Typing time designation

I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00 p.m.

More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to mark
any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?

JoAnn
Fri Jun 01 09:51:19 CDT 2007

That depends on the style manual you are using. I use small caps for AM and
PM, no periods after the letters, space after the numbers. But that's just
my preferred method.

--
JoAnn Paules
MVP Microsoft [Publisher]

~~~~~
How to ask a question
http://support.microsoft.com/KB/555375


"BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00
> p.m.
>
> More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to mark
> any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
>

Suzanne
Fri Jun 01 10:59:01 CDT 2007

Word will mark the former as incorrect if you clear the check box for
"Ignore words with numbers" on the Spelling & Grammar tab of Tools |
Options. The conventional treatment of a.m. and p.m. is Small Caps with
periods (you have to use lowercase in Word in order to apply the Small Caps
format), and, like you, I am not crazy about seeing the abbreviations
without periods and especially butted up against the numbers. In timetables
advertising text or the like (that is, anything other than a formal book) I
don't mind AM and PM (in timetables you often see just A and P or a and p,
too, and that's practical to save space).

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00
p.m.
>
> More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to mark
> any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
>
>

Terry
Fri Jun 01 11:17:55 CDT 2007

Well to be fastidiously correct, your usage is correct and everything else
'should' be wrong. However, languages evolve and conventions change so now
either AM or am is widely acceptable. But they should be separate from the
numbers, as Suzanne has mentioned. Definitely avoid 12 am or 12 pm as so
many people don't know the origin of am/pm that they cannot work out which
is noon and which is midnight. So whenever practicable, write noon or
midnight.

--
Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP

"BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00
> p.m.
>
> More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to mark
> any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
>

Suzanne
Fri Jun 01 12:15:40 CDT 2007

Or you can thoroughly confuse people by writing 12 M. for noon. <g>

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"Terry Farrell" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
news:50F2B0D1-657A-45CC-85A4-0E48AC05EF83@microsoft.com...
> Well to be fastidiously correct, your usage is correct and everything else
> 'should' be wrong. However, languages evolve and conventions change so now
> either AM or am is widely acceptable. But they should be separate from the
> numbers, as Suzanne has mentioned. Definitely avoid 12 am or 12 pm as so
> many people don't know the origin of am/pm that they cannot work out which
> is noon and which is midnight. So whenever practicable, write noon or
> midnight.
>
> --
> Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP
>
> "BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
> news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> > I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00
> > p.m.
> >
> > More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to
mark
> > any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
> >
>

Mary
Fri Jun 01 12:49:40 CDT 2007

In the US News & World Report style book, it says don't use 12 a.m. or 12 p.m.,
use midnight or noon. The proper way to write clock time is a.m. and p.m.

--
Mary Sauer MSFT MVP
http://office.microsoft.com/
http://msauer.mvps.org/
news://msnews.microsoft.com

"Suzanne S. Barnhill" <sbarnhill@mvps.org> wrote in message
news:%23z$2fDHpHHA.1852@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> Or you can thoroughly confuse people by writing 12 M. for noon. <g>
>
> --
> Suzanne S. Barnhill
> Microsoft MVP (Word)
> Words into Type
> Fairhope, Alabama USA
> Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
> Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
> all may benefit.
>
> "Terry Farrell" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
> news:50F2B0D1-657A-45CC-85A4-0E48AC05EF83@microsoft.com...
>> Well to be fastidiously correct, your usage is correct and everything else
>> 'should' be wrong. However, languages evolve and conventions change so now
>> either AM or am is widely acceptable. But they should be separate from the
>> numbers, as Suzanne has mentioned. Definitely avoid 12 am or 12 pm as so
>> many people don't know the origin of am/pm that they cannot work out which
>> is noon and which is midnight. So whenever practicable, write noon or
>> midnight.
>>
>> --
>> Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP
>>
>> "BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
>> news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
>> > I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00
>> > p.m.
>> >
>> > More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to
> mark
>> > any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
>> >
>>
>

BK
Fri Jun 01 13:06:13 CDT 2007

Thanks for the information.



"JoAnn Paules" <jl_paules@hotNOSPAMmail.com> wrote in message
news:uMcVSxFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> That depends on the style manual you are using. I use small caps for AM
> and PM, no periods after the letters, space after the numbers. But that's
> just my preferred method.
>
> --
> JoAnn Paules
> MVP Microsoft [Publisher]
>
> ~~~~~
> How to ask a question
> http://support.microsoft.com/KB/555375
>
>
> "BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
> news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
>> I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00
>> p.m.
