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Old August 28, 2019, 01:07 PM
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Height

When talking about a person's height, how do conversions work?
If I want to convert 1.70 m into feet, the result is 5.57743 ft. Yet, height is usually expressed in feet and inches, and 0.577 are not inches, so I have to convert again 0.57743 ft. to inches; then I get 1.70 m = 5 ft 7 in. Is there a more straight way to calculate this? Or should I just go and find a conversion table?

Also, in Spanish I would read "un metro setenta (centímetros)"; how do I read aloud "1.70 m" in English --"One point seventy meter"?

Is it right to read "5 ft 7 in" as "five foot seven"?

Thanks in advance.
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Old August 28, 2019, 01:58 PM
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5 ft 7 in is as close as you need to get during the conversion process.

1.70 m is read 'one point seven meters'.

If you're giving your height, and you're '5 ft 7 in' tall, you say, "I'm five foot seven." The inches are understood.

This website does the conversion into feet and inches (round the inches to the nearest half inch).

Last edited by Rusty; August 28, 2019 at 07:39 PM. Reason: corrected numbers - added website
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Old August 28, 2019, 06:41 PM
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Thank you, Rusty!

A student asked me recently about this and I found out I'd never studied it myself. Apart from that, I've only found very confusing websites to learn how to read these numbers.
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Old August 29, 2019, 05:45 PM
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For some reason I've always favored a different method of converting adult human heights: I always convert inches to centimeters (multiply by 2.54 cm/in or divide by .3937 in/cm) or centimeters to inches (divide by 2.54 cm/in or multiply by .3937 in/cm).

There's a trick that helps: the majority of adult humans have heights between 5 feet = 60 inches and 6 feet = 72 inches, so for me converting heights in this range between feet/inches and total inches is a matter of memory rather than of calculation: 5 foot 7 = 67 inches, and 67 inches = 5 foot (67 - 60) inches -> 5 foot 7. Converting between centimeters and meters even simpler, of course.

Last edited by wrholt; August 29, 2019 at 05:48 PM.
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Old August 29, 2019, 07:33 PM
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Thank you, Wrholt!

Thinking in inches does make it easier.
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Old September 08, 2019, 04:53 AM
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If I was using metric in UK (now almost universal amongst under thirties) I would say "One metre seventy". Whether this will still apply in a few years times when (or if!) we exit the EU remains to be seen.

For the record (as if you cared!) it is my belief that it will not last for ever (these things seldom do!) but while it does exist we should remain in it.
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Last edited by Sancho Panther; September 08, 2019 at 05:13 AM.
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Old September 08, 2019, 06:00 PM
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Thank you, Sancho.
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Old September 19, 2019, 04:42 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rusty View Post
If you're giving your height, and you're '5 ft 7 in' tall, you say, "I'm five foot seven." The inches are understood.

In casual conversation this can even be shortened to "I'm five seven." The feet and inches are both understood.


EDIT: An interesting thing to note is that when describing a person's height, you say "five foot" not "five feet." I'm sure there is an interesting explanation as to why.
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Last edited by Tomisimo; September 19, 2019 at 04:50 PM. Reason: Adding a note.
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Old September 20, 2019, 05:26 PM
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Thank you, David. I had noticed that, but I've never asked why.
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