How do I pronounce $frac52$?How to pronounce “Sturm”?How to pronounce $chi^2$?How do you pronounce x' and x''?How do you pronounce $hatn$?How to pronounce “$ a:b=c:d$” in English?How do you pronounce the expression $(i|i)$?How to pronounce “L'Hospital”?How do you pronounce $fracdydx$?How to pronounce of $0^+$ and $0^-$?How to pronounce “equicontinuous”?
Flag only first row where condition is met in a DataFrame
Purchasing a ticket for someone else in another country?
How easy is it to start Magic from scratch?
Why is Lord Kartikeya called 'Devasenapati'?
Is this apparent Class Action settlement a spam message?
How can a function with a hole (removable discontinuity) equal a function with no hole?
Are student evaluations of teaching assistants read by others in the faculty?
How to Reset Passwords on Multiple Websites Easily?
Is expanding the research of a group into machine learning as a PhD student risky?
Renaming columns using geopandas - issues with data table in Arc
Why didn't Theresa May consult with Parliament before negotiating a deal with the EU?
Where is sum(vin) > sum(vout) check in Bitcoin Core?
What does this 7 mean above the f flat
How should I tactfully let my coworker know I'm uncomfortable being alone with someone else in a closed-off room?
How does the UK government determine the size of a mandate?
How to be diplomatic in refusing to write code that breaches the privacy of our users
Implement the Thanos sorting algorithm
Gears on left are inverse to gears on right?
Term for the "extreme-extension" version of a straw man fallacy?
How do we know the LHC results are robust?
Italian words for tools
Go Pregnant or Go Home
Is it okay for two “sein” to be next to each other?
Short story about space worker geeks who zone out by 'listening' to radiation from stars
How do I pronounce $frac52$?
How to pronounce “Sturm”?How to pronounce $chi^2$?How do you pronounce x' and x''?How do you pronounce $hatn$?How to pronounce “$ a:b=c:d$” in English?How do you pronounce the expression $(i|i)$?How to pronounce “L'Hospital”?How do you pronounce $fracdydx$?How to pronounce of $0^+$ and $0^-$?How to pronounce “equicontinuous”?
$begingroup$
I'm currently going "back to school" to study the addition and subtraction of improper fractions (yeah, I have some catching up to do), and something occurred to me.
I know that $frac 13$ is pronounced as one third.
$frac 25$ is pronounced as two fifths.
$frac 36$ is pronounced as three sixths.
But what exactly is the equivalent pronunciation for $frac 52$?
It feels odd to pronounce it as five halves, although I'm not sure whether this is because it's wrong or because it's just rarely used. Is this the most accepted way to pronounce it, or is there another?
I'm British, since this is technically a pronunciation question, but I posted this here because it feels more like a maths question than an English one. Also because I prefer this Stack site to the English one, but don't tell them.
arithmetic fractions pronunciation
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I'm currently going "back to school" to study the addition and subtraction of improper fractions (yeah, I have some catching up to do), and something occurred to me.
I know that $frac 13$ is pronounced as one third.
$frac 25$ is pronounced as two fifths.
$frac 36$ is pronounced as three sixths.
But what exactly is the equivalent pronunciation for $frac 52$?
It feels odd to pronounce it as five halves, although I'm not sure whether this is because it's wrong or because it's just rarely used. Is this the most accepted way to pronounce it, or is there another?
I'm British, since this is technically a pronunciation question, but I posted this here because it feels more like a maths question than an English one. Also because I prefer this Stack site to the English one, but don't tell them.
arithmetic fractions pronunciation
$endgroup$
2
$begingroup$
"five over two"?
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
@LordSharktheUnknown That's a workaround, but for the sake of consistency, and curiosity, I'm wondering if there's a natural language equivalent like there is with the other examples.
$endgroup$
– Hashim
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
You can use the "five by/over two" format for other numbers as well.
$endgroup$
– Shubham Johri
12 hours ago
$begingroup$
@Hashim In natural language, it's "two and a half" :-)
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
12 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
The question is how do you pronounce 5/2, and the answer is that it is the way that you pronounce 5/2. However way it might be, it is the way that you pronounce it simply by the very subjective nature of the question. Unless it's a riddle in which case...
$endgroup$
– Asaf Karagila♦
10 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I'm currently going "back to school" to study the addition and subtraction of improper fractions (yeah, I have some catching up to do), and something occurred to me.
I know that $frac 13$ is pronounced as one third.
$frac 25$ is pronounced as two fifths.
$frac 36$ is pronounced as three sixths.
But what exactly is the equivalent pronunciation for $frac 52$?
It feels odd to pronounce it as five halves, although I'm not sure whether this is because it's wrong or because it's just rarely used. Is this the most accepted way to pronounce it, or is there another?
