Administrative Assistant / Secretary: Writing Numerals

Words or Figures?
Your main concern with numbers is whether to spell them out in words or to express them in figures. As so often happens with matters of English usage, there are many times when both forms are correct, and you will regularly come across variations not covered in a book of rules, so use your discretion. Clarity is always your strongest guideline.

Printed Text and Prose Text
Generally, in prose text, numbers under 101 are spelled out, and the numbers 101 and over are shown in figures. The more formal the text is, the greater is the tendency to express the number in words.
In printed text, a number used for comparison with other numbers in the same section should be in numerical form.
- An excavation of 500 feet can be finished as rapidly as 200 feet if the right equipment is used.

At the Beginning of a Sentence
A number appearing at the beginning of a sentence, if it can be expressed in one or two words, should be spelled out:
- Sixteen new cars were delivered.
- Thirty or forty bushels were needed.
- NOT: 2,746,892 copies were purchased.
The last example should be rewritten so that the figure appears later in the sentence:
- The company purchased 2,746,892 copies.

Legal Documents
In legal documents, numbers are written in both words and figures to prevent misunderstanding, and the same is true in papers that transfer land title:
- The west thirty (30) feet of Lot Nine (9) in Block Four (4) . . .

Round Numbers
Approximate round numbers are spelled out:
- The station is about fifty blocks away.
- He found nearly two thousand dollars.

Sets of Numbers
To differentiate two sets of numbers occurring in the same sentence, use words for one and figures for the other:
- Three of the men drove 2,000 miles each; four drove 3,000 miles each; and only one drove the complete 3,000 miles.
If the sentence cannot be rewritten, use a comma or dash to separate the numbers:
- During the year 2014, twenty million people visited the park.
- We received 1,213—of which 113 . . .

Large Numbers
As a general rule, write out numbers up to and including one hundred, and use figures for numbers over one hundred. But for large numbers, if a number can be written as one or two words, do so:
- four hundred
- five million
- two billion
Use the short form for writing numbers over a thousand not pertaining to money:
- fourteen hundred
- NOT: one thousand four hundred
Large, even amounts may combine figures and words:
- Production of 38 million paper clips and a budget of $146 billion . . .
If a figure or the word several precedes hundred, thousand, million, billion, and so on, the singular form is used. After many, the plural form is used:
- six hundred pages
- several million years
- many hundreds of pages

Separating Digits
All numbers above 999 are written with commas to separate every group of three digits, counting from the units place:
- 1,001
- 123,000
- 1,436,936
Exceptions: Commas are omitted in long decimal fractions, page numbers, addresses, telephone numbers, room numbers, and form numbers:
- 0.10356
- Page 3487
- 1467 Wilshire Boulevard
- 201-555-9088
- Room 2630
- Form 2317-A
Commas are also omitted in four-digit year numbers, but they are added for years with five or more digits:
- The company began in 1992.
- The pottery shards were dated at about 14,000 B.C.
- This science fiction novel takes place in the year 27,345 A.D.
Patent numbers are written with commas:
- Patent No. 3,436,987
Serial numbers are written without commas:
- Motor Number 245889954
- Policy Number 894566

Dollars and Cents
Use figures for money:
- 1 cent
- 20 cents
- $20,000
However, as with other numbers, amounts of money are always written out when beginning a sentence:
- One cent was contributed by each child.
- NOT: 1 cent was contributed by each child.
A series of prices is written in figures only:
- These shoes were priced at $50, $60, and $85.

Dollar and Cent Signs
Use the dollar sign before the number, not the word dollar or dollars after the number.
- The duplex rents for $700 per month.
If a large number combines figures and words, use the dollar sign before the figure:
- The budget calls for $850 billion.
- NOT: The budget calls for 850 billion dollars.
Repeat the dollar sign with successive numbers:
- The bonds could be purchased in denominations of $10,000, $12,000, $15,000, and $20,000.
Exception: Omit all but the first dollar sign when numbers are in tabulated form:
- The bonds could be purchased in denominations of the following amounts:
- $10,000
-   12,000
-   15,000
-   20,000
The dollar sign is not used when the figure given is in cents alone. Use the cent sign ¢ after amounts less than one dollar, but never use the cent sign with a decimal point:
- 25¢
- NOT: .25¢, for that would mean one-fourth of a cent
Exception: The only time the dollar sign is used when the figure is in cents alone is in statistical work when the part of the dollar is carried out to more than two decimal places:
- $0.3564

Decimal Points
Decimal points are another way of writing fractions, especially large fractions. When a decimal occurs with no unit before it, use a cipher (a zero) for quick interpretation:
- a 0.75-yard measurement
- rainfall of 0.356 inch
Sometimes the fraction is part of a dollar. When the amount of dollars given is not followed by cents, omit the decimal point and the ciphers:
- $3
- $1,200
- BUT: $17.75
The decimal point and ciphers are not used with even amounts of money unless in tabulated form. If tabulated, and some amounts contain cents and some do not, the even amounts should contain ciphers:
- $19.36
-     5.00
-     2.14
-   38.00
-     1.23
-       .19
-       .02

