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Fifty one or Fifty-one?

Fifty one or fifty-one?

In this article we show you how to write 51 in English words correctly.

In addition, we provide you with the grammar rule right away. 🙂

Regardless of where they appear in a number, hyphenate all compound numbers between 21 and 99 (not 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, and 90) such as 51. In other words:

Hyphenate all numbers between twenty-one and ninety-nine, except those divisible by ten, even if the compound number is preceded or succeeded by numbers that do not require hyphens.
Thus, the correct spelling of 51 is fifty-one (hyphenated).


Along the same lines:
  • 51,000 = fifty-one thousand (hyphenated).
  • 51,000,000 = fifty-one million (hyphenated).
  • 51,000,000,000 = fifty-one billion (hyphenated).

Fifty-one or Fifty one Spelling

It doesn’t matter which noun follows the adjective, the grammar rule explained above remains in place.

In the examples below the correct spelling is underlined.

Fifty one years or fifty-one years?
Fifty one percent or fifty-one percent?
Fifty one hours or fifty-one hours?

Frequently Asked Questions about Fifty One

Does fifty one have a hyphen?

Yes, 51 has a hyphen and is spelled correctly as fifty-one.

Do you hyphenate fifty one?

Yes, you put a hyphen between fifty and one: fifty-one.

Does fifty one need a hyphen?

As 51 is a compound number in between 21 and 99 it needs a hyphen; therefore writing 51 in full is fifty-one.

In the table below we show you the correct spelling of some numbers succeeding and precededing 51:
NumberName
46forty-six
47forty-seven
48forty-eight
49forty-nine
50fifty
51fifty-one
52fifty-two
53fifty-three
54fifty-four
55fifty-five
56fifty-six

Fifty first or Fifty-first?

In the following examples the correct spelling is underlined.

Fifty first part or fifty-first part?
Fifty first day or fifty-first day?
Fifty first hour or fifty-first hour?

Frequently Asked Questions about Fifty first

  • Does fifty first have a hyphen? Yes, the ordinal number for 51 has a hyphen and is spelled correctly as fifty-first.
  • Do you hyphenate fifty first? Yes, you put a hyphen between fifty and first: fifty-first.
  • Does fifty first need a hyphen? 51 is a compound number in between 21 and 99 which needs a hyphen. Thus, writing 51st in full is fifty-first.

Fifty first or Fifty-one?

As you already know, 51 as cardinal numeral is fifty-one, and 51 as ordinal numeral is fifty-first.

Thus, the question in the subtitle above mixes two distinguished linguistic concepts and cannot be answered as such.

Observe that you can always check how to spell a number in full correctly using our converter below.

English:

American
British

To:

Words
Check
Currency

Letter case:

Sentence case
lowercase
UPPERCASE
Title Case
Spelling: Fifty-one

Summary

As explained by the hyphens-in-numbers rule, 51 = fifty-one.

If you are happy with our information, then you may also be interested in our article fifty-three or fifty three.


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– Article written by Mark