Image by Sarej
Finally! You’re in college and you have declared a major in the humanities. This means that you can study what you are passionate about. It also means that you never have to take another math class (maybe). You don’t have to think about any numbers ever again except for birthdays, your ATM pin, and your social security number, right? Think again.
Even English majors are going to come to the day when they worry about whether they say that Hemingway published 21 novels or twenty-one novels or whether there were 13 or thirteen original American colonies. But, never fear, there are guidelines to follow, so you can be sure you are getting it right.
The first source of information when it comes to writing papers in the humanities: the MLA Handbook.
Our friends at the MLA give literature students a nice general rule to follow: if you are using numbers infrequently within your paper “you may spell out numbers written in one or two words and represent other numbers by numerals.” Some examples:
- six, seventeen, thirty-three, two hundred, eight thousand, seven billion
- 1 ½, 187, 617, 1,024
But what if you are trying to dodge the lab work and fulfill your science requirement by taking a class on the history of science? In a situation where you have to write about specific scientific studies that mention a lot of numbers, the MLA tells you to “use numerals for all numbers that precede technical units of measurement.” Some examples:
- 17 hertz, 39 millimeters
In the rest of your paper, stick to the rule that you only spell out numbers if they can be expressed in one or two words.
Other Instances When You Can Use Digits In the Body of Your Paper
You can include numbers in the text of your paper in the following instances:
- with abbreviations or symbols:
- 17 lbs.
- 6:17 p.m.
- 1.9%
- $4
- 3”
- in addresses:
- 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
- in dates:
- October 24, 2009 or 24 October 2009
- in decimal fractions:
- 3.14
- with large numbers
- Planet earth is 4.5 billion years old.
On Percentages and Money
No, we’re not talking about the royalties your going to make off of your first book contract. We’re trying to help you figure out how to refer to percentages and amounts of money in your work. Again, stick to that “if you can say it in one or two words” rule. The thing to remember: do not combine symbols and words when it comes to percentages and money.
CORRECT:
- twelve dollars
- one million dollars
- twenty-two cents
- fifty-one percent
- 54.67%
INCORRECT:
- 12 dollars
- twelve $
- 1 million dollars
- 3 percent
- three %
- 54.67 percent
And remember, regardless of whether you are writing a paper that is heavy on numbers or not, never begin a sentence with a numeral. That means: “Two thousand eight saw the election of Barack Obama.” (If you don’t like the way that looks, you can always start the sentence with the current president’s name.)
After you have made sure that your numbers are properly formatted, it is time to make sure that your entire paper is formatted correctly. StyleEase can offer you the simplest paper formatting software for your MLA, APA, or Chicago Style papers. Download a trial copy today!
Filed under: General Writing Information