I'm British, since this is technically a pronunciation question, but I posted this here because it feels more like a maths question than an English one. Also because I prefer this Stack site to the English one, but don't tell them.
arithmetic fractions pronunciation
$endgroup$
I'm currently going "back to school" to study the addition and subtraction of improper fractions (yeah, I have some catching up to do), and something occurred to me.
I know that $frac 13$ is pronounced as one third.
$frac 25$ is pronounced as two fifths.
$frac 36$ is pronounced as three sixths.
But what exactly is the equivalent pronunciation for $frac 52$?
It feels odd to pronounce it as five halves, although I'm not sure whether this is because it's wrong or because it's just rarely used. Is this the most accepted way to pronounce it, or is there another?
I'm British, since this is technically a pronunciation question, but I posted this here because it feels more like a maths question than an English one. Also because I prefer this Stack site to the English one, but don't tell them.
arithmetic fractions pronunciation
arithmetic fractions pronunciation
edited 10 hours ago
community wiki
Hashim
2
$begingroup$
"five over two"?
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
@LordSharktheUnknown That's a workaround, but for the sake of consistency, and curiosity, I'm wondering if there's a natural language equivalent like there is with the other examples.
$endgroup$
– Hashim
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
You can use the "five by/over two" format for other numbers as well.
$endgroup$
– Shubham Johri
12 hours ago
$begingroup$
@Hashim In natural language, it's "two and a half" :-)
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
12 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
The question is how do you pronounce 5/2, and the answer is that it is the way that you pronounce 5/2. However way it might be, it is the way that you pronounce it simply by the very subjective nature of the question. Unless it's a riddle in which case...
$endgroup$
– Asaf Karagila♦
10 hours ago
add a comment |
2
$begingroup$
"five over two"?
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
@LordSharktheUnknown That's a workaround, but for the sake of consistency, and curiosity, I'm wondering if there's a natural language equivalent like there is with the other examples.
$endgroup$
– Hashim
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
You can use the "five by/over two" format for other numbers as well.
$endgroup$
– Shubham Johri
12 hours ago
$begingroup$
@Hashim In natural language, it's "two and a half" :-)
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
12 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
The question is how do you pronounce 5/2, and the answer is that it is the way that you pronounce 5/2. However way it might be, it is the way that you pronounce it simply by the very subjective nature of the question. Unless it's a riddle in which case...
$endgroup$
– Asaf Karagila♦
10 hours ago
2
2
$begingroup$
"five over two"?
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
"five over two"?
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
@LordSharktheUnknown That's a workaround, but for the sake of consistency, and curiosity, I'm wondering if there's a natural language equivalent like there is with the other examples.
$endgroup$
– Hashim
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
@LordSharktheUnknown That's a workaround, but for the sake of consistency, and curiosity, I'm wondering if there's a natural language equivalent like there is with the other examples.
$endgroup$
– Hashim
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
You can use the "five by/over two" format for other numbers as well.
$endgroup$
– Shubham Johri
12 hours ago
$begingroup$
You can use the "five by/over two" format for other numbers as well.
$endgroup$
– Shubham Johri
12 hours ago
$begingroup$
@Hashim In natural language, it's "two and a half" :-)
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
12 hours ago
$begingroup$
@Hashim In natural language, it's "two and a half" :-)
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
12 hours ago
1
1
$begingroup$
The question is how do you pronounce 5/2, and the answer is that it is the way that you pronounce 5/2. However way it might be, it is the way that you pronounce it simply by the very subjective nature of the question. Unless it's a riddle in which case...
$endgroup$
– Asaf Karagila♦
10 hours ago
$begingroup$
The question is how do you pronounce 5/2, and the answer is that it is the way that you pronounce 5/2. However way it might be, it is the way that you pronounce it simply by the very subjective nature of the question. Unless it's a riddle in which case...
$endgroup$
– Asaf Karagila♦
10 hours ago
add a comment |
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
I would say "five halves".
A few more characters.
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
In a general context it's very strange. I mean 5 halves of apples would be fine, but generally when not having something physically splittable does not make much sense.
$endgroup$
– Overmind
11 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I think that "five halves" sounds odd because it is unlikely in a non-mathematical context. "I have two thirds of a cake" is plausible but I don't think that "I have five halves of a cake" is, "I have two and a half cakes" is much more plausible. Even if you had five half cakes (cut three into two and then eat one piece),"five half cakes" would be more likely.
In maths, or some other technical context, I would say "five over two".
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
In my opinion, the way you pronounce 2/5 will affect how you are understood, and is therefore context dependent.
If you say "two and a half" then it sounds like you have this:
If you say "five halves" then it sounds like you have this:
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
In India it is pronounced as "five by two" or "five divided by two"
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
Fine in the UK as well in a technical context. However, probably not in natural, non-technical speech.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
2
$begingroup$
Can't "five by two" be understood as 5*2 instead of 5/2?
