NUMBERS

NUMBERS AS FIGURES

Use commas to separate numbers of four or more digits into thousands, millions, billions, etc.
Do Not use commas in years, house numbers, telephone numbers, ZIP codes, serial numbers, page numbers and decimal fractions.
  • 1992
  • page 1803 
  • 222-5478
  • 34267 Main Street
  • .78540 
  • New York, NY 10023
GENERAL GUIDELINES
The following suggestions adhere to generally accepted rules for number usage:
  1. Write all exact numbers above ten in figures.
      • We expect 18 employees to attend the meeting.
      • Only three supervisors volunteered for training.
       2. Use words to express round and approximate numbers.
      • We have over three hundred employees at that location.
        3. Use words for any number that begins a sentence. If this is awkward, reword the sentence so that the number does not begin the sentence.
      • Twenty-five copies of the report were distributed by the secretary.
                                    or
      • The secretary distributed 25 copies of the report
        4. Use figures in statistical or tabular material.
        5. Use words to express adjective numbers.
      • Next year marks the twenty-third anniversary of the company.
        6. Use words to express age (except when used in technical or scientific material).
      • She will be twenty-one next March.
        7. Use figures to express terms of discount.
      • Payment on the complete order is due 30 days from delivery.
        8. uses figures to express page numbers.
      • The procedure is described on page 356.
        9. Use figures to express percentages, followed by the word percent spelled out.
      • The advertisement stated that there would be a 30 percent discount after the holiday.
        10. Use Figures to express quantities and measurements, such as heights, weights, degrees, distances, capacities, market quotations.
      • The temperature fell to 22 degrees.
      • The office is 18 by 33 feet.
        11. Use a comma to separate adjacent numbers when they are both written in words or both written in numbers.
      • If you look at page 218, 15 rules are cited.
        12. When two consecutive numbers modify the following noun, use figures for one and words for the other. Use words for the number that can be written  with the fewest numbers of words.
      • The reward will consist of 100 twenty-dollar bills.
        13. Use figures to express all amounts of money. Omit the decimal and zeros in expressing the whole dollar amounts.
  • $3
  • $6.75
  • $4,800
  • $145.50
        14. Amounts of money less than $1 should be expressed in figures comined with the word cents unless they are used with related amounts of $1 or over.
      • The price of the newspaper increased to 75 cents.
      • The fees for copying the items were $.4.00 , $.55 and $2.85
        15. Use figures and words to express round amounts of money in millions or billions of dollars.
      • $3 million
      • $10 billion
        16. Repeat the dollar sign before each amount in a series of dollar amounts.
      • Rent for office space ranges from $2,500 to $6,000 a month.
        17. Use words to express an amount of money at the beginning of a sentence. It may be advisable to reword the sentence so that it doesn't begin with the amount of money.
      • Seventy-five dollars was the quotation he received.
      • He received a quotation of $75.
        18. use figures with a.m., p.m., noon or midnight to express time. The terms noon and midnight may be used with or without the figure 12.
      • 8 a.m.
      • 9:30 p.m.
      • 11:35 a.m.
      • 12 noon
        19. Use words to express time when used with the word o'clock.
      • eight o'clock
        20. Use a colon when expressing hours and minutes. Do not include zeros when the even hour is expressed. Do not use a.m. or p.m. with o'clock
      • 5:30 p.m.
      • 8 a.m.
      • eight o'clock this morning
        21. Use figures to express house and building numbers except one,
      • 56 East 72 street
      • 9078 Broadway
      • One Fifth Avenue
        22. Use words to express street numbers ten and below. use figures for street numbers above ten.
      • Second Avenue
      • West 96 Street
        23. ZIP codes are expressed in figures preceded by the two-letter state abbreviation and two blank spaces.
      • Williamsburg, VA 23185
        24. Use figures to express telephone numbers. Use parentheses around the area code, if it is included. If an extension number is included, use commas before and after it.
      • 222-7349
      • (516) 222-7348
      • Please call (516) 222-7348, Ext. 442, when you arrive.
        25. use cardinal numbers (1, 2, ... 30) when the day is written after the month. Use ordinal numbers (1st .... 25th) to express days that stand alone or before the month.
      • April 5, 1992
      • November 22
      • the 5th of April
        26. Use figures to express numbers used directly with nouns, such as page numbers, model numbers, policy numbers, serial numbers and invoice numbers. The noun (except page) is usually capitalized. It is usually not necessary to include the word Number or No. 
      • Policy 11236740
      • Model 200
      • No. 3546 (noun is not included)

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