# The lost art of the dollar sign **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 13, 2019, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897 "2019-05-13T13:52:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/1 "2019-05-13T13:52:21Z")
I have been seeing more and more people in casual writing (message boards, texts, Facebook, tweets) putting the dollar sign after the amount, like 100$, instead of the traditional $100. Is this just an error/eccentricity, or did I miss a memo? ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/2 "2019-05-13T14:14:36Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > I have been seeing more and more people in casual writing (message boards, texts, Facebook, tweets) putting the dollar sign after the amount, like 100$, instead of the traditional $100. > > Is this just an error/eccentricity, or did I miss a memo? In our modern use of symbols (inc numbers, letters, emoticons & leetspeak ) are used in place of words. The use of $ means and is a \*substitute \*for the word ’ dollar(s)’ and is not being used as the _symbol_ for dollars, so in that usage 100 is wrong, as that would mean 'Dollars 100', though correct if is used as a symbol. Much of this came, evolved from txting, and on ‘dumbphones’ where one was limited to characters and inputting text was awkwardly done on a phone keypad. ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/3 "2019-05-13T14:19:58Z")
By the excellent metric of the google search the proper standard still reigns. “10" gave me 480 million results, "10” just 16 million. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/4 "2019-05-13T14:54:26Z")
Something related I’m seeing is the use of $10 million dollars, so the word dollars is represented twice. I suppose it makes sense if you intend dollars squared. Otherwise, it’s redundant. ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/5 "2019-05-13T14:57:11Z")
10$ is correct in French. I doubt all who use it are French though. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/6 "2019-05-13T15:08:10Z")
> [@74westy](#): > > 10$ is correct in French. I doubt all who use it are French though. They use dollars in France? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/7 "2019-05-13T15:25:38Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Something related I’m seeing is the use of $10 million dollars, so the word dollars is represented twice. I suppose it makes sense if you intend dollars squared. Otherwise, it’s redundant. Yeah, I see that quite a bit. Another one I’ve also seen a few times recently is a the use of numbers instead of a word to represent non-specific large numbers. So, instead of “There were thousands of people in the crowd,” I’ve seen people write “There were 1000s of people in the crowd.” There were one thousands of people? What the hell does that mean? [Example 1](https://www.newsflare.com/video/39337/entertainment-arts/1000s-of-people-headed-for-the-hills-of-dartmoor-for-the-snow-sunny-sunday-flocks-of-people-headed-for-dartmoor?video_cookie_check=true&poa_cookie_check=true&jwsource=cl) [Example 2](https://www.9news.com/video/news/local/next/1000s-of-people-took-on-a-tiny-town-in-wyoming-for-the-eclipse/73-2696707) ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/8 "2019-05-13T15:55:42Z")
> [@74westy](#): > > 10$ is correct in French. I doubt all who use it are French though. > [@running\_coach](#): > > They use dollars in France? > > 😉 I noticed this when I was in Quebec a few years ago. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/9 "2019-05-13T16:42:23Z")
> [@naita](#): > > By the excellent metric of the google search the proper standard still reigns. “10" gave me 480 million results, "10” just 16 million. “Just” 16 million? That’s still a lot of hits. ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/10 "2019-05-13T16:44:50Z")
> [@74westy](#): > > 10$ is correct in French. I doubt all who use it are French though. Shouldn’t that be “10 $” ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/11 "2019-05-13T16:57:15Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > They use dollars in France? > > 😉 They’re sure happy enough to take our Foreign Aid in dollars! ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/12 "2019-05-13T16:59:03Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > In our modern use of symbols (inc numbers, letters, emoticons & leetspeak ) are used in place of words. The use of $ means and is a \*substitute \*for the word ’ dollar(s)’ and is not being used as the _symbol_ for dollars, so in that usage 100 is wrong, as that would mean 'Dollars 100', though correct if is used as a symbol. > > Much of this came, evolved from txting, and on ‘dumbphones’ where one was limited to characters and inputting text was awkwardly done on a phone keypad. “Wrong?” By analytical reasoning (granted), but if this “wrong” way has been written forever the analytical justification, as so many cases in historical linguistics, never stood a chance. Do you have any chronology of the orthography? [Not a “cite?”-as-jab, just an interest from your post.] ETA: I opened the thread because I thought it was about the handwritten sign. A while ago I realized for the last 40 years I’ve been writing a G clef instead of what I assumed was a graceful fast stroke for a dollar sign. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/13 "2019-05-13T17:00:07Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > In our modern use of symbols (inc numbers, letters, emoticons & leetspeak ) are used in place of words. The use of $ means and is a \*substitute \*for the word ’ dollar(s)’ and is not being used as the _symbol_ for dollars, so in that usage 100 is wrong, as that would mean 'Dollars 100', though correct if is used as a symbol. > > Much of this came, evolved from txting, and on ‘dumbphones’ where one was limited to characters and inputting text was awkwardly done on a phone keypad. Then there would be a space between the 10 and the dollar sign, that is, if the dollar sigh represents the word ‘dollars’. Along those same lines I have to consistently explain to my employees that .99¢ isn’t correct. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to say “decimal point or cent sign, but not both”. The replies I get are typically either ‘it’s the same thing’ or ‘what’s the difference’. Yes, I’m nit picky about it, but I think it looks uneducated. In any case, I’ve learned that if they don’t at least understand that there’s a difference, trying to explain that .99¢ is less than a penny won’t sink in. ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/14 "2019-05-13T17:01:57Z")
As long as they don’t write _$100 dollars_, I’m good with it. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/15 "2019-05-13T17:24:24Z")
Redundancies like “$100 dollars” are what I was referring to upthread. ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/16 "2019-05-13T17:30:41Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Redundancies like “$100 dollars” are what I was referring to upthread. Just adding my own [del].02 cents[/del] $.02. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/17 "2019-05-13T18:25:32Z")
> [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](#): > > They’re sure happy enough to take our Foreign Aid in dollars! What foreign aid does the US send to France? ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/18 "2019-05-13T18:27:31Z")
> [@74westy](#): > > 10$ is correct in French. I doubt all who use it are French though. It’s quite common in much of continental Europe to do it that way (with the currency symbol following the amount) - even though in Britain, the usage is pretty much the same as in America, and the £ symbol is almost always placed in front of the amount rather than after it. ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/19 "2019-05-13T18:36:50Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > “Just” 16 million? That’s still a lot of hits. Yes, but it’s only 3% of the total. ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2019, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897/20 "2019-05-13T20:20:36Z")
> [@GreysonCarlisle](#): > > Just adding my own [del].02 cents[/del] [del]$.02.[/del] 2¢ I miss that symbol being on the keyboard. Yes, I learned to touch-type in the 80’s. (ALT155 if you’re interested) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-lost-art-of-the-dollar-sign/833897.md?page=2)