Reading and writing decimals

Read the whole number and say “and” for the point. Then read the digits after it and name the last place: tenths, hundredths or thousandths.

How to read a decimal aloud

  1. Read the whole number part as normal: 12.
  2. Say “and” for the decimal point.
  3. Read the digits after the point as one number: 45.
  4. Finish with the name of the last place: hundredths.

So 12.45 is “twelve and forty-five hundredths”. If there is no whole number, start with the digits: 0.7 is “seven tenths” and 0.036 is “thirty-six thousandths”.

In everyday speech people often say “twelve point four five”. That is fine for reading a measurement, but the place-value way shows what the number means, so teachers ask for it.

See it: pictures to draw with your child

Copy these onto paper or a whiteboard. A quick sketch makes the idea concrete before any written method.

Tens1Ones2.Tenths4Hundredths5Thousandths
12.45 ends in the hundredths place, so it is read “twelve and forty-five hundredths”.
Ones6.Tenths0Hundredths3Thousandths
Six and three hundredths: a zero holds the tenths place.
forty-two hundredths
0.42 is forty-two hundredths of the grid.

How to write a decimal from words

Work backwards. The last word tells you how many places come after the point: tenths need 1, hundredths need 2, thousandths need 3. Then write the number so that it ends in that last place, filling any gaps with zeros.

See the words for any decimal

Type a decimal and read the words underneath. Try 6.3, 6.03 and 6.003.

Expanded form

Expanded form writes a number as the sum of what each digit is worth. 4.257 = 4 + 0.2 + 0.05 + 0.007. A fraction version is also used: 4 + 2/10 + 5/100 + 7/1000.

Expanded form is a good check that a child really understands the places, because they must give each digit its own value. Empty places are left out: 7.05 = 7 + 0.05.

Why the word “and” matters

In decimal reading, “and” means the decimal point. That is why careful readers say “one hundred five” for 105, not “one hundred and five”. Otherwise “one hundred and five tenths” could mean 100.5 or 105 tenths.

Most children in everyday speech say “and” in whole numbers too, and it rarely causes problems. The rule matters most when writing cheques or reading long decimals in maths.

Reading money

Money is usually read in dollars and cents: $14.05 is “fourteen dollars and five cents”. That matches the decimal reading exactly, because cents are hundredths: fourteen and five hundredths of a dollar.

The two zeros problem is the same too: five cents is $0.05, not $0.5. See decimals and money.

Tips for teaching reading and writing decimals

Start with money and measurements, because children already say them aloud. Ask them to read prices both ways: “four dollars and five cents” and “four and five hundredths”. The link between the two is the whole lesson.

Next, use a place value chart. Children write each digit in its column, then read the number from the last column’s name. Empty columns get a zero, which stops the classic 6.3 for 6.03 mistake.

Finally, play dictation games in both directions. One person says a decimal and the other writes it, then they swap. Five minutes a day for a week is usually enough to make this automatic.

Quiz: read and write decimals

Write decimals from words, choose the right words, or write expanded form as one number.

Where this fits: decimals step by step

  1. What are decimals
  2. Tenths
  3. Hundredths
  4. Decimal place value
  5. Reading and writing decimals (this page)
  6. Thousandths
  7. Decimals on a number line
  8. Comparing decimals
  9. Ordering decimals
  10. Rounding decimals
  11. Estimating with decimals
  12. Decimals and money
  13. Adding decimals
  14. Subtracting decimals
  15. × and ÷ by 10, 100 and 1,000
  16. Decimals × whole numbers
  17. Multiplying decimals
  18. Dividing decimals by whole numbers
  19. Dividing decimals
  20. Decimals to fractions
  21. Fractions to decimals
  22. Decimal word problems

What to say to your child

A short script for teaching it the first time. Pause after each line and let your child do the next step.

  1. “How do we say 3.5?” (Three and five tenths.)
  2. “And 3.05?” (Three and five hundredths.)
  3. “Why are they different?” (The 5 is in a different place.)
  4. “Write ‘two and seventy hundredths’.” (2.70.)
  5. “Is that the same as 2.7?” (Yes: seventy hundredths is seven tenths.)

More worked examples

Example 1: read 8.6

eight and six tenths

Example 2: read 0.07

seven hundredths

Example 3: write “three and fifteen thousandths”

3.015

Example 4: expanded form of 9.304

9 + 0.3 + 0.004

Practice questions (answers below)

Ask these out loud or write them down. Check each answer, and ask “how did you get that?” for one or two.

  1. Read 4.9 in words
  2. Read 0.38 in words
  3. Write “seven and two tenths”
  4. Write “seven and two hundredths”
  5. Write “fifty-six thousandths”
  6. Write 5 + 0.6 + 0.03 as one number
  7. Expanded form of 2.47
  8. Read $9.05
  9. Write “twelve and one tenth”
  10. Stretch: write “one hundred and one thousandth”
Show the answers
  1. four and nine tenths
  2. thirty-eight hundredths
  3. 7.2
  4. 7.02
  5. 0.056
  6. 5.63
  7. 2 + 0.4 + 0.07
  8. nine dollars and five cents
  9. 12.1
  10. 100.001

Common mistakes

Naming the first place, not the lastReads 0.45 as “four tenths five”.Fix: read the digits as one number and name the last place: forty-five hundredths.
Missing zerosWrites “six and three hundredths” as 6.3.Fix: hundredths need 2 places: 6.03.
Saying “and” in whole numbersWrites “one hundred and five” as 100.5.Fix: “and” means the point; 105 is “one hundred five”.

How to teach it at home

Read the receipt

Read every price on a receipt in dollars and cents.

Dictation

Say a decimal; your child writes it. Swap roles.

Expanded race

Who can write 6.385 in expanded form first?

By grade

More for each grade: Grade 4 math and the CBSE class 4 maths guide; Grade 5 math and the CBSE class 5 maths guide.

Worksheets and practice

Decimal place value worksheet, page 1

Decimal place value worksheet: printable PDF with an answer key. · Make a fresh test

Decimal practice · decimal calculator · place value chart · decimals quiz · decimal levels · decimal games · decimals for kids

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Questions parents ask

How do you read decimals in words?

Read the whole number and say “and” for the point. Then read the digits after it as one number and name the last place: twelve and forty-five hundredths.

How do you write a decimal from words?

The last word tells how many places after the point: tenths 1, hundredths 2, thousandths 3. Fill gaps with zeros: six and three hundredths is 6.03.

What is expanded form for decimals?

The sum of each digit’s value: 4.257 = 4 + 0.2 + 0.05 + 0.007.

Is it wrong to say “point”?

No. “Twelve point four five” is common, but “twelve and forty-five hundredths” shows the meaning, so schools teach it.

What grade learns reading and writing decimals?

Grade 4 for tenths and hundredths, and grade 5 for thousandths (5.NBT.A.3a).