$endgroup$
– Pere
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
It's a danger. Spoken formulae can be ambiguous. The speaker's intonation may help otherwise you may have to guess or ask. "Five by two" is a common phrasing when discussing wood or image sizes. In both cases, $5 / 2$ and $ 5 times 2$ would have a useful meaning.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
add a comment |
Your Answer
StackExchange.ifUsing("editor", function ()
return StackExchange.using("mathjaxEditing", function ()
StackExchange.MarkdownEditor.creationCallbacks.add(function (editor, postfix)
StackExchange.mathjaxEditing.prepareWmdForMathJax(editor, postfix, [["$", "$"], ["\\(","\\)"]]);
);
);
, "mathjax-editing");
StackExchange.ready(function()
var channelOptions =
tags: "".split(" "),
id: "69"
;
initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);
StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function()
// Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled)
StackExchange.using("snippets", function()
createEditor();
);
else
createEditor();
);
function createEditor()
StackExchange.prepareEditor(
heartbeatType: 'answer',
autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
convertImagesToLinks: true,
noModals: true,
showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
reputationToPostImages: 10,
bindNavPrevention: true,
postfix: "",
imageUploader:
brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
allowUrls: true
,
noCode: true, onDemand: true,
discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
);
);
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function ()
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fmath.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f3164174%2fhow-do-i-pronounce-frac52%23new-answer', 'question_page');
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
I would say "five halves".
A few more characters.
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
In a general context it's very strange. I mean 5 halves of apples would be fine, but generally when not having something physically splittable does not make much sense.
$endgroup$
– Overmind
11 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I would say "five halves".
A few more characters.
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
In a general context it's very strange. I mean 5 halves of apples would be fine, but generally when not having something physically splittable does not make much sense.
$endgroup$
– Overmind
11 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I would say "five halves".
A few more characters.
$endgroup$
I would say "five halves".
A few more characters.
answered 13 hours ago
community wiki
marty cohen
$begingroup$
In a general context it's very strange. I mean 5 halves of apples would be fine, but generally when not having something physically splittable does not make much sense.
$endgroup$
– Overmind
11 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
In a general context it's very strange. I mean 5 halves of apples would be fine, but generally when not having something physically splittable does not make much sense.
$endgroup$
– Overmind
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
In a general context it's very strange. I mean 5 halves of apples would be fine, but generally when not having something physically splittable does not make much sense.
$endgroup$
– Overmind
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
In a general context it's very strange. I mean 5 halves of apples would be fine, but generally when not having something physically splittable does not make much sense.
$endgroup$
– Overmind
11 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I think that "five halves" sounds odd because it is unlikely in a non-mathematical context. "I have two thirds of a cake" is plausible but I don't think that "I have five halves of a cake" is, "I have two and a half cakes" is much more plausible. Even if you had five half cakes (cut three into two and then eat one piece),"five half cakes" would be more likely.
In maths, or some other technical context, I would say "five over two".
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I think that "five halves" sounds odd because it is unlikely in a non-mathematical context. "I have two thirds of a cake" is plausible but I don't think that "I have five halves of a cake" is, "I have two and a half cakes" is much more plausible. Even if you had five half cakes (cut three into two and then eat one piece),"five half cakes" would be more likely.
In maths, or some other technical context, I would say "five over two".
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
I think that "five halves" sounds odd because it is unlikely in a non-mathematical context. "I have two thirds of a cake" is plausible but I don't think that "I have five halves of a cake" is, "I have two and a half cakes" is much more plausible. Even if you had five half cakes (cut three into two and then eat one piece),"five half cakes" would be more likely.
In maths, or some other technical context, I would say "five over two".
$endgroup$
I think that "five halves" sounds odd because it is unlikely in a non-mathematical context. "I have two thirds of a cake" is plausible but I don't think that "I have five halves of a cake" is, "I have two and a half cakes" is much more plausible. Even if you had five half cakes (cut three into two and then eat one piece),"five half cakes" would be more likely.
In maths, or some other technical context, I would say "five over two".
answered 13 hours ago
community wiki
badjohn
add a comment |
add a comment |
$begingroup$
In my opinion, the way you pronounce 2/5 will affect how you are understood, and is therefore context dependent.
If you say "two and a half" then it sounds like you have this:
If you say "five halves" then it sounds like you have this:
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
In my opinion, the way you pronounce 2/5 will affect how you are understood, and is therefore context dependent.
If you say "two and a half" then it sounds like you have this:
If you say "five halves" then it sounds like you have this:
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
In my opinion, the way you pronounce 2/5 will affect how you are understood, and is therefore context dependent.
