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Naotoshi Posted 11 years ago
Grammar
One twenty or one hundred twenty
One of my colleagues talks of 'one twenty dollars/people' when he refers to 120 dollars/people, rather than 'one hundred (and) twenty dollars/people'. His nationality is Indian.
Q1. Is it accepted usage in standard English (i.e. American or British English)?
Q2. Is it a prevalent form in Indian English? Do you know of any regions where such expressions are commonly used?
Q1. Is it accepted usage in standard English (i.e. American or British English)?
Q2. Is it a prevalent form in Indian English? Do you know of any regions where such expressions are commonly used?
Top answer
Both are fine. You may also hear eleven hundred dollars, meaning $1100, or one thousand one hundred dollars.
- Both are fine.
- You may also hear eleven hundred dollars, meaning $1100, or one thousand one hundred dollars.
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5 Answers
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Both are fine.
You may also hear eleven hundred dollars, meaning $1100, or one thousand one hundred dollars.
You may also hear eleven hundred dollars, meaning $1100, or one thousand one hundred dollars.
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naotoshiQ1. Is it accepted usage in standard English (i.e. American or British English)?I can't speak for our British friends across the pond, but where I live, no one would say "one twenty" to denote "one hundred and twenty". I would sooner understand it as "1.20".
naotoshiQ2. Is it a prevalent form in Indian English? Do you know of a
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AnonymousBoth are fine.Anon, do you think that "there were one twenty people there" is fine? I don't think so.
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When talking about money, one-twenty could be used to indicate $120 (or £120) in very casual speech, but normally it would indicate $1.20 (or £1.20), so you would have to be careful how you used it.
Hot dogs are one-twenty ($1.20).
A new starter for the car will cost about one-twenty. ($120)
Unless the person you are talking to is likely to understand
Hot dogs are one-twenty ($1.20).
A new starter for the car will cost about one-twenty. ($120)
Unless the person you are talking to is likely to understand
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XerxesI can't speak for our British friends across the pond, but where I live, no one would say "one twenty" to denote "one hundred and twenty". I would sooner understand it as "1.20".It's the same for us Brits.
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