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Usenet Posted 16 years ago
Usage

Percent or per cent?

Can you help me with that as I am not sure whether there is any difference between the two ways of spelling % - percent or percent? Thanks a lot
  

Top answer

[nq:1]Can you help me with that as I am not sure whether there is any difference between the two ways of spelling % - percent or percent? Thanks a lot[/nq] I suspect it's pondial. I grew up in Canada with "percent" being unremarkable, but after living in England for all these years only "per cent" looks right to me now.

  • [nq:1]Can you help me with that as I am not sure whether there is any difference between the two ways of spelling % - percent or percent?
  • Thanks a lot[/nq] I suspect it's pondial.
  • I grew up in Canada with "percent" being unremarkable, but after living in England for all these years only "per cent" looks right to me now.
  • Cheers, Harvey CanEng and BrEng, indiscriminately mixed
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5 Answers
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[nq:1]Can you help me with that as I am not sure whether there is any difference between the two ways of spelling % - percent or percent? Thanks a lot[/nq]
I suspect it's pondial. I grew up in Canada with "percent" being unremarkable, but after living in England for all these years only "per cent" looks right to me now.

Cheers, Harvey
CanEng and BrEng, indiscriminately mixed
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[nq:1]On 24 Mar 2010, klm8203 wrote[/nq]
[nq:2]Can you help me with that as I am not ... of spelling % - percent or percent? Thanks a lot[/nq]
[nq:1]I suspect it's pondial. I grew up in Canada with "percent" being unremarkable, but after living in England for all these years only "per cent" looks right to me now.[/nq]
In England, both of these look right to me. Chose what seems right t
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[nq:1]Can you help me with that as I am not sure whether there is any difference between the two ways of spelling % - percent or percent?[/nq]
The historical evolution has been:
per centum (Latin, "for 100")
per cent. (abbreviation of the above)
per cent (period dropped)
per-cent (rarely seen)
percent
While nowadays you can find both the unit word and the pair "per cent
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[nq:1]Can you help me with that as I am not sure whether there is any difference between the two ways of spelling % - percent or percent?[/nq]
Given your choices, I'd go with percent.
[nq:1]Thanks a lot [/nq]
Posters should say where they live, and for which area they are asking questions. I was born and then lived in Western Pa. 10 years
Indianapolis 7 years
Chicago 6 years
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[nq:1]difference between the two ways of spelling % - percent or percent?[/nq]
That depends. Is the question mark part of the spelling?

¬R

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