Fractions. 1/ 2 a / one half 1/ 3 a / one third 1/ 4 a / one quarter (AmE also. 2 use over over

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1 2070 Appendix 3 3 Numbers Writing and saying numbers Numbers over are written with a hyphen 35 thirty-five 67 sixty-seven 2 When writing a cheque we often use words for the pounds or dollars and figures for the pence or cents twenty-two pounds (and) 45 pence $79.30 seventy-nine dollars (and) 30 / 100 Numbers over three hundred and twenty-nine 2 The and is pronounced /n/ and the stress is on the final number. and /n/ 2 In AmE the and is sometimes left out. and Numbers over one thousand one hundred (also informal ) eleven hundred two thousand five hundred (also informal, especially in AmE ) twenty-five hundred 2 These informal forms are most common for whole hundreds between and A comma or (in BrE) a space is often used to divide large numbers into groups of 3 figures. 3 33,423 or (thirty three thousand four hundred and twenty-three) 2,768,941 or (two million seven hundred and sixty-eight thousand nine hundred and forty-one) A or one? a one 130 a / one hundred and thirty a / one million 2 one is more formal and more precise and can be used for emphasis. one The total cost was one hundred and sixty-three pounds exactly. It cost about a hundred and fifty quid. 2 a can only be used at the beginning of a number. a a / one thousand two thousand one hundred two thousand a hundred 2 a is not usually used between and a a / one thousand and ninety-nine one thousand one hundred one thousand three hundred and forty a thousand three hundred and forty Ordinal numbers 1st first 2nd second 3rd third 4th fourth 5th fifth 9th ninth 12th twelfth 21st twenty-first etc. Fractions 1/ 2 a / one half 1/ 3 a / one third 1/ 4 a / one quarter (AmE also a / one fourth) (for emphasis use one instead of a one a) 1/ 12 one twelfth 1 / 16 one sixteenth 2/ 3 two thirds 3/ 4 three quarters (AmE also three fourths) 9/ 10 nine tenths More complex fractions 2 use over over 19/ 56 nineteen over fifty-six 31/ 144 thirty-one over one four four

2 2071 Numbers Whole numbers and fractions 2 link with and and 2 1 / 2 two and a half 5 2 / 3 five and two thirds Fractions / percentages and noun phrases / 2 use of of a fifth of the women questioned three quarters of the population 75% of the population 2 with half do not use a, and of can sometimes be omitted (half) a of Half (of) the work is already finished. 2 do not use of in expressions of measurement or quantity of How much is half a pint of milk? It takes me half an hour by bus. 2 use of before pronouns of We can t start- only half of us are here. Fractions / percentages and verbs / 2 If a fraction/percentage is used with an uncountable or a singular noun the verb is generally singular. / Fifty per cent of the land is cultivated. Half (of) the land is cultivated. 2 If the noun is singular but represents a group of people, the verb is singular in AmE but in BrE it may be singular or plural. Three quarters / 75% of the workforce is/are against the strike. 2 If the noun is plural, the verb is plural. Two thirds / 65% of children play computer games. Decimals 2 write and say with a point (.) (not a comma) (.) 2 say each figure after the point separately 79.3 seventy-nine point three three point one four two 0.67 (zero) point six seven (BrE also ) nought point six seven Mathematical expressions + plus minus times / multiplied by divided by = equals / is % per cent (AmE usually percent) 3 2 three squared 5 3 five cubed 6 10 six to the power of ten square root of The figure 0 0 The figure 0 has several different names in English, although in American English zero is commonly used in all cases. 0 zero Zero 2 used in precise scientific, medical and economic contexts and to talk about temperature It was ten degrees below zero last night. zero inflation / growth / profit Nought 2 used in British English to talk about a number, age, etc. A million is written with six noughts. The car goes from nought to sixty in ten seconds. clothes for children aged nought to six o /@U; AmE ou o/ 2 used when saying a bank account number, telephone number, etc. Nil 2 used to talk about the score in a team game, for example in football The final score was one nil. (1 0)

