Using Numbers Correctly - Part VI

Other Uses

Rule 1. In business letters and reports, spell out round numbers that can be expressed in one or two words.

We have two hundred crates in the warehouse.

We shall reserve two suites in the penthouse.

Fifty packages have been shipped today.

We received a ten-thousand peso order today.

Rule 2. Spell out whole numbers less than one hundred; use figures for numbers from 101 up.

We now have thirty-two service crews.

There are eight-two vacant slots.

The three rooms combined numbered 136.

Rule 3. When numbers are used more than once in a sentence, do not use words for some and figures for others. If one or more of the numbers exceed 101, it is preferable to express all of the numbers in figures.

We have six writing pens, three ink pads, and two staplers in our supply room.

We have 20 batteries, 40 sets of chain, 12 cases of Zerone, and 110 fan belts of various brands.

Rule 4. When two numbers follow one another, avoid expressing both in figures. If, however, it is necessary to use figures for both numbers, use a comma to separate them.

We have 3, 25-centavo coins left.

We sold 175 five-gallon plastic jugs.

From February 1 to August 1, 2010, 132,853 guests entered our restaurant to dine or just look around.

Rule 5. Page numbers are always expressed in figures.

The article that is described on page 23 of our catalog is about children's wear.

Rule 6. Use figures customarily to express quantities, measurement, and dimensions. Spell out by, except in orders, invoices, and listings; use 6 by 9 inches rather than 6 x 9 inches.

We ordered 125 boxes of apples.

The room is 140 by 120 feet. ( Not 140 x 120 feet. )

We drove 1,355 kilometers to south of Luzon.

Yesterday the temperature reached 108 degrees.

In writing large numbers, it is the practise of many insurance companies to leave spaces between groups of three digits.

Your policy No. 62 347 682 does not expire until 20__.

Rule 7. Spell out common fractions in isolated cases.

We can fill only about one third of your order now. 

( Not: We can fill only about 1/3 of your order . . . .  )

It is usually not considered good practise to use words with figures; use symbols instead.

The abbreviation No. or the number sign # may be used with figures but never the word number written out. The abbreviation No. is always capitalized.

Please cancel policy # 471-256-317.

( Not: Please cancel policy number 471-256-317. )

Using Numbers Correctly - Part V

Time

When the word o'clock is used, spell out the number which indicates the hour.

The meeting is at eight o'clock.

She left at five o'clock.

Dinner will be served at seven-thirty o'clock. (Formal)

The plane will leave at 6:30 o'clock.

(Figures may be used in business writing to indicate hours and minutes followed by the word o'clock.)

Figures are used customarily with A.M. and P.M. Moreover, the trend is to express these abbreviations in small letters ( a.m. ) rather than capitals ( A.M. )

The store is opened from 5:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.

The plane arrives at 12 m.

(The abbreviation m., for meridies, is used to indicate noon. The abbreviation n. also is used to indicate noon.)

As you have already learned, use the colon between hours and minutes when expressed in figures.

The mall will open at 10:00 a.m. and close at 9:30 p.m.

(Not:  . . . at 10 a.m. and close at 9:30 p.m.)

Correct: The mall opens  from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Using Numbers Correctly - Part IV

Percentages

The expression per cent may be written as two words or as one word: percent. It is preferable to write to write out the word per cent in full rather than use the % sign. Use figures to express a number before the word per cent except when the number is the first word of the sentence, when it should be expressed in words.

Our business has decreased 12 per cent last year.

Fifty per cent of our employees have insurance coverage.

In quoting interest or discounts, the % sign is permissible and the figure preceding the sign may be expressed in figures.

Some invoices are subject to a 5% discount if paid within 15 days.

This is a 5-year 6% bond.

Using Numbers Correctly - Part III

Addresses

Rule 1. Express street and building numbers in figures, except for the number one.

1976 Berkeley Street

One Sunrise Avenue

If the address involves two numbers, use a hyphen in-between.

486-488 Seventh Avenue

Rule 2. When the name of the street is a number, spell out the name of the street for numbers under eleven.

72 Fourth Avenue

When the name of the street includes the word North, East, South, or West, spell out all street numbers that can be expressed in one word; use figures to express compound numbers.

52 East Third Street

49 West Tenth Drive

386 East 4th Boulevard

127 North 21st Avenue

Rule 3. Always express postal-zone numbers in figures. Do not place a comma or hyphen between the name of the city and the postal-zone figure. A comma follows the zone figure, however.

70 Fifth Avenue

New York 11, New York ( Not: New York, 11, New York )

102 Washington Street

Boston 7, Massachusetts ( Not: Boston-7-Massachusetts )

Using Numbers Correctly - Part II

Part II - Dates

Rule 1. The preferable form for the date of a letter is the one-line date line, with the name of the month written first, followed by the day and the year. When the day follows the month, do not use the abbreviations st, nd, rd, or th after the figure representing the date.

