Why is 9 a.m. written as 9am?

English as a Second Language
1

Shortly before 9am local time, police “received multiple emergency phone calls” from witnesses who saw the two aircraft collide about 50km north of Denver, the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

Why is there 9 a.m. written as 9am?

Thanks.

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2

It has become common to omit the periods after initials.

A.M. → AM
U.S.A → USA
J.F.K. → JFK

I rarely see the periods used for initials. I don’t know the reason for this trend. Personally I think it looks better without the periods. It’s also a lot easier to write.

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3

Thanks.

So, is it 9am or 9 am?

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4

I think I see it more often without the space.

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5

Write am when it does not confuse the reader with ‘am’ which is the verb used with I.

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6

I did a little research on this. Apparently different style guides for different newspapers and book publishers don’t agree. In other words, even among professional writers and editors, it’s a matter of style and opinion.

The same is true for upper case vs lower case. There seems to be agreement that for titles and headings it should be upper case. There is less agreement when used anywhere else.

Sign on store window.
Open from 8:00AM - 9:00PM

Within text, lower case seems to be more common.
I saw her yesterday around 2:00pm.

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7

Which is better? ‘I saw her around 2:00pm yesterday.’ or “I saw her yesterday around 2:00pm.”

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8

“Yesterday around 2:00pm” seems more natural to me.
“2:00pm yesterday” places more emphasis on the time.

Conversationally ‘pm’ would be left off entirely.
I saw her yesterday around two.

If there is any confusion whether it’s am or pm, people would normally say:
two in the afternoon
or
two in the morning

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9

Sign on store window.
Open from 8:00AM - 9:00PM

Should it be
Open from 8:00AM to 9:00PM instead? Thanks.

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10

Could someone please help? Thanks.

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11

I think both are fine.

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