3 Appendix used to mean 'nothing at all The doctors rated her chances as nil. Telephone numbers 2 All numbers are said separately. 0 is pronounced /@U/ (BrE) or /ow/ (AmE). 0 /@U/ /ou/ (01865) o one eight six five, five five six seven six seven (or double five six seven six seven) Temperature C 2 The Celsius or Centigrade ( C) scale is officially used in Britain and for scientific purposes in the US. ( C) a high of thirty-five degrees Celsius The normal temperature of the human body is 37 C. 2 The Fahrenheit ( F) scale is used in all other contexts in the US and is also still commonly used in Britain. The words degrees Fahrenheit / Centigrade / Celsius are often omitted. ( F) degrees Fahrenheit / Centigrade / Celsius / Temperatures soared to over a hundred. (100 F) She s ill in bed with a temperature of a hundred and two. (102 F) Money In Britain 100 pence / p = 1 British pound ( 1) It costs 90p / 90 pence return on the bus. 2 when talking about an individual coin a twenty pence piece / a twenty p piece 2 when talking about pounds and pence people often only say the numbers It only cost five ninety nine. ( 5.99) 2 in informal British English 1 a quid 5 five quid or a fiver 10 ten quid or a tenner In the US 1c one cent a penny 5c five cents a nickel 10c ten cents a dime 25c twenty-five cents a quarter $1.00 one dollar a dollar bill 2 in informal American English dollars are called bucks bucks This shirt cost fifty bucks. Writing and saying dates British English 14 October 1998 or 14th October 1998 (14 / 10 / 98) Her birthday is on the ninth of December. Her birthday is on December the ninth. American English October 14, 1998 (10 / 14 / 98) Her birthday is December 9th. Years 1999 nineteen ninety-nine 1608 sixteen o eight (or, less commonly, nineteen hundred and ninety-nine and sixteen hundred and eight) 1700 seventeen hundred 2000 (the year) two thousand 2002 two thousand and two 2015 twenty fifteen AD 76 AD seventy-six 76 CE seventy-six CE (Both these expressions mean 76 years after the beginning of the Christian calendar. 76 ) 1000 BC one thousand BC 1000 BCE one thousand BCE (Both these expressions mean 1000 years before the beginning of the Christian calendar )

4 2073 Numbers Age 2 when saying a person s age use only numbers Sue is ten and Tom is six. She left home at sixteen. 2 a man/woman/boy/girl, etc. of / / / They ve got a girl of three and a boy of five. a young woman of nineteen 2 in writing, in descriptions or to emphasize sb s age use years old years old She was thirty-one years old and a barrister by profession. He is described as white, 5ft 10 ins tall and about 50 years old. You re forty years old stop behaving like a teenager! 2 years old is also used for things. years old The monument is 120 years old. 2 You can also say a year-old / monthold / week-old, etc. a year-old / month-old / week-old Youth training is available to all sixteen year-olds. a ten week-old baby a remarkable 1000 year-old tomb 2 Use years of age in formal or written contexts years of age Not applicable to persons under eighteen years of age. 2 Use the age group to talk about people between certain ages the age group He took first prize in the age group. 2 To give the approximate age of a person in his / her teens in his / her twenties in his / her early thirties in his / her mid thirties in his / her late thirties 2 To refer to a particular event you can use at / by / before, etc. the age of at / by / before, etc. the age of Most smokers start smoking cigarettes before the age of sixteen. Numbers in time There is often more than one way of telling the time. Half hours 6:30 six thirty half past six (BrE) half six (BrE informal) Other times 5:45 five forty-five (a) quarter to six (BrE) (a) quarter to / of six (AmE) 2:15 two fifteen (a) quarter past two (BrE) (a) quarter after two (AmE) 1:10 one ten ten past one (BrE) ten after one (AmE) 3:05 three o five five past three (BrE) five after three (AmE) 1:55 one fifty-five five to two (BrE) five to/of two (AmE) 2 with 5, 10, 20 and 25 the word minutes is not necessary, but it is used with other numbers minutes minutes twenty-five past / after ten seventeen minutes past / after ten 2 use o clock only for whole hours o clock It s three o clock. 2 If it is necessary to specify the time of day use in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening or at night. in the morning in the afternoon in the evening at night 2 in more formal contexts use a.m. = in the morning or after midnight p.m. = in the afternoon, in the evening or before midnight He gets up at 4 a.m. to deliver the mail. Do not use o clock with a.m. or p.m. o clock a.m. p.m. He gets up at 4 o clock a.m. He gets up at 4 o clock in the morning. I ll see you at 6 o clock p.m. I ll see you at 6 o clock this evening.

5 Appendix Twenty-four hour clock 2 used for military purposes and in some other particular contexts, for example on train timetables in Britain 13:52 thirteen fifty-two (1:52 p.m.) 22:30 twenty-two thirty (10:30 p.m.) 2 for military purposes whole hours are said as hundred hours hundred hours 0400 (o) four hundred hours (4 a.m.) 2400 twenty four hundred hours (midnight) Expressing time When referring to days, weeks, etc. in the past, present and future the following expressions are used, speaking from a point of view in the present. past present future morning yesterday morning this morning tomorrow morning afternoon yesterday afternoon this afternoon tomorrow afternoon evening yesterday evening this evening tomorrow evening night last night tonight tomorrow night day yesterday today tomorrow week last week this week next week month last month this month next month year last year this year next year To talk about a time further back in the past or further forward in the future use past the day before yesterday the week / month / year before last two days / weeks, etc. ago future the day after tomorrow the week / month / year after next in two days / weeks, etc. time To talk about sth that happens regularly use expressions with every. every He has to work every third weekend. I wash my hair every other day (= every second day). Prepositions of time in (the) parts of the day in the morning(s), (not night) in the evening(s), etc. months in February seasons in (the) summer years in 1995 decades in the 1920s centuries in the 20th century at (the) clock time night holiday periods at 5 o clock at 7.45 p.m. at night at Christmas at the weekend (BrE) on (the) day of the week dates particular days on Saturdays on (the) 20th (of) May (AmE also on May 20th) on Good Friday on New Year s Day on my birthday on the following day

