Linda, fifty-dollar bill is the correct one. Local time is the time where the event is taking place. Know what choice you made for your numbers in chapter six and do the same in chapter fifteen. no ordinal for zero     twentieth (Newspapers and military publications may have different conventions.). You have choices. And if we do spell it out, because it’s an event, would you capitalize it or treat it in any special way? The taxi stopped on West Broadway—568 West Broadway. It may be a while before I can get to all your questions. Let the reader hear what the character is saying. Even nine o’clock appointment doesn’t get a hyphen, so there’s no argument that nine o’clock is a compound modifier before an implied noun [appointment] and therefore deserves a hyphen, just as it would if the implied noun were actually there. But I can’t see ever using a numeral with ish. For that you want to repeat the percentage sign with both numbers, just like you do with the dollar sign for money. Connie said, “The movie lasted two hours twenty minutes.”, 2. (And you could use this exception for a single sentence or for a paragraph of dialogue that contains several instances of time whether or not you’re spelling other spoken instances of time. Correct. (5) Mike said, “The figures represented a ten-point-five-percent-a-year increase.” [Hyphenated because ‘ten-point-five-percent-a-year’ is modifying ‘increase’, yes?] Both the Browning 9mm, his favorite, and his stacked salami sub, another favorite, were destroyed by the car crusher. (Iâll need to update the article to add this information.) Is this punctuated correctly? Numbers used for identificationâfor rooms, floors, buildings, TV channels, dorms, interstates/routes, districts, versions, episodes, sessions, seasons, and the likeâare normally written as numerals.Thus Building 17, Room 415, Lassiter 122 [dorm room], Route 66, and Channel 12. Incorrect, The fire alarm was pulled at 11:58 a.m. I just saw this. Hi, I was looking for an example of two things. Louis, use oh six hundred, using oh like the letter. Your site is CMOS multiplied by a million! A variety of Bibles, from compact to super large print to leatherbound or hardcover, along with reference books are available. American Red Cross Virtual Volunteer Fair, Tableau Beginner + Intermediate Online Bootcamp, Putting The Family In The Christian Family Bookstore. The soldier would use zero and the civilian who watches a lot of movies might use oh (so the civilian might say oh six hundred). Yet we know that there are exceptions that make the read easier for readers. “He took the two-forty-five train.” Spell out the word, If you don’t use the full name, still capitalize brands and manufacturers. You could always use numerals as a style choice, but words are usually the better choice. [I have one wife, one brother, and one sister.] 2. Incorrect. But for dialogue you could also write—, “The team needed ten point five million.”. Some writers use the form ten(ish). Submit Yours. I could use your advice for two things. Thank you for this great resource. You may have been advised to always write one hundred rather than a hundred, but for fiction, we want to reflect a character’s words and style. Spell out numbers in dialogue. I imagine that there’s the same prohibition about writing 10%-decrease as there is about writing 10-percent decrease. The tab is sixty-five dollars. (10) Louise said, “I need one-hundred-percent commitment from you.” [Hyphenated because ‘one-hundred-percent’ modifies ‘commitment’, correct?] eleventh                    eightieth fifteen-to-twenty-year mortgages, But: Could you use quotation marks? a five-foot-ten-inch woman. And, because the soldiers are or were civilians, they have grown up using regular time. “We need to remove his privileges” she writes. Incorrect, The chasm looked at least 40 ft. wide. : It was a cold day. I have never been able to get such solid answers from any other online forum or style guide. Thus, mid-1880s. But the choice, apparently, depends on the context and the speaker. I was so eager to include an example for the possessive that I wasn’t paying attention. Hi, this topic is very helpful, and I have another number related question. two hundred twenty-two dollars or two hundred and twenty-two dollars. Rewrite to avoid putting them in the sentence opening. Scientific Facts in the Bible: 100 Reasons to Believe the Bible is Supernatural in Origin is a book written by Ray Comfort, as an attempt to explain Biblical scientific foreknowledge.. “The typical suburban home is easy to leave behind as its occupants move to another” he argues. a six-pound-eight-and-a-half- ounce baby …. You could argue for zero through nine, as is recommended for AP style, but do note that the recommendations in the