>>
>> More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to
>> mark any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
>>
>
>

BK
Fri Jun 01 13:05:54 CDT 2007

Thanks for the information.



"Mary Sauer" <mary-sauer@mycolumbus.rr.com> wrote in message
news:O0LSOVHpHHA.5092@TK2MSFTNGP04.phx.gbl...
> In the US News & World Report style book, it says don't use 12 a.m. or 12
> p.m., use midnight or noon. The proper way to write clock time is a.m. and
> p.m.
>
> --
> Mary Sauer MSFT MVP
> http://office.microsoft.com/
> http://msauer.mvps.org/
> news://msnews.microsoft.com
>
> "Suzanne S. Barnhill" <sbarnhill@mvps.org> wrote in message
> news:%23z$2fDHpHHA.1852@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
>> Or you can thoroughly confuse people by writing 12 M. for noon. <g>
>>
>> --
>> Suzanne S. Barnhill
>> Microsoft MVP (Word)
>> Words into Type
>> Fairhope, Alabama USA
>> Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
>> Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup
>> so
>> all may benefit.
>>
>> "Terry Farrell" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
>> news:50F2B0D1-657A-45CC-85A4-0E48AC05EF83@microsoft.com...
>>> Well to be fastidiously correct, your usage is correct and everything
>>> else
>>> 'should' be wrong. However, languages evolve and conventions change so
>>> now
>>> either AM or am is widely acceptable. But they should be separate from
>>> the
>>> numbers, as Suzanne has mentioned. Definitely avoid 12 am or 12 pm as so
>>> many people don't know the origin of am/pm that they cannot work out
>>> which
>>> is noon and which is midnight. So whenever practicable, write noon or
>>> midnight.
>>>
>>> --
>>> Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP
>>>
>>> "BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
>>> news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
>>> > I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format:
>>> > 7:00
>>> > p.m.
>>> >
>>> > More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to
>> mark
>>> > any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
>>> >
>>>
>>
>
>

BK
Fri Jun 01 13:06:29 CDT 2007

Thanks for the information.




"Suzanne S. Barnhill" <sbarnhill@mvps.org> wrote in message
news:OV5$LYGpHHA.3644@TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...
> Word will mark the former as incorrect if you clear the check box for
> "Ignore words with numbers" on the Spelling & Grammar tab of Tools |
> Options. The conventional treatment of a.m. and p.m. is Small Caps with
> periods (you have to use lowercase in Word in order to apply the Small
> Caps
> format), and, like you, I am not crazy about seeing the abbreviations
> without periods and especially butted up against the numbers. In
> timetables
> advertising text or the like (that is, anything other than a formal book)
> I
> don't mind AM and PM (in timetables you often see just A and P or a and p,
> too, and that's practical to save space).
>
> --
> Suzanne S. Barnhill
> Microsoft MVP (Word)
> Words into Type
> Fairhope, Alabama USA
> Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
> Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup
> so
> all may benefit.
>
> "BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
> news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
>> I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00
> p.m.
>>
>> More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to
>> mark
>> any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
>>
>>
>

BK
Fri Jun 01 13:06:48 CDT 2007

Thanks for the information.



"Terry Farrell" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
news:50F2B0D1-657A-45CC-85A4-0E48AC05EF83@microsoft.com...
> Well to be fastidiously correct, your usage is correct and everything else
> 'should' be wrong. However, languages evolve and conventions change so now
> either AM or am is widely acceptable. But they should be separate from the
> numbers, as Suzanne has mentioned. Definitely avoid 12 am or 12 pm as so
> many people don't know the origin of am/pm that they cannot work out which
> is noon and which is midnight. So whenever practicable, write noon or
> midnight.
>
> --
> Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP
>
> "BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
> news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
>> I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00
>> p.m.
>>
>> More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to
>> mark any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
>>
>

BK
Fri Jun 01 13:07:17 CDT 2007

Oh no!! This is getting worse instead of better. <grin>



"Suzanne S. Barnhill" <sbarnhill@mvps.org> wrote in message
news:%23z$2fDHpHHA.1852@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> Or you can thoroughly confuse people by writing 12 M. for noon. <g>
>
> --
> Suzanne S. Barnhill
> Microsoft MVP (Word)
> Words into Type
> Fairhope, Alabama USA
> Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
> Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup
> so
> all may benefit.
>
> "Terry Farrell" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
> news:50F2B0D1-657A-45CC-85A4-0E48AC05EF83@microsoft.com...
