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I’ve observed that people read the digit zero as oh as though it were the letter O. For example, in a telephone number where 0800 is oh eight hundred.

Why? Where was this decided, or can anyone prove that it is correct? Where can we use this form?

MAK
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1 Answers1

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The number zero is usually pronounced that way when "spelling" out a number, not only in telephone numbers.

As Sandeep Dhamija's link shows, it's also used in many other cases, like in James Bond's call sign double-oh-seven: 007.

Mind you, when it is important that whatever you are spelling out is understood correctly, even over a not-so-good communication line, the digit zero is pronounced as "zero". Actually, in that case, 4 can become "fower" and 9 can become "niner" to facilitate understanding by the receiving party.

oerkelens
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  • There are a number of conventions one can use when giving numbers over the phone. Because 'thirty, forty, fifty, etc can be confused with 'thirteen, fourteen, fifteen etc., it helps if people say 'thirtii, fortii, etc when there is risk of confusion with 'thirteen, fourteen' etc. Years ago, when telephone lines were not as clear as they are today accountants would always use this convention. – WS2 Feb 17 '14 at 09:27
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    Where in the world do people pronounce four as "fower"? I have not heard of that. – Tristan r Feb 17 '14 at 13:00
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    @Tristanr It's standard in the NATO alphabet – oerkelens Feb 17 '14 at 13:12
  • oerkelens, I have not heard that pronunciation used in the UK. It seems like a mangled, misunderstood pronunciation that might be expected from someone with some kind of speech disorder. – Tristan r Feb 17 '14 at 13:23
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    @Tristanr Most of the Nato-Alphabet will not represent what people normally hear for the pronunciation of letters and numbers. It was developed to minimize misunderstandings on less-than-perfect communication lines. I would expect this pronunciation from people engaged in that kind of communication - regardless of their speech abilities or absence thereof :P – oerkelens Feb 17 '14 at 13:27
  • @oerkelens it might be beneficial to point out that the NATO alphabet is for politico military use. That could help explain why many people might not have heard of it. Especially if their country is not a U.N. member nation. – TylerH Feb 17 '14 at 16:46
  • I really do not understand what is unclear about the wikipedia page I have linked to. The NATO phonetic alphabet, more accurately known as the International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet and also called the ICAO phonetic or ICAO spelling alphabet, as well as the ITU phonetic alphabet, is the most widely used spelling alphabet That one may not have heard of it is understandable, but it is used very widely, and certainly not only in NATO member states. Note what ICAO stands for as well ;) – oerkelens Feb 17 '14 at 19:03
  • @TylerH: I see you mentioned the U.N., but I don't see the link between U.N. membership and knowing the ICAO or NATO alphabet. But the use of the "NATO" alphabet is certainly not restricted to "politico military use", despite its name. – oerkelens Feb 17 '14 at 19:10
  • @oerkelens The link is that the ICAO is a working group within the United Nations. Countries not member to the UN would have more steps to take for a UN-origin project to permeate its society. I'm not suggesting that this is a common situation, however. – TylerH Feb 17 '14 at 19:56
  • I seriously doubt there are many people visiting here from non-UN nations who at the same time because of that know less about the workings of ICAO or a spelling alphabet. – oerkelens Feb 17 '14 at 22:45
  • fowa is how 4 is traditionally pronounced in a Boston accent (it nearly rhymes with boa). But my impression is that Boston is losing it's horse-hoarse distinction, which means that the pronunciation fowa is slowly disappearing. – Peter Shor Aug 08 '15 at 21:37