Booher's Rules of Business Grammar - Dianna Booher 2009

What are the odds to start?
Miscellaneous matters

STARTING A SENTENCE WITH A NUMBER

Numerals and words should stand apart, like oil and water. But when a sentence begins with a numeral, that’s not always the case.

Consider this confusing example: “The client sent the invoices showing the total amount. 6 percent had been altered in some aspect.” The period from the previous sentence can be mistaken for a decimal in the numeral of the next sentence. (Is it 6 percent or .6 percent of the invoices that have been altered?)

To avoid this confusion, recast the sentence so that any numeral comes later in the sentence or so that a written number begins the sentence.

Incorrect:

$45 is due on our invoice.

Correct:

Our invoice shows $45 due.

Incorrect:

320 employees participated in the survey.

Correct:

We have had 320 employees participate in the survey.

The survey included 320 employee responses.

Correct but Looks Odd:

Forty-six percent voted last year; only 36 percent voted this year.

Better:

Last year, 46 percent voted; this year, only 36 percent voted.

Memory tip

Don’t start sentences with numbers. Why not? Decimals and periods are indistinguishable dots.