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Writing Numbers as Words

Is it necessary to put a numeral in parentheses after you have already written the number in words?

Example: We will need two (2) chairs.

Conversely, is it necessary to write the number in words after you have already used the numeral?

Example: We will need 200 (two hundred) chairs.

If your document is dense, has a lot of numbers, or contains large numbers, the numerical form helps your readers scan information quickly. Conversely, while we may make a typo with only a numeral, we are almost guaranteed accuracy by writing the number in word format. So using a combination of numerals and written number format can be useful without being redundant.

Posted on Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008, at 2:53 am

5 Comments

5 Responses to “Writing Numbers as Words”

  1. Jane says:
    July 22, 2008 at 3:59 pm

    You’re welcome, Martin.

    Reply
  2. brain exercises says:
    July 22, 2008 at 3:50 pm

    Thanks for this — the rules of usage around numbers in parentheses has always flummoxed me.

    Martin

    Reply
  3. Ellen says:
    March 18, 2009 at 11:44 am

    When writing about Leonardo da Vinci and you want to start the sentence with da Vinci, do you capatalize the d in da? Also, if it’s in a presentation used in headings, what do you do?

    Reply
    • Jane says:
      March 18, 2009 at 7:45 pm

      I believe that you should always capitalize at the beginning of a sentence, even when the person’s name, like da Vinci, does not begin with a capital letter.

      Reply
    • Jane says:
      March 20, 2009 at 9:29 pm

      When a proper name containing a particle begins a sentence, you can capitalize the particle. You can also capitalize it when it’s part of a title, as in The Da Vinci Code.

      Reply

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