It’s common to hear English learners complaining about a lack of consistency in the language, especially when it comes to the UK and the US forms of the language.
So why the lack of consistency? Well, the English language has been in use for centuries now. And in this time, it has evolved as various nations have adopted it. One common discrepancy is evidenced in the American English version where certain words are spelled differently from the UK’s original version of the language.
One of these words is forty, or is it fourty? A good number of people are not sure whether the number 40 is ‘fourty’ or ‘forty’. Well, for starters, only one is correct –the word forty.
That said, let’s look at the origin and use of the two words to avoid further confusion.
Origin of ‘forty’
‘Forty’ had varied spellings until the 16th century. In old English, as indicated in The Oxford English Dictionary, this word evolved as follows: féowertig, féowurtig and feuortig. This continues to the middle English as indicated by OED notes. The following spellings featured in middle English: fowwerrtig, feortig, feowerti (and fowerti), feouwerti, feuwerti (and fuwerti), fuerti, feowrti, fourte, fourti, vourti, vourty, forti, fourty, faurty, fourth and fourthy.
Modern English gave us the following options: fourtie, fourtye, fortie, forty, and vorty. Fast forward to today and forty is the only one officially accepted as the spelling of the number 40.
40 is an important number used everywhere: from accounting, engineering and mathematics to entertainment and religions, just to mention a few. That said, the accepted spelling continues to change. And who knows, it might soon change to another spelling in a few years.
Which is American English ‘forty’ or ‘fourty’
The word ‘fourty’ is just a surprising misspelling of ‘forty’. The correct spelling used by all American authors is ‘forty’. Besides, all the journals, books, magazines and related publications apply the spelling of ‘forty’.
In British English, ‘forty’ vs ‘fourty’
In British English the ‘forty’ vs ‘fourty’ question also gives the same answer. The correct spelling of forty remains ‘forty’. As in American English, today the word ‘forty’ has been featured by authors in all British publications. Like in magazines, journals and books. However, older English versions used ‘fourty’.
When did ‘fourty’ become ‘forty’?
People learning English interact with these common questions;
” What do I I use, ‘forty’ or ‘ fourty’?”
“Which has the correct spelling? Forty vs forty?”
We use the derivation method to form words. It is among the four known ways of creating new words in the English language. It is the process whereby suffixes and prefixes are added to form a new word. However, it becomes tricky when a letter(s) changes before adding a prefix or suffix. And this appears in the case of forty and forty.
The word forty had varied spellings early back up to 16th century. It dates from old English to modern time. The Oxford dictionary contains different spellings as they existed from the 7th century to about 1100. So ‘fourty’ is the logical Middle age English language. All rights reserved to use ‘forty’ as it is the accepted word.
Now, what’s the correct spelling? At a point, you may have encountered the number 40 spelled as ‘forty’ or ‘fourty’. Now that they were used to mean the same thing (40), does it mean that both forms are accepted officially today? This situation must be confusing. Know it: The proper spelling of the number 40 is ‘forty’ in all English variants, both UK and US versions.
Most people misspell it as ‘fourty’ due to the assumption that ‘four‘ has ‘u‘, and so only ‘ty‘ is added as is the case in eighty, sixty, seventy and ninety.
How do you spell 40 in Canada?
Spelling 40 has brought confusion in Canada. Take the case of Susan who asks her colleagues whether it’s ‘forty’ or ‘fourty’. Back in school in Toronto she was taught about ‘fourty’. However, she realizes that some of her workmates spell it as forty . So which is incorrect?
In Canada, people generally use some words as in the British’s ‘our‘ form. They use words like neighbour, labour and harbour. What’s more, many years ago, before standardization occurred, ‘u’ existed in the word ‘forty’. However, 40 is spelled as ‘forty’ everywhere. Though ‘fourty’ has the same pronunciation as ‘forty’, it is not the correct spelling.
While Canadians generally use British form of English, number 40 remains ‘forty’. No change. The only reason some people might spell it as fourty is due to the following presupposition: four, fourteen then ‘fourty‘ and three, thirteen, thirty. Remember, English and logic are two different things.
What’s the difference between ‘forty’ and ‘fourty’
40 is the number before 41 and follows 39. Despite the fact that it relates to the number four (4), does not mean its correct spelling is ‘fourty’. Then, ‘What’s the difference between ‘forty’ and ‘fourty’?”
‘Fourty’ is the outdated version pronouncing 40. Today, the recommended pronunciation of 40 is ‘forty’.
The modern word of English ‘forty’, truly reflects the historical journey of pronunciation. In both print and online, most people misspell ‘forty’ as ‘fourty’. It’s a common mistake; hence, if you find it difficult deciding which of the two use, you’re not alone in this.
By 1821 the modern spelling of 40 featured in various expressions e.g. “forty-niners” and “forty winks”. Forty-niners referred to people who migrated to California in search of gold. While forty winks just meant ‘a short nap’. Don’t be hard on others or you who includes extraneous ‘u’ in ‘forty’. It’s a common mistake made around the globe, I’m sure you’ve have met it somewhere.
That said, the difference between these two words is the time; one older spelling, and the other is modern English. In today’s grammar, forty is the officially accepted spelling of the number 40. Hence, ‘fourty’ is a wrong spelling today.
How do you write 40 on a check?
Most people misspell the word forty when writing a check that requires you to use the number 40 in words. This seems confusing because the base number of 40 is four. ‘U’ in four is not dropped for derivatives like fourteen or fourth. Now should we use ‘forty’ or ‘fourty’?
As seen earlier ‘fourty’ is a wrong spelling of the number, and writing 40 in words in a check is not an exception. ‘Fourty’ is not correct in both American and British English. The forty/fourty confusion is now clear, and no doubt. Therefore, use forty for all your checks. For instance, write; forty dollars only.
Forty sentence examples
- This palace was built four thousand and forty one years ago.
- He was among the forty one in her team.
- She killed at the age of forty-four.
- Four hundred and forty horses got lost.
- No one found the remains after forty days.
- Can we travel forty eight hours without stopping?
- The MWC army besieged the city for forty days.
Fourty sentence examples
- ‘Fourty’ is not accepted in Modern English.
- Persons always write ‘fourty’ instead of forty.
Which should I use when writing, ‘forty’ or ‘fourty’
You’ve probably seen many writings where people mistake of ‘fourty’ for ‘forty. Remember, while the pronunciation is similar, the spelling is different. That said, use ‘forty’ when doing any writing of the number 40, and its derivatives. Never use fourty because it is the outdated version of ‘forty’, and it’s longer accepted in grammar.
What’s more, always remove ‘u‘ from ‘four‘ before adding the suffix ‘ty‘ to form the correct spelling of forty.
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