numbers: age

Exact age is usually indicated in numerals, even if less than 10:

  • Jane, aged 9, and her brother Tom, 10, led the hike.

It is written out, however, in the case of approximate age and in formal contexts:

  • He’s eighty if he’s a day.
  • She was no more than seventeen at the time.
  • On the occasion of her retirement at the age of sixty-five.

Copyright notice for Writing Tips Plus

© His Majesty the King in Right of Canada, represented by the Minister of Public Services and Procurement
A tool created and made available online by the Translation Bureau, Public Services and Procurement Canada

Search by related themes

Want to learn more about a theme discussed on this page? Click on a link below to see all the pages on the Language Portal of Canada that relate to the theme you selected. The search results will be displayed in Language Navigator.