Associated Press Stylebook are primarily for newspaper and magazine writing. Which is preferredâthe comma or the period? Using the right source for our projects and needs is a good start. Thanks. Again, there is leeway. Our minds are thus the battlefield in the area of spiritual warfare. “My dad always quoted Romans twelve to me.” “My grandmother’s favorite verse was Jeremiah twenty-nine eleven.” “I can’t remember if the verse he quoted was nine or nineteen.” (Could you make an exception for the Psalms? You probably have leeway. I just can’t hear the speaker saying “Eye Corps” and “Ex Eye Corps.” I can’t seem to win this skirmish with either the author or the copy editor. Same as with “fifties clothes” rather than “fifties’ clothes”. I tend to lean toward words since characters speak and think words, not symbols, yet there are those exceptions. This article covers a few common specifics of using numbers and numerals in fiction. So write 10% decrease and 10 percent decrease. You might, however, want to be sure that someone mentioned (or thought about) Route 301, using the word Route, not long before this moment of dialogue so that readers understand the characters are talking about a road/highway. Yet in a related issue, CMOS does say that when the second element of a compound expression is an already-hyphenated fraction, the full compound, even when used as an adjective before a noun, is not hyphenated. ), It was a $150â160,000 a year business. .â I am not permitted to recast, as much as I would love to. Tink, youâve asked a great question. Following Chicago, I’d hyphenate 1); the second example in 3) if just for clarity; 7) and 9) (as spot-on appears hyphenated in M-W, the hyphen aids clarity, and I see no contrary advice in CMOS). The new software is cutting-edge. Look good to you? To find out that there are rules, and there are rules and opinions that conflict with any other set of rules. It’s just something to consider. Both parties get a stronger sense of what works in most situations and what is required for a particular situation. For dialogue, write out the number. Cars of the 1930s were my dad’s favorites. In quoted dialogue, does this look acceptable for telephone numbers? Connie said the marathon lasted two hours twenty minutes and fifteen seconds.”, 4. English is not my native language.). I write military mystery novels and ofter need to write the time using the 24 hour clock. My advice is to learn the rules, learn the rationale behind those rules, and then use what works to best create the writing you want and need to create. Frank, I wanted to check with my military source for this one (family members are great sources of odd info). How do you put the sound “Oh” into dialogue when you mean the numeral 0 such as in “0600”? It's about syntax. Incorrect, The bomb went off at eleven thirty. (But no hyphen with something like a $60 million profit. I refer to it constantly and have sent numerous editing clients here, too. (But if you want to emphasize the way the numbers are spoken, spell out the numbers.). Thanks for helping. Shop by department, purchase cars, fashion apparel, collectibles, sporting goods, cameras, baby items, and everything else on eBay, the world's online marketplace This means that there are occasions where I need to fall back on regular time – eight o’clock. . (OK as written? So, with “to,” you mean this? I prefer the percent (%) symbol in my writing. (Tink asked about the same kind of thing.) He needed a hundred and sixty dollars for the bar tab. El Lianos, Honduras is used, do you spell it out? (Not: twenty-or-thirty-mile radius) 25,250,869 Connect the whole phrase as a unit when you’re indicating a range (thus using to) and use the suspended hyphen when you’re referring to two items. Although I admit I’ve probably seen numerals for exact times in books in the same kinds of situations where you’ve used words. (3) âDo You Really Want to Hurt Me?â’s vocal and melodic arrangement were spot on. thirty-to-thirty-five-mile commute __ For multiple hyphenated numbers sharing a noun, include a hyphen and a space after the first number and hyphenate the last as usual. (3) Mike said, “The figures represented a ten-point-five-million-dollar-a-year increase in revenues.” [Hyphenated because ‘ten-point-five-million-dollar-a-year’ is modifying ‘increase’. Thanks so much, Beth. When this number is partly spelled out, it doesn’t get a hyphen unless other words that require hyphens—as in your example—are also included. If numbers are used, would it be: For the adjectives, would it be “a six-twenty appointment,” “a six-twenty PM appointment,” and “a six-twenty-five appointment”? This article has helped me so much with editing my novels. Keeping readers from becoming confused is a primary goal. Going with something nonstandard because of a style choice happens all the time. In running text, spell out the book of the bible in full, no abbreviations (so Genesis, not Gen.). As for your questions of military time and latitude and longitude—. 