January 1, 2011     February 22, 2011     March 23, 2011     April 4, 2011

( Not: January 1st, 20__   February 22nd, 20__   March 23rd, 20___   April 4th, 20__ )

In the body of the letter, the same form is used:

I refer to your letter of May 2 regarding . . . .

The meetings are scheduled for June 3, July 4, and August 5.

Whenever the figure indicating the day precedes the name of the month, no punctuation is used. 

6 September 20__         7 October 20__

Rule 2. When the day of the month is written alone or when it precedes the month, it may be spelled out or written in figures with  st, nd, rd, or th added.

I received your letter of 1st February.

The package was shipped on the 22nd of March.

The meeting was held on the 3rd of April.

The chairman will head the inagural on the 24th of May.

Some authorities recommend spelling out the days of the month from the first to the ninth and using figures from the tenth ( expressed 10th )  to the thirty-first (expressed 31st ).

Do not express dates entirely in figures in the body of a letter. It is permissible to use all figures for dates in bills of ladings, invoices, statements, and the like.

We confirm your order of May 10, 2011, for ten boxes of . . . . 

( Not: We confirm your order of 5/10/2011, for ten boxes of . . . .  )

Rule 3. It is preferable in all business writing to express the century in figures rather than by using an apostrophe.

December 8, 2010     ( Not: December 8, '10 )

The apostrophe may be used in reference to the year of graduation  from school or college.

He is a graduate of the Class of '80.

Rule 4. It is customary in formal letters to spell out all dates.

Mr. and Mrs. Arturo C. Fortin

request the company of 

Mr. and Mrs. Rodolfo L. Castaneda

at dinner on Saturday, the second of April,

at seven-thirty o'clock

28 Sunset Drive

Lakeside Hills, Antipolo City

Using Numbers Correctly - Part I

The topic on "Using Numbers Correctly" will be discussed in five parts: Amounts in Money; Dates; Addresses; Percentages; and Other Uses. Each of these topics will be discussed in separate posts.

There are many writers who are bothered on the question of how to use, or write figures, or numbers properly. Although there are disagreements among the authorities, the following rules may be helpful in using numbers acceptably.

Part I - Amounts of Money

Rule 1. Figures should be used to indicate sums of money.

I bought a book for P195.95.

Modern business does not sanction the use of decimal point, or the decimal point and ciphers, in writing even amounts of money.

The ticket costs P50. ( Not: The ticket costs P50.00 ).

Should you find the need to express in one sentence several amounts, some of which may be even and others involving centavos, use the decimal point and ciphers with the even amounts.

I paid the following telephone bills since December: January 10, P800.75; February 15, P995.00; March 25, P902.35; and April 30, P900.00.

Rule 2. In expressing centavos, it is preferable to write out from one to nine and to use figures from 10 ( ten ) to 99 ( ninety-nine ) without the decimal. Always write out the word centavos.

Buy two five-centavos paper clips.

I gave him 50 centavos to buy a piece of colored paper.

Rule 3. In legal or commercial writing, a number that is written out may be emphasized by figures placed in parentheses.

The estimated shipping cost for a single package is  Nine Hundred Twenty-Five Pesos and  Fifty Centavos ( P925.50 ).

Do not write the word and following the word hundred when spelling out large sums of money.

Nine Hundred Ninety- Five Pesos.
( Not: Nine Hundred and Ninety- Five Pesos ).

Rule 4. Spell out large round numbers such as millions and billions, thereby avoiding rows of zeros.

Toshiba has already sold two million television sets.

Sixty million fans watched the boxing match.

Use figures in expressing exact numbers, But never begin a sentence with figures.

The speedometer registered exactly 527,689 kilometers when the car was sold.

One factory produced 1,452,901 pencils in a month.

Rule 5.  When a sum of money is used as a part of a compound adjective, it is preferable to spell out the number, followed by a hyphen and an adjective, if the number can be written as one word; otherwise, use figures.

a ten-centavo paper clip

a 25-centavo candy ( Not: a twenty-five-centavo candy )

a five peso bill

a 75-centavo colored paper
(Not: a seventy-five-centavo colored paper )

Rule 6. Avoid using figures at the beginning of a sentence.

Fifty-five centavos is the price of that candy.
( Not: 55 centavos is the price . . . . )

The sample below may be recast and read:

The price of that candy is 55 centavos.

In spelling out round numbers over a thousand, use the form:

Eleven hundred ( Not: One thousand one hundred )

For exact numbers over one thousand use preferably the form:

Three thousand four hundred twenty one

Acceptable: Thirty-four hundred twenty one