Overview

English numerals are the words and written forms used to represent numbers. They include simple digits (one, two, three), compound words (twenty-one), and larger groupings such as hundred, thousand, million, and beyond. Numerals appear in everyday speech, formal writing, accounting, science and literature; conventions for writing them vary by context and region.

Basic words and composition

Small cardinal numbers have unique words for 0–19 and regular patterns for tens and higher multiples. The tens are written as words (twenty, thirty, forty, fifty, sixty, seventy, eighty, ninety) and combined with units using a hyphen for numbers between 21 and 99 (for example, twenty-one, thirty-five, ninety-eight). The number 100 is normally written as "one hundred" and can also be spoken informally as "a hundred." Larger round numbers use the familiar thousand and million scale.

  • Examples of hyphenated compounds: twenty-one, thirty-four, sixty-six, ninety-nine.
  • Round tens and hundreds: thirty, one hundred, one thousand.

Rules, punctuation and pronunciation

When writing compound numbers between 21 and 99 in words, a hyphen connects the tens and units (see hyphen rule). In formal numeric writing, digits (21) are often preferred for clarity in data, while words may be used in narrative text. Ordinal forms (first, second, third, twenty-first) are related but follow additional spelling and pronunciation patterns. Pronunciation and the use of the word "and" differ by tradition: many speakers of British or Commonwealth English say "one hundred and twenty-three," while American English often says "one hundred twenty-three."

History and large-scale conventions

English number words derive largely from Germanic roots, with later borrowing from Latin and French for larger and more technical terms. Two conventions have historically affected large numbers: the long scale and the short scale, which differ in how they name powers of one thousand (for example, billion). Today, the short scale (where "billion" means 1,000,000,000) is common in American English and increasingly in international contexts, while older uses of the long scale have largely fallen out of general use in most English-speaking countries.

Uses, examples and notable distinctions

Choosing whether to write numbers as words or digits depends on style guides and readability: many guides recommend writing out small numbers in words and using numerals for data, dates, addresses, ages, and measurements. Hyphens, commas, and spaces play roles in clarity: for instance, commas separate groups of three digits in numerals (1,234) while words group numbers conceptually (one thousand two hundred thirty-four). Regional pronunciation, formal vs informal registers, and technical contexts (mathematics, finance) influence how speakers produce and interpret numerals. For quick references to small number words and common forms, see a concise list of small numbers.