English Numbers, Dates & Money

Level: A1. Numbers, dates, prices and phone numbers come up every single day — and each has its own small set of rules for how you say and write it. This page is a reference you can come back to, grouped by type rather than ranked by frequency.

By the end of this page you can…

…read large numbers aloud, form ordinals, say and write dates the British and American way, read prices and phone numbers, and handle percentages, fractions and decimals.

How this page is organised

This is a reference page, not a frequency-ranked word list, so it is grouped by job: counting, ordering, dates, money, phone numbers and the small maths words. Example sentences are written for this lesson and kept deliberately simple. If you have not yet learned to count, start with the two lessons linked at the end.

Cardinals: the counting numbers

Cardinal numbers answer how many. The first twenty words and the tens must be learned; after that the pattern repeats. Large numbers group in threes with a comma:

Ordinals: first, second, third…

Ordinals answer which one in order — they label dates, floors, races and centuries. Most are the cardinal plus -th, but a few change spelling:

Watch fifth (not fiveth), eighth (one t), ninth (no e) and twelfth. For the tens, change the final -y to -ieth: twenty → twentieth.

Dates: the British and American split

This is the single biggest source of confusion, because the two main styles reverse the day and month.

Say years in pairs when you can: 1984 is “nineteen eighty-four”, 2026 is “twenty twenty-six”. The 2000s are the exception — 2005 is usually “two thousand and five” (British) or “two thousand five” (American), and only later did “twenty oh-five” appear.

Money and prices

The currency symbol comes first in writing (£5, $20, €3.50), but you say the amount then the unit:

• £5.50 = “five pounds fifty” (the word pounds can drop: “five fifty”)
• $3.99 = “three dollars ninety-nine” or just “three ninety-nine”
• €10 = “ten euros”
• 50p = “fifty pence” / “fifty p”; ¢ = cents

Say the price as two numbers split by the decimal point, and do not say “point” with money: $4.25 is “four twenty-five”, not “four point two five”.

Phone numbers and the small maths words

Phone numbers are read digit by digit. The digit 0 is usually “oh”; a repeated digit can take “double”: 7700 = “double seven, double oh” or “seven seven zero zero”.

For maths: per cent (50% = “fifty per cent”), simple fractions (½ = “a half”, ⅓ = “a third”, ¾ = “three quarters”), and decimals read each figure after the point (3.14 = “three point one four”, not “three point fourteen”).

Example sentences

Play each line and say the number, date or price aloud.

1. There are three hundred and sixty-five days in a year.
   A large number with British 'and'.
2. The stadium holds forty-five thousand people.
   Thousands grouped in threes.
3. She finished in first place and he came third.
   Ordinals for a race result.
4. My office is on the twelfth floor.
   An irregular ordinal: twelfth.
5. His birthday is on the fifth of April.
   A British spoken date.
6. The meeting is on April 5, 2026.
   An American written date.
7. I was born in nineteen ninety-nine.
   A year said in pairs.
8. The lease started in two thousand and five.
   A 2000s year keeps 'two thousand'.
9. The coffee costs three pounds fifty.
   A price said as two numbers.
10. It was only three ninety-nine in the sale.
    Dropping 'dollars' in speech.
11. The ticket is ten euros each.
    Euros after the figure.
12. Please call me on oh-two-oh, seven double four six.
    A phone number, digit by digit.
13. Almost fifty per cent of the class passed.
    Reading a percentage.
14. Add half a cup of sugar.
    A simple fraction: a half.
15. The value of pi is about three point one four.
    A decimal read figure by figure.
16. We need a quarter of the budget for travel.
    The fraction a quarter.
17. The train leaves at a quarter past nine.
    A fraction used in telling time.
18. That is the twenty-first century.
    An ordinal for a century.
19. Round it up to the nearest hundred.
    A round number in everyday maths.

Quick recap before you practise.

Usage notes

• per cent / percent: British English often writes two words (per cent); American English writes one (percent). Both are correct; the symbol % is universal.
• ordinals in dates: in speech you say the ordinal (the fifth of April) even when you write the figure (5 April).
• “a” vs “one”: a hundred / a thousand is relaxed everyday speech; one hundred / one thousand is used for counting and precision.
• zero: say “oh” for phone and room numbers, “nil” for football scores, “zero” in neutral or technical contexts, “nought” for the British digit itself.
• time: quarters and halves of an hour use the same fraction words — see the telling-time lesson linked below.

Practice

Practice

Numbers, dates and money practice

Try each one, then press Check. No sign-up, nothing is sent anywhere — it all runs in your browser.

