Forum Topic

I wonder why..............Oh or zero?

when giving out numbers, most people tend to say Oh (!) rather than zero?

Carol Burge ● 6723d12 Comments

"Re the number plates, I thought either the zero or the O had a dot in the middle to distinguish it"No, they don't.  The letter O and zero are the same character in the new number plate font, as are 1 and I.  In theory you can tell which it is from the format, but normally it doesn't matter.However, Transport for London said a few years ago that people were being penalised for non-payment of the congestion charge because they paid over the phone and said "Oh" when they should have said zero.  This is ludicrous since the characters are identical on the plates.  I complained to TfL (or their agents Capita) but got nowhere.

Richard Jennings ● 6718d

Re the number plates, I thought either the zero or the O had a dot in the middle to distinguish it.........or it may just be the ones I have noticed it happens to be where the screw holding it to the car is placed!!!And yes..............James Bond..............does not quite sound the same........double zero 7!!!!

Carol Burge ● 6721d

Because they contain O's and 0's, which are indistinguishable. Perhaps we should introduce the system of zero's having a diagonal line through them.

Edward Noel ● 6722d

007

Neill Young ● 6722d

'Nought' I was taught.Just very briefly, a reference to Big Brother, and the mispronunciations on that programme...I am referring to the ordinary folks not the three biddies.  Furore - has become 'fooroar' instead of 'fooroaray' (the phonetics are strictly my own creation).  There was another word repeated wrongly a couple of times but it now slips my mind.Another one was Davina asking Shilpa how to pronounce 'magnanimous'!    What do they teach today in English lessons?Small wonder the three witches were total numskulls when those who should know better 'massacre ' our beautiful language. The bimbos hadn't a clue as to the meaning of 'elocution' (LOL);  'influential'; and 'imperative'...but they were well able to pronounce the four-letter word beginning with f....Sorry about that change of subject and rant!

Ann S. Allridge ● 6723d

Why?

Carol Burge ● 6723d

It gets even more confusing with vehicle registration numbers!

Edward Noel ● 6723d

Totally agree about misunderstandings, and the fact that zero/nought denotes it as a number and not a letter.  I have to give out pass codes and even tho I say zero some people will put in Oh...........mind you that may say something about the people on the end of the phone!Even on the TV when telephone numbers are given presenters/newsreaders often the presenters to not say zero.Oh well!!!!

Carol Burge ● 6723d

Definitely found that 'zero' works better over the phone.

Caroline MacMillan ● 6723d

What about decimals?  For 0.3, do you say "nought point 3" or "zero point 3?"  The latter sounds too American to me but I think is being taught these days.

Ben Coleman ● 6723d

Zero is also clearer on the phone.

Franco Hayes ● 6723d

I always say "zero" because I have had problems with people over the phone (particularly at oversees call centres) misunderstanding "O" for "eight".Besides which, "O" is a letter, and "zero" is a number.

Edward Noel ● 6723d