6 2075 Numbers Numbers in measurement in Britain and America item being unit of measured measurement examples length of time hours (hrs) / Cover the pan and simmer gently for one hour. minutes (mins) / He took just two minutes to knock out his opponent. seconds (secs) The fastest time was 12 mins 26 secs. person s height feet and inches She s 1.63 metres tall. metres and centimetres He s only five feet four (inches). (UK) He s only five foot four. distance by road miles It is 42 miles to Liverpool. The signpost said: Liverpool 42. speed miles per hour (mph) She was driving at 75 miles an hour. kilometres per hour a speed limit of 50kph (kph) kilometres per second, Light travels at kilometres per second. etc. miles an hour (informal) a hundred-mile-an-hour police chase distance in sport metres the women s 800 metres freestyle yards / miles (US) a six-mile run area of land acres / hectares a house with 10 acres of grounds (e.g. farmland) a hectare farm regions or areas square miles Dartmoor covers an area of more than 350 of a country square miles. square kilometres (UK) Population density is only 24 people per square kilometre. area of a room / square yards / feet square feet of office space garden, etc. / square metres (UK) 15 square metres of carpet (5m 3m) by ( ) a carpet fifteen metres square (15m 15m) a room sixteen feet by twelve (16ft 12ft) weight of food pounds and ounces Fold in 6 ounces of flour. kilograms and grams (UK) 250 grams of Brie please cups (US, in cooking Add half a cup of sugar. ) weight of a stones and pounds (UK) She weighs 8st 10lb. person pounds only (US) My brother weighs 183 pounds. weight of a baby pounds and ounces The baby weighed 6lb 4oz at birth. kilograms (UK)

7 Appendix item being unit of measured measurement examples heavy items / tons / tonnes The price of copper fell by 11 a tonne. large amounts pounds a car packed with 140 pounds of explosive kilograms (UK) a 40kg sack of gravel Our baggage allowance is only 20 kilos. milk pints / half pints (UK) a one-pint carton of milk pints / quarts / gallons a quart of milk (US) beer pints / half pints (UK) a half of lager please (= half a pint) (informal) wine, bottled litres / centilitres a litre of juice drinks other liquids litres (UK) half a litre of cooking oil fluid ounces / gallons 5 litres of paint; 2 gallons of paint (US) / millilitres 100 ml sulphuric acid (scientific context) liquid in cooking fluid ounces Add 8 fl oz milk and beat thoroughly. millilitres (UK) petrol (BrE) (AmE gallons (US) My new car does over 50 miles to the gallon. gasoline) / litres (UK) diesel As the table shows, both metric and non-metric systems of measurement can be used in many cases, especially in the UK. Often the choice depends on the speaker or the situation. In the UK the metric system must now be used on packaging and for displaying prices by weight or measurement in shops. The metric system is always used in a scientific context. In the US the metric system is much less widely used. Metric measures (with approximate non-metric equivalents ) Metric Non-metric Length 10 millimetres (mm) = 1 centimetre (cm) = inch 100 centimetres = 1 metre (m) = 39.4 inches / yards 1000 metres = 1 kilometre (km) = mile Area 100 square metres (m 2 ) = 1 are (a) = acre 100 ares = 1 hectare (ha) = acres 100 hectares = 1 square kilometre (km 2 ) = square mile

8 2077 Numbers Metric Non-metric Weight 1000 milligrams (mg) = 1 gram (g) = grains 1000 grams = 1 kilogram (kg) = pounds 1000 kilograms = 1 tonne = hundredweight Capacity 10 millilitres (ml) = 1 centilitre = pint (0.021 US pint ) 100 centilitres (cl) = 1 litre (l) = 1.76 pints (2.1 US pints ) 10 litres = 1 decalitre (dal) = 2.2 gallons (2.63 US gallons ) Non-metric measures (with approximate metric equivalents ) Non-metric Metric Length 1 inch (in) = 25.4 millimetres 12 inches = 1 foot (ft) = centimetres 3 feet = 1 yard (yd) = metre 220 yards = 1 furlong = metres 8 furlongs = 1 mile = kilometres 1760 yards = 1 mile = kilometres Area 1 square (sq) inch = sq centimetres (cm 2 ) 144 sq inches = 1 sq foot = sq centimetres 9 sq feet = 1 sq yard = sq metre 4840 sq yards = 1 acre = hectare 640 acres = 1 sq mile = 259 hectares / 2.59 sq kilometres Weight 437 grains = 1 ounce (oz) = grams 16 ounces = 1 pound (lb) = kilogram 14 pounds = 1 stone (st) = kilograms 8 stone = 1 hundredweight (cwt) = 50.8 kilograms 20 hundredweight = 1 ton = kilograms British 20 fluid ounces (fl oz) = 1 pint (pt) = litre capacity 2 pints = 1 quart (qt) = litres 8 pints = 1 gallon (gal) = litres American 16 US fluid ounces = 1 US pint = litre capacity 2 US pints = 1 US quart = litre 4 US quarts = 1 US gallon = litres