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I'm confuse with thousand numerals. Especially for 4 distinct digits and 3 distinct digits. For example:

How to pronounce 1987?

a) one thousand nine hundred eighty seven

b) nineteen "and" eighty seven

c) nineteen eighty seven

d) All correct

Is it always allowed to make a partition on a number so we can speak it easily? So, if i have 6 digits number, i can divide it 2 pieces or 3 pieces?. Example: 111222. I will pronounce it as

a) Eleven twelve twenty two, or

b) one hundred eleven two hundred twenty two

Those sound weird to be honest. Or maybe that rule only holds for thousand numerals?

Second question if i have 3 distinct digits on thousand numerals. Example:

2003

Which one is true between:

a) two thousand three

b) two thousand "and" three

c) twenty "o" (Read: oh) three, i heard this from facebook video.

d) All true?

Please explain to me with easy language, because my English isn't good enough. Thanks in advance.

user516076
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    Different kinds of numerical entities may be expressed using different patterns; for example, if 6443 is a phone extension an American might say sixty-four forty-three and if the price of a car, sixty-four hundred forty-three, and of a bank account balance, six thousand four hundred forty-three, and if a door combination, six-four-four-three. A Briton might give the phone extension as six double-four three and the bank balance as six thousand four hundred and forty-three. I'm afraid there is no universal rule to provide here. – choster Jul 10 '20 at 21:34

1 Answers1

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It depends on what the numbers represent.

Do "1987" and "2003" represent quantities (e.g. number of apples), or calendar years? If these numbers represent quantities, you'll generally pronounce the entire number. If it's a calendar year, you can pronounce it in several different ways, which usually prioritize brevity (who wants to utter more syllables than they have to?). Here are some examples.

There are 1987 apples in the container. (Usually pronounced: "one thousand, nine hundred [and] eighty seven")

The song "Never Gonna Give You Up" was released in [the year] 1987. (Usually pronounced: "nineteen eighty seven")

The same applies for 2003.

There are 2003 apples in the container. (Usually pronounced: "two thousand [and] three")

The Iraq War started in [the year] 2003. (Can be pronounced: "two thousand [and] three" OR "twenty oh three")

Until we reach the year 111222 (provided we don't all go extinct or kill each other before then), you'll generally find the number pronounced as one hundred [and] eleven thousand, two hundred [and] twenty two.

Something extra I decided to add: in the case of 111222, sometimes you'll hear numbers like that divided into pieces such as eleven twelve twenty-two, but usually if you're trying to get someone to remember the number or write/type it somewhere, since it's easier than writing all the digits in your head.

For example, if my PIN number is 237833, and I want someone to type it into a keypad, I would say "twenty three, seventy eight, thirty three" so they can type it quickly.

Kman3
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  • Thanks! It's very clear to understand. – user516076 Jun 10 '20 at 05:10
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    You could have clarified that, for 1003, Americans are more likely to say 'one thousand three' whereas speakers of British English would say 'one thousand and three'. – Michael Harvey Jun 10 '20 at 17:24
  • @MichaelHarvey I can't really speak authoritatively when it comes to that kind of topic -- thanks for that information though. – Kman3 Jun 10 '20 at 18:06