5. B—Correct. I can go back through the blog/comments again, haha. Should the numbers be written out rather than in roman numerals? Now you […], […] The Editor’s Blog [this link takes you to an article on writing numbers in fiction]. Hi, Mike. How about in dialogue? The cars from the thirties are more than classics. He’s holding a fifty-dollar bill. Thank you for taking time to read this. ~ Put the designations for north or south, east or west, either before or after the numbers, but not between. One hundred and fifteen [not 115] waiters applied for the job. Try both and determine which would be easier for the reader to follow. The forces at Wilmington were bolstered by the arrival of ten thousand fresh soldiers. An earlier example was incorrect—She was decked out in cute 1950’s clothes, but the haircut was atrocious. Carol, my apologies for not getting back to this one. __ No hyphen between numbers and percent. (A publisher might have their own rules regarding the issue, but any change could be made easily.) It’s interesting to see all the complex rules modern English has for writing down things as simple as numbers… crazy, crazy language. I don’t know that other books and chapters, however, would get the same treatment.). I will add those within the next day or two. Look back about 10 comments before yours and you’ll find a discussion of numbers used for identification. a ten-pound-five-ounce baby And because they are one modifier, that means that some of them need hyphens. If the words look odd—and some numbers would look decidedly odd in this format—rewrite. Yet since we can argue that a room number is used for identification, which means we use numerals, even in dialogue you could write room 224. If dollar is part of the adjective and comes before another noun (tab, bill, lawsuit) that it describes, it is linked to the other words of the compound adjective with hyphens (I found a five-dollar bill). So maybe it's not only about the words. Just make sure you know the consequences of your choices—you want clarity for the reader and not confusion—and make sure you’re consistent throughout the story. Would you mind clarifying this one for me? You’re welcome. Note: While these last three are correct according to some—because this fits the format of suspended hyphens—you could use full hyphenation to show a range. The only odd ordinals are those using fives—fifth and fifteenth. He owes me twenty dollars. What a timely post! Yanno? It can be found in Paragraph II. Go to thegamblingreviews. In a reference to the chapter only, you may want to adjust the wording—The text he quoted was from the third chapter of Genesis. The sign says nine dollars and ninety-nine cents.”. 01100 and Latitude and Longitude. If dollar(s) is used as a noun, it is not linked to the amount with hyphens (I found five dollars). Thus, mid-nineteenth century and mid-fourteenth-century lore. (A reminder that you would use % in place of percent only in technical or scientific writing. Unless you’re talking about dialogue. Some rules are different for fiction. In other words, with âtoâ use hyphens on both sides of it with the examples above. When a character speaks, the reader should hear what he says. But if it is a mixed number, would we use numerals like this? Some people would always say three while others would say third. Michelle, what a great question. Hi, Beth. Which examples would be correct, per Chicago, above? a 3-foot-5¼-inch man. 1. He was well-respected, well-known, well-heeled, and well-educated. I’d definitely rewrite. Probably. One reason—as a way to build tension. Susan, my first recommendation would be to spell out the time in dialogue whether it’s military time or standard time. Have a nice day! You’ve answered so many questions. I thought you were asking whether or not to run the numbers together in general. So fifty-dollar-bill and fifty-million-dollar-lawsuit are incorrect. I’m still interested in hearing your response to my question of November 22 regarding 911, route numbers, and odometer readings. Or 10k? “I collect candlesticks. a writer could argue for the numerals for military time in dialogue as a style choice. Festivals & Fairs, Search Events ———— Your research is correct. As Samuel L. Jackson's character is about to gun down his boss' wrongdoer, he cites Ezekiel 25:17: twenty-, thirty-, and forty-year-olds However, I spent some time this afternoon looking for examples in CMOS and in several dozen online sources, and couldn’t find one that specifically addressed this situation. economic problems