Numbers, dates and time

Numbers, days, months and the time come up in every conversation. In English, numbers from 21 to 99 join the tens and the ones with a hyphen (⟦twenty-one⟧), days and months always start with a capital letter, and we tell the time with ⟦past⟧ and ⟦to⟧.

Key facts

  • ⟦-teen⟧ numbers (13 to 19) are stressed at the end: ⟦thirTEEN⟧; ⟦-ty⟧ numbers (30, 40…) at the start: ⟦THIRty⟧.
  • Big numbers: ⟦345⟧ = ⟦three hundred and forty-five⟧ (American English often leaves out ⟦and⟧); ⟦2,000⟧ = ⟦two thousand⟧; ⟦1,000,000⟧ = ⟦one million⟧.
  • Days: ⟦Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday⟧. Months: ⟦January⟧ … ⟦December⟧. Both always have capital letters.
  • Ordinals for dates: ⟦first, second, third, fourth, fifth⟧ … ⟦twentieth, twenty-first⟧: ⟦the 3rd of May⟧ or ⟦May 3rd⟧.
  • The time: ⟦7:00⟧ = ⟦seven o'clock⟧; ⟦7:15⟧ = ⟦quarter past seven⟧; ⟦7:30⟧ = ⟦half past seven⟧; ⟦7:45⟧ = ⟦quarter to eight⟧. We can also say ⟦seven fifteen⟧, ⟦seven thirty⟧.
  • Up to half past, count the minutes past the hour; after half past, count the minutes to the next hour: ⟦8:50⟧ = ⟦ten to nine⟧.

Worked examples

Example 1

Write ⟦67⟧ in words.

  1. ⟦60⟧ is ⟦sixty⟧ and ⟦7⟧ is ⟦seven⟧.
  2. Join them with a hyphen: ⟦sixty-seven⟧.

Answer: ⟦sixty-seven⟧

Example 2

Write ⟦508⟧ in words.

  1. ⟦5⟧ hundreds: ⟦five hundred⟧.
  2. Then ⟦and⟧ and the rest: ⟦eight⟧ (American English: ⟦five hundred eight⟧).
  3. ⟦five hundred and eight⟧

Answer: ⟦five hundred and eight⟧

Example 3

What time is it? ⟦4:40⟧

  1. 40 minutes is after half past, so we count to the next hour, ⟦five⟧.
  2. From 40 to 60 is 20 minutes: ⟦twenty to five⟧.

Answer: ⟦twenty to five⟧

Example 4

Which month comes after ⟦April⟧?

  1. ⟦January, February, March, April, May⟧ …
  2. After ⟦April⟧ comes ⟦May⟧, with a capital letter.

Answer: ⟦May⟧