed the documents on June 10, 1969. (North American form; read "...on June ten(th), nineteen sixty-nine").
The comma before the year is optional. It is usually used in American English (September 4, 2004) but seldom used in British and International English (4 September 2004). In abbreviations of month names, such as "Aug" for August, the period or full stop is often left out. For an explanation of American and International usage for date abbreviations, such as 14/03/2004 or 3/14/2004, see calendar date. Fractions and decimals Here are some common fractions: | /16 | one-sixteenth | | /10 or 0.1 | one-tenth | | /8 | one-eighth | | /10 or 0.2 | two-tenths | | /4 | one-quarter or one-fourth | | /10 or 0.3 | three-tenths | | /3 | one-third | | /8 | three-eighths | | /10 or 0.4 | four-tenths | | /2 | one half | | /10 or 0.6 | six-tenths | | /8 | five-eighths | | /3 | two-thirds | | /10 or 0.7 | seven-tenths | | /4 | three-quarters or three-fourths | | /10 or 0.8 | eight-tenths | | /8 | seven-eighths | | /10 or 0.9 | nine-tenths | | 5/16 | fifteen-sixteenths | Alternatively, and for greater numbers, one may say for 1/2 "one over two", for 5/8 "five over eight", and so on. Numbers with a decimal point are usually read as a whole number, then "point", then separate digits: it is not correct to read "0.12" as "zero point twelve". - For example:
- 0.002 is "zero point zero zero two"
- 3.1416 is "three point one four one six"
- 99.3 is "ninety-nine point three" (notice the usage of "ninety")
Some English speakers will say nought for the symbol 0. Thus, 0.002 becomes "nought point nought nought two". Sometimes, oh is also used (oh point oh oh two). Very often, if the whole number is 0, it is not actually said in speech. Thus, "point nought nought two", "point zero zero two" or "point oh oh two". The decimal point is sometimes in writing placed at the top of the line and sometimes at the centre (0002), and is sometimes replaced by a decimal comma, especially in international publications. - Fractions together with an integer are read as follows:
- 1 1/2 is "one and a half"
- 6 1/4 is read as "six and a quarter"
- 7 5/8 is "seven and five eighths"
A space is required between the whole number and the fraction, however, if a special fraction character is used like "½", then the space can be done without, eg. See also English-language numerals. Whether to use digits or words According to your friendly neighborhood copy editor and/or English teacher, the numbers zero through nine should be "written out" – meaning instead of "1" and "2", one would write "one" and "two". - Example: "I have two apples." (Correct)
- Example: "I have 2 apples." (Incorrect)
After "nine", one can head straight back into the 10, 11, 12, etc., although some write out the numbers until "twelve". - Example: "I have 28 grapes." (Correct)
- Example: "I have twenty-eight grapes." (Incorrect)
Another common usage is to write out any number that can be expressed as one or two words, and use figures otherwise. - Examples:
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- "There are six million dogs." (Correct)
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- "There are 6,000,000 dogs." (Incorrect)
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- "That is one hundred and twenty-five oranges." (Incorrect)
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- "That is 125 oranges." (Correct)
Numbers at the beginning of a sentence should also be written out. The above rules are not always used. In literature, larger numbers might be spelled out. Specialised Numbers When dealing with sport, results are read as in the following examples: - 1–0 – one nil
- 0–0 – nil nil
- 2–2 – two two (or "two to two" or "two all")
- 2–1 – two one (or "two to one")
Tennis sometimes uses "love" for zero, from French l'oeuf (the egg), owing to zero's shape. When stressing nothingness, other terms are used for 0: zero, zilch, nada, null, zip. This is true especially in combination with one another: "You know nothing – zero, nada, zilch!" See also External links - English Numbers - explanations, exercises and number generator (cardinal and ordinal numbers)
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