singular vs plural - "0.4 point" or "0.4 points"? "1.0 point" or "1.0 points"?

I still can't wrap my head around this one and have to consult references every time I want to be safe:

• Is it "0.4 point" or "0.4 points"?


• Is it "1.0 point" or "1.0 points"?

I know that I can work around that by using four tenths of a point or one point instead, but sometimes writing 0.4 point/points or 1.0 point/points is called for, especially in technical documents.

I gathered that this mostly goes by the style guide I choose to (or have to) use, and it's quite possible that there is no universally accepted convention for this. Then again, in light of potential benefits for learners here, I think it's worth asking, and I hope that we can lay out some rules of thumb, something that can be used as a general guideline, especially on writing tests and exams.

_{Addendum: another case that's worth mentioning in answers, for completeness, is "0.0 point" or "0.0 points"? In my humble opinion, it's safe to assume that most learners on our site know what to use when the quantity falls out of the range between -1.0 and 1.0.}

Answer

I started analyzing this question by trying to figure out a context where I might use this. I thought of a gymnastics meet, where someone might say:

Alex lost by X points.

If X = 1, the answer is obvious. If X = 1.0, though, the answer isn't so clear, particularly if the it's presumed the speaker would include the "point oh" part of the numerical value in the quote.

I think I'd be inclined to use the plural:

Alex lost by one point zero points.

because I'd certainly use the plural if the eventually winner had scored a tenth of a point more or less:

Alex lost by one point one points. (for 1.1)
Alex lost by zero point nine points. (for 0.9)

That's how this quiz seems to handle the quandary, and, while it's not unanimous, that's the conclusion that seems to have been drawn on this forum, too.

Interestingly enough, when I tried to find instances of “1.0 point” online, many of the hits were preceded by an article, where the singular would make more sense:

This is a 1.0 point [pen], and what I wanted was the 1.6 point.

Typically, these loans come with a 3.0 or 3.5 point fee attached, but right now you can receive a 48-60 month Buy & Hold loan with just a 1.0 point fee.