3.3. Numbers, Names and Spelling
Write the figure you hear and the letters you are given, exactly.
The short version
Write the figure, not the words the speaker used.
When a name matters, the speaker spells it.
A figure such as 4.30 counts as one number.
These are the cheapest marks in the whole paper.
The easiest marks in the test
Part 1 is two people arranging something: a booking, a course, a delivery. Several of its ten questions are a number or a name, and the speakers give them the way people actually talk.
Nobody speaks in figures
No one says "nine point three zero". They say "half past four", and you write 4.30. You do not need to understand anything difficult here. You need to know how numbers are said.
One rule to settle first
When the instruction says ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER, a figure such as 4.30 or 12th is one number. A whole telephone number is also one number. Writing it out in words can break the limit.
| You hear | You write |
|---|---|
| oh seven seven, double oh | 07700 |
| double seven, treble four | 77444 |
| half past four | 4.30 |
| quarter to seven | 6.45 |
| eighteen pounds fifty | 18.50 |
| a pound twenty | 1.20 |
| the twelfth of March | 12 March |
| twenty-five per cent | 25% |
Write the figure. Do not write the words the speaker used.
British speakers say oh or zero for 0. Double seven is 77 and treble four is 444. Write each digit as you hear it. Do not try to hold five digits in your head and write them afterwards.
Half past four is 4.30. Quarter to seven is 6.45. Four-thirty is 4.30. Write 4.30 or 4:30; either is fine. If the form already says am or morning, do not add it.
Forty-two pounds is 42. Eighteen fifty is 18.50. If the form shows the £ sign, do not write it again. If it does not, £42 and 42 pounds both stand.
The twelfth is 12th or 12. The fifth of June is 5 June. A day and a month is one number and one word, which fits ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER.
Names are spelled for you
When a name matters, the speaker spells it. "It's Baxter, B-A-X-T-E-R." From that moment the sound of the name does not matter. The letters do. Write them in the order you hear them and check you have the same number of letters as the speaker said.
Three things that go wrong
Double L means write two Ls. Hearing it and writing one letter loses the mark.
A, E and I. B, D, P and T. G and J. M and N. Learn each letter sound before test day and listen for the first consonant.
The speaker says the name, then spells it. If the two seem to disagree, the spelling wins.
The method
- 1Before the part starts
Find every gap that wants a number or a name. A gap after Phone: or Postcode: wants digits and letters, not understanding. Decide how many digits to expect: a UK mobile number has eleven.
- 2While you listen
Write digits and letters as they arrive. When you hear half past four, write 4.30 the moment the phrase is finished and move on. Do not stop to think about it, because the speaker will not stop with you.
- 3In the checking pause
Count the digits. Check the double letters. Check that a figure written in words fits the limit. Thirty-five with a hyphen is one word; thirty five is two.
Quiz time5 questions
Contact number
Play the booking call once. Heading: Contact number. ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER. The whole telephone number counts as one number.
Part 1: kayak hire booking
0:00 / 0:00
In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Contact number:
Session time
Use the recording above. Heading: Saturday morning session. ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER.
The Saturday morning session starts at
Write no more than 1 word.
Full fee
Use the recording above. Heading: Full fee. NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER.
Full fee: £
Write no more than 2 words.
A spelled surname
No recording for this one. The words the speaker said are in the question.
The speaker gives a surname and then spells it: “That's R, E, I, double L, Y.” Which spelling scores?
Teen or ty
Three candidates wrote down what they heard. Each line gives the speaker's words and then what the candidate wrote. One of them lost the mark.
Which sentence contains the error?
Tips
- Write digits as they arrive
Do not hold five digits in your head and write them afterwards. Put each one down as you hear it.
- Listen for teen against ty
Fifteen and fifty differ by one stressed syllable. When a price or a count matters, wait for the stress.
- Count the letters back
When a name is spelled out, check you have the same number of letters the speaker gave.
Recap
Write the figure, not the words.
A spelled name is letters, not sounds. Copy them in order.
Every Part 1 mark is one you do not have to win in Part 4.
Next: the rules your written answer has to follow, whatever the question type.