Currency Amounts in Words in Many Languages
Writing an amount of money in words requires more than translating the number: currency names change form with the number, gender and language.
The same amount, seven languages
The amount 1,234.56 in each language’s most common currency (Numbrate output):
| Language | Currency | Result |
|---|---|---|
| English | USD | one thousand two hundred thirty-four dollars and fifty-six cents |
| English | GBP | one thousand two hundred thirty-four pounds and fifty-six pence |
| German | EUR | eintausendzweihundertvierunddreißig Euro und sechsundfünfzig Cent |
| French | EUR | mille deux cent trente-quatre euros et cinquante-six centimes |
| Spanish | EUR | mil doscientos treinta y cuatro euros con cincuenta y seis céntimos |
| Portuguese | BRL | mil duzentos e trinta e quatro reais e cinquenta e seis centavos |
| Turkish | TRY | bin iki yüz otuz dört Türk lirası elli altı kuruş |
What changes between languages
- Plural forms. English “one dollar” versus “two dollars”, but German “Euro” stays the same, and French needs “euro” for 1 and “euros” for more. Russian, Polish and Arabic have several plural classes depending on the number.
- The connecting word. English “and”, German “und”, French “et”, Spanish “con”, Portuguese “e”.
- Word order and spacing. German writes numbers below one million as a single word (eintausendzweihundertvierunddreißig). Most other languages separate them.
- Gender. In Russian, Spanish, Portuguese and Arabic the number words agree with the gender of the noun: one ruble is “один рубль” (masculine) but one kopeck is “одна копейка” (feminine).
Zero cents and no minor unit
If the amount has no subunit, Numbrate leaves it out: 250 USD is “two hundred fifty dollars”. Some currencies have no minor unit in practice. The Japanese yen allows 0 decimal places, so “1234.5 JPY” is rejected, while “1234 JPY” becomes “one thousand two hundred thirty-four yen”.
Too many decimals
US dollars allow two decimal places. An input such as 1234.567 USD is rejected with a message instead of being rounded, because rounding an amount silently changes what a document says.
Supported currencies
English pages offer USD, EUR, GBP, INR, PKR, BDT, CAD, AUD, CHF, TRY, RUB, CNY, JPY, KRW, MXN, BRL, SAR, AED, EGP, PLN, IDR, VND and IRR; other language pages offer the currencies most relevant to that language. If one is missing, tell us.
Frequently asked questions
Why is the currency name different for one and for several?
Most languages inflect the currency name with the number (dollar/dollars). Numbrate applies the plural rule of each language, not just an added s.
Can I convert an amount without a currency?
Yes. Leave the currency empty to get the plain number in words, with decimals read as fractions.