How do you express dates in the text of a standard letter?

How do you express dates in the text of a standard letter?

• A. 1 January 2006
• B. January 1, 2006
• C. 01 January 2006
• D. January 01, 2006

Answer: (A)

Dates in formal letter text are written as the day, the month spelled out, and the year, with no comma—so 1 January 2006. This order and style keep the tone formal and avoid regional confusion between day-month-year and month-day-year conventions. Using January 1, 2006 reflects American usage with a comma after the day, which isn’t standard in many formal letter styles. Leading zeros, as in 01 January 2006, look out of place in running text, and a comma after the month, as in January 01, 2006, also breaks the traditional letter-writing format. So the best choice is the straightforward day-month-year form with the month written out.

Dates in formal letter text are written as the day, the month spelled out, and the year, with no comma—so 1 January 2006. This order and style keep the tone formal and avoid regional confusion between day-month-year and month-day-year conventions. Using January 1, 2006 reflects American usage with a comma after the day, which isn’t standard in many formal letter styles. Leading zeros, as in 01 January 2006, look out of place in running text, and a comma after the month, as in January 01, 2006, also breaks the traditional letter-writing format. So the best choice is the straightforward day-month-year form with the month written out.