---
title: "21 in words"
description: "21 in words is \"twenty-one\". Ordinal form, the British spelling, how to write it on a cheque, and where each word comes from."
url: https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/21/
site: "At One Place"
---

# 21 in words

**21 in words: Twenty-one**

21 is written "twenty-one". That spelling is the same in British and American English.

## Where each word comes from

*20 + 1 = 21*

| Digit | Place | Worth | Spoken as |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2 | tens | 20 | twenty |
| 1 | ones | 1 | one |

## The same number, other ways

- **In words (US):** Twenty-one
- **In words (UK):** Twenty-one
- **Ordinal:** 21st — twenty-first
- **Roman numeral:** XXI
- **Digits:** 21

## Writing it on a cheque

On a cheque the amount line reads "Twenty-one and 00/100" — or "Twenty-one only" in Indian and much of Commonwealth practice. The fraction or the word "only" exists to stop anyone appending digits after what you wrote. Draw a line through any space left over for the same reason.

## Common questions

### How do you write 21 in words?

Twenty-one. In British English, "twenty-one".

### What is the ordinal of 21?

Twenty-first, written 21st.

## Related pages

- [21 in Roman numerals](https://atoneplace.net/roman-numerals/21/)
- [18 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/18/)
- [19 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/19/)
- [20 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/20/)
- [22 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/22/)
- [0 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/0/)
- [8 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/8/)
- [11 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/11/)
- [12 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/12/)
- [13 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/13/)
- [15 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/15/)
- [40 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/40/)
- [42 in words](https://atoneplace.net/number-to-words/42/)

## Sources

- Calculated on this page — At One Place (/about/)