were . There’s nothing wrong with asking whether or not a character would use a certain word. The baby weighed 6 pounds 8½ ounces. B—Incorrect. I am confused, however, in regards to the rules on times. __ For dollar amounts written as numerals, You may have been advised to always write. Quantities consisting of whole numbers and simple fractions may be spelled out if short but are often better expressed in numerals (especially if a symbol for the fraction is available, as in the example here). ………………………………………. Thus, mid-October. Apart from that, lots of useful information, thanks ð. A great question. Of course, it may be a fitting word. What will make sense to the reader and keep him from tripping over your style choices? We now use coordinated universal time (UTC), very close to GMT. BTW In that final example, you could also use an action tag instead of the speech tag: âMike,â he turned to the other man, âdo you know how to find her?â. Use hyphens for (most) multiword compound modifiers before a noun. Which examples, if any, would you omit the hyphens after the “be” verbs? Currently only the Hillis family members are involved in the current operation of the non-profit mutual benefit corporation bookstore, specifically son Perry Hillis, and although times have changed the integrity and name of the bookstore has remained the same while they have expanded their product line. If you do include full compass coordinates in the narrative, using numerals and the symbols for degrees, minutes, and seconds might be the best choice in terms of clarity and ease of reading. So both of your examples should be correct. As I mentioned to Tina, sometimes rewriting is the better option. The religion section of most bookstores includes an amazing array of Bibles. The clothes belonging to 1950? 8. One of the sources I checked recommended hyphenating when using or, and, and to, but that simply didn’t make sense. I appreciate it. sixteenth                                                 one millionth And does a comma or a period correctly follow “Thanks” and “Thank you” in the absence of a complimentary closing? I’m told that the following is punctuated correctly, but I have my doubts because of the heavy punctuation: My wife, Susan; my brother, Tommy; and my sister, Ellen, will attend the ceremonies. Nobody says that enough. He talks us through the some of the best novels written during the Victorian period, and what they reveal about the people who wrote them. Connie said, “It was a two-hour-twenty-minute-fifteen-second marathon.” (Bad sentence, I know, but I wanted to determine with certainty whether or not this example is technically correct in accordance with your rule posted above.). This okay? ), The 10-pound 5-ounce baby was born on February 7. The Handbook of Good English, by Edward Johnson has this to say: Note that âI bought ten- to twenty-year bondsâ is wrong, because the compound is meant to indicate a range of bond maturities, not two separate bond categories, and it should be unified rather than suspended: âI bought ten-to-twenty-year bonds.â But when “and” or “or” is used, we use suspended hyphens, as in âten- and twenty-year bondsâ and âten- or twenty-year bonds.â. Use numerals for most numbers beyond one hundred. a $1â$2-per-day fee, 20â30-, 35â45-, and 50â60-year-old men, a group of 20â30-, 35â45-, and 50â60-year-olds, Chicago 16– 9.15 Whole numbers plus fractions. I have seen advice on several Internet sites that says you do use a hyphen in such cases, except when the rest of the number is already hyphenated. So they’d have you write two-twenty but two twenty-five. For example, a cab driver asks a passenger where he is going and the answer is simply, “568 West Broadway.” Should 568 be written out in words? The drink was only 60 percent beer. How would you handle room numbers or berth numbers on a ship or hotel when in dialogue your characters talk about them, and then later in the narrative you refer to them. Thank you! Very helpful, especially the bits about time and o’clock. Thanks again, Beth. 60 N 13′ and 30 W 15′, Evelyn, I’m glad you’re finding the articles useful. The Editor's Blog is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. In which case, “1950s” can be used to modify the clothes without the apostrophe, so it would just be “1950s clothes”, right? I hope this helps. But at its most basic, argue is an action, not a tag. I did hours of research and did find this. fifteenth*                                                one thousandth In addition, I wish I’d seen it when I had a long argument with an editor who insisted on changing ‘six foot three’ to ‘six feet three’ (a character’s height) on the grounds ‘foot’ should be plural because there were six.
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