Writing Tip

Units of Measurement Should Agree With Their Values

Difficulty Level: Basic

Recommendation: Make sure that values and their units of measurement agree according to your intuition.

First, let’s define three things:

Parameter: A variable that you want to measure, such as voltage.

Value: The quantity of the measurement (for example, you measure the voltage, and the meter reads 120).

Unit of measurement: The basic division of the value of the measurement (for example, you measure the voltage, the meter reads 120, and the unit of measurement is volts).

So, when you measure a parameter and report the results, the unit of measurement should agree with the value. For example, if the value is 120, then the unit must plural (volts). However, if the value is 1, then the unit must be singular (volt). Here is the widespread rule:

If the value is greater than 1 or less than –1, then the unit should be plural. If the decimal value is between 1 and –1 (inclusive), then the value is singular. So, “0.54” is treated as singular: “0.54 volt.” But we know that treating it as a singular number is counterintuitive. Therefore, a more reasonable rule—and one that conforms to your intuitive grammar—is:

Treat the unit of measurement as singular when the value is one. Everything else is treated as plural (including zero).