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Transcribing numbers and punctuation - Amazon Transcribe
Rules for transcribing numbers in EnglishRules for transcribing numbers in German

Transcribing numbers and punctuation

Amazon Transcribe automatically adds punctuation to all the languages that it supports. It also capitalizes words appropriately for languages that use case distinction in their writing systems. For example, the spoken number "one thousand two hundred forty-two" is transcribed as "1242" in supported languages. For all other languages, numbers are transcribed into their word forms.

For a list of supported languages, see Supported languages and language-specific features.

Rules for transcribing numbers in English

For all English languages, such British English (en-GB) or US English (en-US), numbers are transcribed according to the following rules.

Rule Example
Convert cardinal numbers greater than 10 to numbers.

  • "Fifty five" > 55

  • "a hundred" > 100

  • "One thousand and thirty one" > 1031

  • "One hundred twenty-three million four hundred fifty six thousand seven hundred eight nine" > 123,456,789

Convert cardinal numbers followed by "million" or "billion" to numerals followed by a word when "million" or "billion" is not followed by a number.

  • "one hundred million" > 100 million

  • "one billion" > 1 billion

  • "two point three million" > 2.3 million

Convert ordinal numbers greater than 10 to numbers.

  • "Forty third" > 43rd

  • "twenty sixth avenue" > 26th avenue

Convert fractions to their numeric format.

  • "a quarter" > 1/4

  • "three sixteenths" > 3/16

  • "a half" > 1/2

  • "a hundredth" > 1/100
Convert numbers less than 10 to digits if there are more than one in a row.

  • "three four five" > 345

  • "My phone number is four two five five five five one two one two" > 4255551212

Decimals are indicated by "dot" or "point."

  • "three hundred and three dot five" > 303.5

  • "three point twenty three" > 3.23

  • "zero point four" > 0.4

  • "point three" > 0.3

Convert the word "percent" after a number to a percent symbol (%).

  • "twenty three percent" > 23%

  • "twenty three point four five percent" > 23.45%

Convert the words "dollar," "US dollar," "Australian dollar, "AUD," or "USD" after a number to a dollar sign ($) before the number.

  • "one dollar and fifteen cents" > $1.15

  • "twenty three USD" > $23

  • "twenty three Australian dollars" > $23

Convert the words "pounds," "British pounds," or "GDB" after a number to pound sign (£) before the number.

  • "twenty three pounds" > £23

  • "I have two thousand pounds" > I have £2,000

  • "five pounds thirty three pence" > £5.33

Convert the words "rupees," "Indian rupees," or "INR" after a number to rupee sign (₹) before the number.

  • "twenty three rupees" > ₹23

  • "fifty rupees thirty paise" > ₹50.30

Convert times to numbers.

  • "seven a m eastern standard time" > 7 a.m. eastern standard time

  • "twelve thirty p m" > 12:30 p.m.

Combine years expressed as two digits into four.

Only valid for the 20th, 21st, and 22nd centuries.

  • "nineteen sixty two" > 1962

  • "the year is twenty twelve" > the year is 2012

  • "twenty nineteen" > 2019

  • "twenty one thirty" > 2130
Convert dates to numbers.

  • "May fifth twenty twelve" > May 5th 2012

  • "May five twenty twelve" > May 5 2012

  • "five May twenty twelve" > 5 May 2012

Separate spans of numbers by the word "to."

  • "twenty three to thirty seven" > 23 to 37

Rules for transcribing numbers in German

For German (de-DE) and Swiss German (de-CH), numbers are transcribed according to the following rules.

Rule Example
Convert cardinal numbers greater than 10 to numbers.

  • "fünfundfünfzig" > 55

  • "vier tausend sechs hundert einundachtzig" > 4681

  • "eine Sache" > "eine Sache"
Convert cardinal numbers followed by "million" or "billion" to numerals followed by a word when "million" or "billion" is not followed by a number.

  • "zehn Millionen Menschen" > 10 Millionen Menschen

  • "zehn Millionen fünf hundert tausend" > 10.500.000

Convert ordinal numbers greater than 10 to numbers.

  • "dreiundzwanzigste" > 23.

  • "vierzigster" > 40.

  • "ich war Erster" > "ich war Erster"

Fractions are not converted into a numeric format.

  • "ein Drittel" > "ein Drittel"
Convert numbers less than 10 to digits if there are more than one in a row.

  • "eins zwei drei" > 123

  • "plus vier neun zwei vier eins" > +49241

Decimals are indicated by ",".

  • "zweiundzwanzig komma drei" > 22,3

Convert the word "percent" after a number to a percent symbol (%).

  • "fünf Prozent Hürde" > 5 % Hürde

  • "dreiundzwanzig komma vier Prozent" > 23,4%

Convert the words "Euro" to a euro sign.

  • "ein euro" > 1 €

  • "ein Euro vierzig" > 1,40 €

  • "ein Euro vierzig Cent" > 1,40 €

Convert times to numbers.

  • "vierzehn Uhr fünfzehn" > 14:15 Uhr

Convert dates to numbers.

  • "dritter Dezember neunzehn hundert sechundfünfzig" > 3. Dezember 1956

Display slashes and dashes.

  • "55 Schrägstrich 13" > 55/13

  • "55 Strich 13" > 55-13

Display numbered paragraphs

  • "Paragraf 17" > § 17