Red X iconGreen tick iconYellow tick icon
Microsoft outage An issue is affecting Microsoft services, including Outlook access. This is a global outage. We will update as soon as more information becomes available.

No space between the number and the measure except when referencing computer memory. Use figures even if it's below 10 – don't spell the number out. When referencing temperature, write out the unit of measure in full rather than using abbreviations. Standard abbreviations include:

area

hectare (ha)
square centimetre (cm2)
square metre (m2)
cubic centimetre (cm3)
cubic metre (m3)

  • Together the team hoped to remove predators from over 31,000ha around Dunedin.

computer memory

kilobyte (KB)
megabyte (MB)
gigabyte (GB)
terabyte (TB)

  • The new computer had just 40 GB of memory.

length/distance/speed

millimetre (mm)
centimetre (cm)
metre (m)
kilometre (km)
kilometres per hour (kph)

  • The average hand span is about 20cm.
  • The driver averaged 80kph between Dunedin and Christchurch.

power

watt (W)
kilowatt (kW)
megawatts (MW)
gigawatts (GW)
megawatt/hours (MWh)
gigawatt/hours (GWh)

  • The highest average heating potential in the house was only 0.52kW.

temperature

Celsius (C)
Fahrenheit (F)

  • The predicted rise in temperature was two or three degrees Celsius.

volume/capacity

millilitre (ml)
litre (l)

  • The 750ml drink bottles were popular souvenirs with visitors.

weight/mass

gram (g)
kilogram (kg)
pound (lb)
ounce (oz)
tonne (t)

  • The recipe called for just 80g of flour.

About the Writing Style Guide

This guide is designed to help ensure writing style – whether for internal or external audiences, written for print or online – is consistent and maintains a professional standard across the University. It is not designed for academic writing.

Feedback

Please send any feedback – including reports of errors or requests for changes – to writing.style@otago.ac.nz

Back to top