Eighteen in Numbers

How to write 18 in words

The number 18 is written “eighteen” in British English.

18 is one of the basic number words that every larger number is built from, so it has to be learned rather than constructed.

In running text the number is normally lowercase: “the fee is eighteen pounds”. At the start of a sentence, in a heading, or on a legal document it takes capitals: Eighteen. Formal documents often give both forms together, for example “eighteen (18)”, so that a reader can check one against the other.

1 words · 8 letters

Eighteen in figures

To turn “eighteen” back into digits, work group by group. Each group word (billion, million, thousand) marks a block of three digits. The result is 18, or 18 without separators.

How to write 18 on a cheque

Banks read the amount in words as the legal amount, so it must be exact. Write the pounds in words, add the word pounds, and finish with only so that nothing can be added afterwards.

• With pence: add the pence after the pounds – “Eighteen pounds and fifty pence only” for £18.50 – or write the pence as a fraction, “Eighteen pounds 50/100”.
• US check: “Eighteen and 00/100 dollars”. American cheques drop the “and” after the hundreds and put it before the cents.
• Bangladesh, India and Pakistan: the currency word comes first and the amount is counted in lakh and crore – “Taka eighteen only”, with the figure written Tk. 18/=.

Read the full guide to writing a UK cheque or the guide to writing a cheque in Bangladesh for the layout, the date, and what to do if the words and figures disagree.

18 in British and American English

18 is spelled exactly the same way – “eighteen” – in British and American English. The two varieties only differ when a number contains hundreds followed by tens or units, where British English adds “and”. Read more in our guide to British vs American English numbers.

18 in Bangla (বাংলায় ১৮)

In Bangla, 18 is written ১৮ using Bengali digits, and in words it is আঠারো. Bangla has its own word for every number from one to ninety-nine, and above that it counts in হাজার (thousand), লাখ (lakh) and কোটি (crore), the same grouping used across Bangladesh and India.

On a cheque or invoice written in Bangla the amount reads আঠারো টাকা মাত্র (“আঠারো taka only”). In English on the same cheque it is Taka eighteen only – see How to write a cheque in Bangladesh.

Common mistakes when writing 18

• Mixing words and figures. In running text keep to one style: eighteen or 18, not 18 (eighteen) unless it is a legal document.

Other ways to write 18

Half of 18 is 9 (nine). Double 18 is 36 (thirty-six).