Time
When a figure and a word come together as an adjective to express time, connect the two with a hyphen:
- a 24-hour day
- BUT: a day of 24 hours
- two 2-year 12-percent notes
- BUT: two notes for two years at 12 percent
Hours, minutes, and seconds are separated by a colon:
- 10:05:02 a.m.
Never use “this a.m.” instead of “this morning.” With a.m. or p.m., the word o’clock should not be used:
- I will meet you at 4 p.m.
- I will meet you at four o’clock this afternoon.
Ciphers after the number of the hour are unnecessary. For exact noon and midnight, it is correct to use the words:
- I will meet you at noon.
- The horn blew at midnight.

Dates
The day is written in numerals, without th, st, or d, unless the day is written before the name of the month:
- May 1, 2015
- NOT: May 1st, 2015
- BUT: On the 2d of June 2015
- In the August 21 and September 3 editions (NOT 21st or 3d)
In legal documents, dates are spelled out:
- the twelfth day of May, A.D. Two Thousand and Eight

The Hyphen
Written-out numbers below one hundred are hyphenated:
- thirty-three
- ninety-nine
- twenty-seven
Hundreds and thousands are not hyphenated:
- six hundred thousand
- three hundred million
When modifying a noun, numbers are hyphenated, as are any compound adjectives:
- five-thousand-foot mountain
- three-foot rule
Fractions of less than one are hyphenated:
- one-third
- three-quarters
- BUT: one twenty-third
Mixed numbers are not hyphenated between the whole number and the fraction, both when written as words and figures:
- one and one-half
- 1 1/2
Do not write one part of the fraction as a numeral and the other as a word:
- one-fourth-inch bolt
- NOT: 1 fourth-inch bolt
When a mixed number is the subject of a sentence, the noun is plural. However, the verb is singular because the quantity is considered as a single unit:
- 1 5/8 inches is needed
- 2 1/4 miles is the length of the track

Ages
Use the general rule in giving the age of a person or a period of time (write out up to and including one hundred; use figures over one hundred):
- She is twelve years old.
- He has held the same position for twenty-six years.
- She is now 105 years of age.
- The company has been in this city for 102 years.
In compound adjectives denoting age, the words designating time may be used before old, but in that event the words year and day must appear in the singular:
- 12-day-old baby elephant
- 6-month-old pony
- 200-year-old building
- 3-day-old kitten

Dimensions
The signs reserved for technical writing are ′ for feet, ″ for inches, and × for by.
- 9′ × 12′ (9 feet by 12 feet)
- 8″ × 10″ (8 inches by 10 inches)
In regular prose text, write out the word “by” for “x.”
Ciphers can be used to indicate exact measurement if they improve clarity:
- 9′0″ × 12′0″ × 20′6″

Weights and Measures
Abbreviations are used without capitalization:
- 6 lb. 3 oz.
- OR 6 pounds 3 ounces
- 192 lbs
- OR 192 pounds
In a compound adjective showing a weight or a measure, the numeral is hyphenated to a singular noun:
- 600-mile-an-hour speed
- BUT: speed of 600 miles an hour
- a 40-hour workweek
- BUT: a workweek of 40 hours

Percentages
The numeral is retained whether or not a percentage sign is used:
- 5% price reduction
- loss of 10 percent
- almost 30 percent of the population
For percentages in succession, use the sign after each numeral:
- 30% to 50%
- 6%, 8%, and 10%

Numbers

Page Numbering
For all page numbering, use figures to show the numbers. Commas are not used in page numbers greater than 999.
On legal documents, a page number is centered at the bottom of each page; on other papers, it is usually shown at the top. Manuscripts and briefs are numbered in the upper right corner; papers that are to be bound at the left are numbered in the lower right corner. In each case, all numbers should appear at exactly the same place on all pages. Title pages are not numbered. A first page of a work or of a chapter is not marked with a number, although the numbering of the following pages takes into consideration the number of the first page.

It is acceptable to use a short dash before and after the page number, -3-, without a period. Never use quotation marks and never type the word page before the number. Frequently, the number stands alone—2—without a period.

The Abbreviation for Number
The abbreviation for number—no.—or the number sign—#—is usually omitted:
- Building 38
- NOT: Building No. 38
- Invoice 3457
- NOT: Invoice #3457
- Page 92
- NOT: page no. 92
In text, however, it may be convenient to use the abbreviation:
- When he came to No. 16, he halted.
- The only houses to be painted this year are Nos. 16, 17, and 18.

Plurals of Numbers
Form the plural of a numeral or other character by adding s or es to the word. If the number is a figure, use s or es as your boss prefers:
- 5s and 6s OR 5’s and 6’s OR fives and sixes
- the 1890s OR the 1890’s
- MD88s OR MD88’s

Roman Numerals
Roman numerals are often used in outlines and some dates. 
 

Most Commonly Used Roman Numerals


Roman Numeral Dates