Roman Numerals are just letters but they can be confusing. But here are tips to easily remember Roman Numerals using mnemonics and other tips.
I can easily remember the first 3 Roman Numerals: I, V, and X. They are used more often. But remembering the next 4 letters is more challenging. It takes time for me to be sure of what number each of the letter represent.
Here are some ways to easily remember Roman Numerals.
Using Mnemonics
These mnemonics are used to memorize and remember Roman Numerals. These first letters in these sentences corresponds to the order of the Roman Numerals.
The next two mnemonics shows the Roman Numerals in descending order from 1000 (M) to 1 (I):
MeDiCaL XaVIer
My Dear Cat Loves Xtra Vitamins Intensely
Both of these mnemonics give you the letter M, D, C, L, X, V, I (1000, 500, 100, 50, 10, 5, 1) in descending order.
If you prefer a mnemonic for ascending order, you can use this one, instead:
I Value Xylophones Like Cows Do Milk
Notice how this mnemonic spell out the letters I, V, X, L, C, D, M (1, 5, 10, 50, 100, 500, 1000) in ascending order.
The next mnemonic is good for remembering the order of L, C, D and M for the values 50, 100, 500 and 1000, respectively. These are the more confusing ones.
Lucy Can’t Drink Milk
If you still need to remember I, V, X (1, 5, 10) in order, you can use this mnemonic:
I Vant XRays
The LCD
I personally use these to remember the values for L, C, D and M.
I use the acronym LCD to remember L (50), C (100) and D (500). The LCD is a common acronym nowadays. Thanks to the LCD screen or LCD Television. Before there was LCD, I think of Least Common Denominator since it was common math terminology.
Another very useful trick is to recall that C stands for century, which is 100, and that M stands for Millennium, which is 1,000.
More about Roman Numerals
- Visit our Roman Numerals Page for lessons, tips and free worksheets to download.
- Use this online converter to change Roman Numerals to Decimal Numbers.