1 How do you write 'one million' in figures, with separators?

1.000.000 1,000,000 1000000 10,00,000

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1,000,000 — English separates thousands with a comma: 1,000,000.

2 Write the ordinal for 12 in words: ____

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Hint: an irregular spelling

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twelfth — 12 is 'twelfth' — note the spelling change from twelve.

3 In Britain, what does the written date 5/4/2026 mean?

4 May 2026 5 April 2026 Either, it is unclear 5 May 2026

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5 April 2026 — British order is day/month, so 5/4 is 5 April. (In America it would be 4 May — write the month in words to be safe.)

4 Say the price $3.99 in the short way: 'three ____'.

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Hint: drop the word dollars

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ninety-nine — Prices split at the point: $3.99 is 'three ninety-nine'.

5 Put the words in order to say the year 1999.

ninety-ninenineteen

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Show answer

nineteen ninety-nine — Years are said in pairs: nineteen ninety-nine.

6 Match each symbol or figure to how you read it.

• 50% Match for 50% — choose — a halffifty per centfive poundsthree point five
• ½ Match for ½ — choose — a halffifty per centfive poundsthree point five
• 3.5 Match for 3.5 — choose — a halffifty per centfive poundsthree point five
• £5 Match for £5 — choose — a halffifty per centfive poundsthree point five

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• 50% → fifty per cent
• ½ → a half
• 3.5 → three point five
• £5 → five pounds

Each has a fixed phrasing: percentages, fractions, decimals and prices.

7 Read the decimal 3.14: 'three point ____ four'. (one word)

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Hint: read each figure after the point separately

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one — Decimals are read figure by figure: three point one four.

How to say it

A few of these words catch English learners out — focus on these sounds.

• twelfth packs l-f-th together; say it slowly as twelf-th, tongue between the teeth for the final sound.
• fifth and sixth also end in that th; don’t let them collapse into fith or sik.
• per cent stresses the second part: per-SENT.
• euro is said YOO-roh in English, with the stress on the first part.

Quiz

Check yourself

Numbers, dates and money quiz

11 questions · pick an answer and you'll see straight away if it's right.

0/11 0 answered

1. 1Which punctuation marks the decimal part of a number in English?

   A a comma B a point (full stop) C a space D a slash
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   a point (full stop) — English uses a point for decimals and a comma for thousands.

2. 2What is the ordinal for 9?

   A nineth B ninth C ninenth D nineth
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   ninth — 9 is 'ninth' — the 'e' of nine is dropped.

3. 3Where can the word 'and' appear in British numbers?

   A Between any two digits B After 'hundred' C Before every number D Never
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   After 'hundred' — British usage puts 'and' after hundred: one hundred and one.

4. 4How does an American usually write 5 April 2026?

   A 5 April 2026 B April 5, 2026 C 2026 April 5 D 5/4/26 only
   Show answer

   April 5, 2026 — American order is month-day-year: April 5, 2026.

5. 5How do you say the year 1984 in pairs?

   A one thousand nine hundred eighty-four B nineteen eighty-four C nineteen hundred eighty-four D one nine eight four
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   nineteen eighty-four — Years before 2000 are usually said in pairs: nineteen eighty-four.

6. 6How do you read 2005 aloud, most commonly?

   A twenty zero five B two thousand and five C twenty oh five only D two zero zero five
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   two thousand and five — The 2000s keep 'two thousand': two thousand and five.

7. 7You see £5.50. How do you say it in full?

   A five point five pounds B five pounds fifty C five point fifty D fifty-five pounds
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   five pounds fifty — Prices split at the point and never use 'point': five pounds fifty.

8. 8How are phone numbers read in English?

   A as one big number B digit by digit C in pairs of tens D backwards
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   digit by digit — Phone numbers are read one digit at a time; 0 is usually 'oh'.

9. 9How do you read 50%?

   A fifty point zero B fifty per cent C five tens D half cent
   Show answer

   fifty per cent — The symbol % is read 'per cent': fifty per cent.

10. 10How do you read the decimal 3.14?

    A three point fourteen B three point one four C three and fourteen D three comma fourteen
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    three point one four — Read each figure after the point: three point one four.

11. 11Which is the correct spelling of the ordinal for 5?

    A fiveth B fifth C fithe D fivth
    Show answer

    fifth — 5 is 'fifth' — the spelling changes from five.

Recap cheat-sheet

Next

• Learn to count first: English: Numbers 0 to 100
• Days and the calendar: English: Days, Months & Dates
• Clock times: English: Telling the Time
• The grammar of “on Monday”, “in July”: Prepositions of Time
• Next in this set: Writing Business Emails in English
• New here? Start with Start Learning English Here