HOW DO YOU COUNT WORDS IN A WRITTEN EXAM?

I. WHAT ARE THE GENERAL POINTS?

1) It is important to clearly and precisely state the number of words in an English written exam, when the question requires it. Omitting this information will result in a penalty of one to two points!

2) Do not give an approximate number and avoid writing "about" or "around" or their symbols before the number as this could be interpreted as hesitation and will earn you a penalty of a least one point and possibly up to two, as I have already said to you. 

II. HOW DO YOU COUNT WORDS?

In actual fact, the rule for counting words is quite simple: each word separated by a space counts as a single word.

III. WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT POSSIBLE SCENARIOS?

Let's look at the different cases where word counting applies and how to count them accordingly.

1) Abbreviations and acronyms count as a single word: USA = 1 word; e.g. = 1 word; for example = 2 words.

2) Compound phrases depend on spacing: sugary drink = 2 words; New York City = 3 words.

3) Contracted words count as a single word because there is no space: I've = 1 word; she's = 1 word. But: i have = 2 words; she has = 2 words.

4) Hyphenated compound words count as a single word: a twelve-year-old child = 3 words; cutting-edge technology = 2 words.

5) Numbers written in numerals count as one word: 2027 = 1 word; a 10% reduction = 3 words. Numbers are written with adjusted spacing: one thousand = 2 words. But: 1000 = 1 word.

6) Proper nouns, written separately, count as one word: Martha = 1 word; Jean-Marc = 2 words. But Jean-Marc = 1 word.

7) Symbols and punctuation alone do not count as a word: , . ! ? = 0 words.

IV. HOW TO AVOID EXCEEDING THE WORD COUNT?

To avoid exceeding the allowed word count, two actions are recommended:

- First, indicate the number of words at the end of each sentence, preceded by a period, to facilitate overall calculation.

- Then, ensure that you do not exceed the minimum and maximum total word count to remain within the allowed limits. This means that a margin of +/- 10% of the total word count should be allowed (in accordance with current recommendations), i.e. between 180 and 220 words.