>> Well to be fastidiously correct, your usage is correct and everything
>> else
>> 'should' be wrong. However, languages evolve and conventions change so
>> now
>> either AM or am is widely acceptable. But they should be separate from
>> the
>> numbers, as Suzanne has mentioned. Definitely avoid 12 am or 12 pm as so
>> many people don't know the origin of am/pm that they cannot work out
>> which
>> is noon and which is midnight. So whenever practicable, write noon or
>> midnight.
>>
>> --
>> Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP
>>
>> "BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
>> news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
>> > I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00
>> > p.m.
>> >
>> > More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to
> mark
>> > any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
>> >
>>
>

Brian
Sat Jun 02 12:04:10 CDT 2007

That's because am/a.m. is "ante (before) matin" and pm/p.m. is "post
(after) matin." 12 is "matin" so it's neither a nor p, but either noon
or midnight.

B/

Mary Sauer wrote:
> In the US News & World Report style book, it says don't use 12 a.m. or 12 p.m.,
> use midnight or noon. The proper way to write clock time is a.m. and p.m.
>

CyberTaz
Sat Jun 02 12:41:45 CDT 2007

Actually we can have even more fun with this than you think :)

According to a number of sources the upper case (A.M.) is actually reserved
for either of the two phrases: "anno mundi" or "Artium Magister". Time of
day should be designated in lower case. Most sources I've seen articulate
that the periods be used.

Also, not to be "picky", but as I understand it, the "m" actually stands for
"meridiem" [du matin] and specifically refers to 12 Noon, or midday.

Ain't we got nuthin' better to do?;-)

Regards |:>)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac



On 6/2/07 1:04 PM, in article 4661A30A.8090600@sfo.invalid, "Brian Mailman"
<bmailman@sfo.invalid> wrote:

> That's because am/a.m. is "ante (before) matin" and pm/p.m. is "post
> (after) matin." 12 is "matin" so it's neither a nor p, but either noon
> or midnight.
>
> B/
>
> Mary Sauer wrote:
>> In the US News & World Report style book, it says don't use 12 a.m. or 12
>> p.m.,
>> use midnight or noon. The proper way to write clock time is a.m. and p.m.
>>

Suzanne
Sat Jun 02 13:09:51 CDT 2007

Actually, "ante meridiem" and "post meridiem." "Meridiem" is the accusative
case (because it's the object of the preposition "ante" or "post") of
"meridies," which literally means "midday" or "noon." M. alone thus stands
for noon (and never midnight).


--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"Brian Mailman" <bmailman@sfo.invalid> wrote in message
news:4661A30A.8090600@sfo.invalid...
> That's because am/a.m. is "ante (before) matin" and pm/p.m. is "post
> (after) matin." 12 is "matin" so it's neither a nor p, but either noon
> or midnight.
>
> B/
>
> Mary Sauer wrote:
> > In the US News & World Report style book, it says don't use 12 a.m. or
12 p.m.,
> > use midnight or noon. The proper way to write clock time is a.m. and
p.m.
> >

Howard
Sat Jun 02 16:32:37 CDT 2007

Not really... it's just getting good!

--
howard

"Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?" - Juvenal

"BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
news:%236W2ueHpHHA.3736@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...
> Oh no!! This is getting worse instead of better. <grin>
>
>
>
> "Suzanne S. Barnhill" <sbarnhill@mvps.org> wrote in message
> news:%23z$2fDHpHHA.1852@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
>> Or you can thoroughly confuse people by writing 12 M. for noon. <g>
>>
>> --
>> Suzanne S. Barnhill
>> Microsoft MVP (Word)
>> Words into Type
>> Fairhope, Alabama USA
>> Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
>> Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup
>> so
>> all may benefit.
>>
>> "Terry Farrell" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
>> news:50F2B0D1-657A-45CC-85A4-0E48AC05EF83@microsoft.com...
>>> Well to be fastidiously correct, your usage is correct and everything
>>> else
>>> 'should' be wrong. However, languages evolve and conventions change so
>>> now
>>> either AM or am is widely acceptable. But they should be separate from
>>> the
>>> numbers, as Suzanne has mentioned. Definitely avoid 12 am or 12 pm as so
>>> many people don't know the origin of am/pm that they cannot work out
>>> which
>>> is noon and which is midnight. So whenever practicable, write noon or
>>> midnight.
>>>
>>> --
>>> Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP
>>>
>>> "BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
>>> news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
>>> > I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format:
>>> > 7:00
>>> > p.m.
