Friday, August 10, 2007

It's "10!" No, it's "ten!"

It's Sunday night here in the Philippines and I'm posting my entry for Monday earlier as I may not be at my PC tomorrow. I still cannot figure out why the date and time logs are wrong (I've corrected them several times). For the record, this entry is for tomorrow, 13 August 2007. I hope you all have a good week ahead!

Most student writers ask me when to spell out numbers and when to just put the symbol of the number. The rule, which I learned from my boss in my first ever job, is very simple. If the number is between zero to ten, spell it out. If it's after ten, use the symbol. An exception would be if the number is the first word of the sentence. If that's the case, then, you have to spell it out, no matter how large the number is. Check this out: "There are two cupcakes on the table but she made a total of 40 cupcakes. Four hundred cupcakes were prepared by her staff for delivery."

The rule may have changed since I learned it in 1996. However, it's easy to remember it this way. Now, isn't that a perfect ten?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Ma'am, I am not confident to write much more to speak English to the public (people). However, it is my utmost desire to learn gradually. I am very thankful that I am able to read your blog on this very first day. I am struck to know the proper usage of everyday expressions I've heard. By the way, I knew your blog through a friend who introduced just this morning. Please correct me if I'm not good in grammar as well. I'll keep on reading and comprehend your teaching. Cheers!

quincyjohn said...

Our publication adviser, who happens to be our grandfather (Lolo Noning), once reminded me about that.

Thanks again for reminding me ate.