All skills Math

Learn Index · Fractions, Decimals, and Percentages Grade 3–5

Reading and writing decimals

Saying and writing decimals correctly.

Read

Reading decimals aloud

There are two common ways to read a decimal such as 3.45:

Style How 3.45
Everyday Say "point", then each digit three point four five
Mathematical Say "and" for the point; read the decimal part as a number with its last place name three and forty-five hundredths

The mathematical way shows exactly what the number means, so it’s used in word form and on cheques.

Steps for word form

  1. Read the whole-number part.
  2. Say "and" for the decimal point.
  3. Read the digits after the point as if they were a whole number.
  4. Finish with the place name of the last digit.
Decimal Last digit’s place Word form
0.7 tenths seven tenths
0.07 hundredths seven hundredths
2.35 hundredths two and thirty-five hundredths
14.208 thousandths fourteen and two hundred eight thousandths
6.05 hundredths six and five hundredths

Keep "and" only for the decimal point. Don’t use it inside the whole-number part: 105.2 is "one hundred five and two tenths".

Writing decimals from words

  1. Write the whole number, then the decimal point.
  2. Look at the place name at the end: tenths = 1 digit after the point, hundredths = 2, thousandths = 3.
  3. Fill in the digits, using zeros as placeholders.

Example: "nine and four thousandths"

  • Thousandths → 3 decimal places.
  • "four" fills the last place: 0.004.
  • 9.004

Decimals as fractions

Every decimal is a decimal fraction:

Decimal Fraction
0.3 3/10
0.29 29/100
0.007 7/1,000
1.5 1 5/10 = 1 1/2

The word form tells you the fraction: "twenty-nine hundredths" = 29/100.

Worked examples

Example 1: Write 5.62 in words.

five and sixty-two hundredths

Example 2: Write "twelve and three tenths" as a decimal.

12.3

Example 3: Write 0.045 as a fraction.

Forty-five thousandths: 45/1,000.

Common mistakes

  • Saying "and" in the wrong place: "one hundred and five" means 100.5 in strict maths language.
  • Forgetting placeholder zeros: "three hundredths" is 0.03, not 0.3.
  • Using the wrong place name: 0.25 is twenty-five hundredths, not twenty-five tenths.

Try it yourself

  1. Write 7.08 in words.
  2. Write 0.904 in words.
  3. Write "forty and sixteen hundredths" as a decimal.
  4. Write 0.6 as a fraction.

Answers: 1) seven and eight hundredths 2) nine hundred four thousandths 3) 40.16 4) 6/10 (= 3/5)

Quick recap

  • Read the decimal point as "and" in word form.
  • Name the decimal part by the place of its last digit.
  • Every decimal is a decimal fraction with a denominator of 10, 100 or 1,000.