>>> >
>>> > More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to
>> mark
>>> > any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
>>> >
>>>
>>
>
>

Terry
Sat Jun 02 17:30:07 CDT 2007

Mary knows what it means: she was confirming what I said about avoiding
using 12 am or 12 pm because most people can't work out which is midnight
and which is noon because they don't know the origin of am or pm.

Terry

"Brian Mailman" <bmailman@sfo.invalid> wrote in message
news:4661A30A.8090600@sfo.invalid...
> That's because am/a.m. is "ante (before) matin" and pm/p.m. is "post
> (after) matin." 12 is "matin" so it's neither a nor p, but either noon or
> midnight.
>
> B/
>
> Mary Sauer wrote:
>> In the US News & World Report style book, it says don't use 12 a.m. or 12
>> p.m., use midnight or noon. The proper way to write clock time is a.m.
>> and p.m.
>>

Brian
Sat Jun 02 21:55:27 CDT 2007

The Baba Rum Raisin (me in my more profound moments) says: "ya live and
ya learn.... and then ya learn some more."

B/

Suzanne S. Barnhill wrote:
> Actually, "ante meridiem" and "post meridiem." "Meridiem" is the accusative
> case (because it's the object of the preposition "ante" or "post") of
> "meridies," which literally means "midday" or "noon." M. alone thus stands
> for noon (and never midnight).
>
>

RaeDrysdale
Sun Jun 03 09:48:00 CDT 2007

Just to change the focus, we use a period to divide the hours and minutes not
a colon. ;-)
--
Rae Drysdale


"BK" wrote:

> Oh no!! This is getting worse instead of better. <grin>
>
>
>
> "Suzanne S. Barnhill" <sbarnhill@mvps.org> wrote in message
> news:%23z$2fDHpHHA.1852@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> > Or you can thoroughly confuse people by writing 12 M. for noon. <g>
> >
> > --
> > Suzanne S. Barnhill
> > Microsoft MVP (Word)
> > Words into Type
> > Fairhope, Alabama USA
> > Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
> > Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup
> > so
> > all may benefit.
> >
> > "Terry Farrell" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
> > news:50F2B0D1-657A-45CC-85A4-0E48AC05EF83@microsoft.com...
> >> Well to be fastidiously correct, your usage is correct and everything
> >> else
> >> 'should' be wrong. However, languages evolve and conventions change so
> >> now
> >> either AM or am is widely acceptable. But they should be separate from
> >> the
> >> numbers, as Suzanne has mentioned. Definitely avoid 12 am or 12 pm as so
> >> many people don't know the origin of am/pm that they cannot work out
> >> which
> >> is noon and which is midnight. So whenever practicable, write noon or
> >> midnight.
> >>
> >> --
> >> Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP
> >>
> >> "BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
> >> news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> >> > I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00
> >> > p.m.
> >> >
> >> > More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to
> > mark
> >> > any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
> >> >
> >>
> >
>
>
>

BK
Sun Jun 03 21:37:06 CDT 2007

Should I apologize to everyone for starting such a long conversation
thread?!?!? <grin>





"BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
news:ekiTdeHpHHA.4212@TK2MSFTNGP04.phx.gbl...
> Thanks for the information.
>
>
>
> "Terry Farrell" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
> news:50F2B0D1-657A-45CC-85A4-0E48AC05EF83@microsoft.com...
>> Well to be fastidiously correct, your usage is correct and everything
>> else 'should' be wrong. However, languages evolve and conventions change
>> so now either AM or am is widely acceptable. But they should be separate
>> from the numbers, as Suzanne has mentioned. Definitely avoid 12 am or 12
>> pm as so many people don't know the origin of am/pm that they cannot work
>> out which is noon and which is midnight. So whenever practicable, write
>> noon or midnight.
>>
>> --
>> Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP
>>
>> "BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
>> news:OJl7wpFpHHA.3948@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
>>> I'm probably old-fashioned, but I always type time in this format: 7:00
>>> p.m.
>>>
>>> More and more often I see 7:00pm or 7:00 PM and Word doesn't seem to
>>> mark any of these as grammatically incorrect. Is there a "right" way?
>>>
>>
>
>

Terry
Mon Jun 04 00:52:28 CDT 2007

You are standing accused of wasting the Community's time. :)

Terry

"BK" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
news:utIERElpHHA.1852@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> Should I apologize to everyone for starting such a long conversation
> thread?!?!? <grin>
>