Different organizations use different style guides for numbers, dates and time. The World Health Organization (headquarters) and the United Nations use British style rather than United States style. What does this mean?
You’ll find some similarities and some differences between style guides.
Almost all of them say that you should write numbers under 10 in full in running text, with a few exceptions for age, percentages and fractions. Numbers should also be written in full at the beginning of a sentence.
For thousands, UN style uses a comma (apart from in tables), whereas WHO style uses a space.
In drafting official communications, we should follow our organization’s style guidelines.
If you’re unsure what style to use, check with the communications department. The UN style guide is here, and the WHO style guide is here.
For the following examples, see if you can identify WHO style, UN style, US style or none of these:
- 1. The meeting is at 14:00 on 18 October 2024.
- 2. The meeting is at 2 p.m. on October 18, 2024.
- 3. The meeting is at 2 p.m. on 18 October 2024.
- 4. Last year the budget surpassed $200,000.
- 5. Last year the budget surpassed US$ 200 000.
- 6. We need eight more participants to make the minimum number to run the course.
- 7. We need eight (8) more participants to make the minimum number to run the course.
Answer key
- 1. WHO style
- 2. UN style
- 3. US style
- 4. UN style
- 5. WHO style
- 6. UN and WHO style
- 7. The bracketed number is a style from the era of the typewriter and no longer used.
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Author: Carol Waites
Presentation/editing by Christina O’Shaughnessy
https://worldwidewriting.org/
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Carol Waites (PhD)
Email: carolswritingtips@gmail.com
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