Writing the date in English

Writing the date

As you can see there are several different ways that British people may write the date. However, note that it always follows the same pattern: day, month, year.

• 10 Sept
• 10 September
• 10th September 2025
• the 10th of September 2025 (here there is no comma after the month)
• the 10th of September, 2025 (here there is a comma after the month)

Note that using ‘the’ and ‘of’ in the written form makes it more formal.

Saying the date

Although you do not see ‘the’ and ‘of’ in the first examples, British people will say

• The tenth of September for 10 Sept.

Writing the date

There are less acceptable forms of writing the date in American English and they follow the pattern of month, day, year.

• Sept. 6, 2025
• September 6, 2025
• September 6th, 2025

Saying the date

They are also pronounced as written:

• September six, twenty twenty-five
• September sixth, twenty twenty-five

You may also hear an American say:

• the sixth of September, but they do not write 6 Sept.

There are two common types of mistakes:

1. Knowing if you are using British or American English
   • 03/06/2025 can be June 3rd or March 6th depending on where you or the person you are communicating with is from.
2. Not writing correctly the date, specifically in British English.
   • if you are going to use the formal way of writing the date, you must use ‘the’ and ‘of’
   • We are meeting them on the 29th of April.