It's confusing to read big numbers.
What should I say to read '$43,500'?
What should I say to read '$43,500'?
What do I read '$43,500'?
It's, "How do I read," not "What do I read."
forty-three thousand, five hundred.
forty-three thousand, five hundred.
I would probably say, "How do I *say* $43,500?" rather than *read*. But if that sounds a little awkward, that's because such a sentence would only work on paper, of course!
You are probably confused by the (apparently largely American) tendency to say things like "forty-three hundred" interchangeably with "four thousand three hundred". Never fear; this construction is limited to 4-digit numbers. It doesn't apply to 5-digit numbers like 43,500, or anything larger. Nor is it mandatory -- we can use either style, so you can never go wrong saying it the "long" way. Nor will we get fussed if you add an "and" in there, as in "forty-three thousand and three hundred dollars". All of these will work just fine.
You are probably confused by the (apparently largely American) tendency to say things like "forty-three hundred" interchangeably with "four thousand three hundred". Never fear; this construction is limited to 4-digit numbers. It doesn't apply to 5-digit numbers like 43,500, or anything larger. Nor is it mandatory -- we can use either style, so you can never go wrong saying it the "long" way. Nor will we get fussed if you add an "and" in there, as in "forty-three thousand and three hundred dollars". All of these will work just fine.
Although, I agree in theory with Uriel, it would be mathematically incorrect to say "forty-three thousand and three hundred dollars" when the number written is "$43,500"
I remember a thread where there was talk of how BE speaker pepper their numbers with the word "and" whereas Americans don't. I grew up in the US and that number would have been read "forty-three thousand three hundred." In US usage the word "and" usually signifies a decimal or addition depending on context.
There is a Wiki on it somewhere
There is a Wiki on it somewhere
No, "what do I read '$43,500'?" is definitely wrong. "Two thousand three hundred" isn't exactly nonstandard, but it more difficult to process. "Twenty hundred" is definitely nonstandard, but not exactly wrong.