If you say "two and a half" then it sounds like you have this:
If you say "five halves" then it sounds like you have this:
$endgroup$
In my opinion, the way you pronounce 2/5 will affect how you are understood, and is therefore context dependent.
If you say "two and a half" then it sounds like you have this:
If you say "five halves" then it sounds like you have this:
answered 10 hours ago
community wiki
dotancohen
add a comment |
add a comment |
$begingroup$
In India it is pronounced as "five by two" or "five divided by two"
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
Fine in the UK as well in a technical context. However, probably not in natural, non-technical speech.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
2
$begingroup$
Can't "five by two" be understood as 5*2 instead of 5/2?
$endgroup$
– Pere
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
It's a danger. Spoken formulae can be ambiguous. The speaker's intonation may help otherwise you may have to guess or ask. "Five by two" is a common phrasing when discussing wood or image sizes. In both cases, $5 / 2$ and $ 5 times 2$ would have a useful meaning.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
In India it is pronounced as "five by two" or "five divided by two"
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
Fine in the UK as well in a technical context. However, probably not in natural, non-technical speech.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
2
$begingroup$
Can't "five by two" be understood as 5*2 instead of 5/2?
$endgroup$
– Pere
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
It's a danger. Spoken formulae can be ambiguous. The speaker's intonation may help otherwise you may have to guess or ask. "Five by two" is a common phrasing when discussing wood or image sizes. In both cases, $5 / 2$ and $ 5 times 2$ would have a useful meaning.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
In India it is pronounced as "five by two" or "five divided by two"
$endgroup$
In India it is pronounced as "five by two" or "five divided by two"
edited 8 hours ago
community wiki
2 revs
saket kumar
$begingroup$
Fine in the UK as well in a technical context. However, probably not in natural, non-technical speech.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
2
$begingroup$
Can't "five by two" be understood as 5*2 instead of 5/2?
$endgroup$
– Pere
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
It's a danger. Spoken formulae can be ambiguous. The speaker's intonation may help otherwise you may have to guess or ask. "Five by two" is a common phrasing when discussing wood or image sizes. In both cases, $5 / 2$ and $ 5 times 2$ would have a useful meaning.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
add a comment |
$begingroup$
Fine in the UK as well in a technical context. However, probably not in natural, non-technical speech.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
2
$begingroup$
Can't "five by two" be understood as 5*2 instead of 5/2?
$endgroup$
– Pere
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
It's a danger. Spoken formulae can be ambiguous. The speaker's intonation may help otherwise you may have to guess or ask. "Five by two" is a common phrasing when discussing wood or image sizes. In both cases, $5 / 2$ and $ 5 times 2$ would have a useful meaning.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
Fine in the UK as well in a technical context. However, probably not in natural, non-technical speech.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
Fine in the UK as well in a technical context. However, probably not in natural, non-technical speech.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
2
2
$begingroup$
Can't "five by two" be understood as 5*2 instead of 5/2?
$endgroup$
– Pere
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
Can't "five by two" be understood as 5*2 instead of 5/2?
$endgroup$
– Pere
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
It's a danger. Spoken formulae can be ambiguous. The speaker's intonation may help otherwise you may have to guess or ask. "Five by two" is a common phrasing when discussing wood or image sizes. In both cases, $5 / 2$ and $ 5 times 2$ would have a useful meaning.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
$begingroup$
It's a danger. Spoken formulae can be ambiguous. The speaker's intonation may help otherwise you may have to guess or ask. "Five by two" is a common phrasing when discussing wood or image sizes. In both cases, $5 / 2$ and $ 5 times 2$ would have a useful meaning.
$endgroup$
– badjohn
11 hours ago
add a comment |
Thanks for contributing an answer to Mathematics Stack Exchange!
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
Use MathJax to format equations. MathJax reference.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function ()
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fmath.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f3164174%2fhow-do-i-pronounce-frac52%23new-answer', 'question_page');
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
2
$begingroup$
"five over two"?
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
@LordSharktheUnknown That's a workaround, but for the sake of consistency, and curiosity, I'm wondering if there's a natural language equivalent like there is with the other examples.
$endgroup$
– Hashim
13 hours ago
$begingroup$
You can use the "five by/over two" format for other numbers as well.
$endgroup$
– Shubham Johri
12 hours ago
$begingroup$
@Hashim In natural language, it's "two and a half" :-)
$endgroup$
– Lord Shark the Unknown
12 hours ago
1
$begingroup$
The question is how do you pronounce 5/2, and the answer is that it is the way that you pronounce 5/2. However way it might be, it is the way that you pronounce it simply by the very subjective nature of the question. Unless it's a riddle in which case...
$endgroup$
– Asaf Karagila♦
10 hours ago