# Asking about glasses number / strength or eyesight / eye prescription



## A New Member

How do you ask about somebody's eyeglasses number?
What lens number do you wear?


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## Copyright

I would probably use: _What prescription are your glasses?_

And if that's not understood, perhaps use an example: _"What prescription are your glasses? I'm +1.75 for my right eye and +1.25 for my left."_

I suppose you could even say, _"What prescription number are your glasses?"_

Remember that this is very general, for myopia and hyperopia, I believe. Once you get into astigmatism, there may be a different system. I'm sure someone can expand on that.


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## ain'ttranslationfun?

If you're asking about how strong their prescription is, we'd say "What's your eyesight?" [it's understood that a) this refers to their uncorrected visual acuity and b) this is over 20, with 20/20 being perfect - you can see from 20 feet away what someone with normal eyesight can at that distance; the person would answer, for example, "90/20"or 200/20"]. (The unit used by the opthalmologist who writes the prescription and the optician who orders the lenses from the manufacturer is 'diopters.)


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## DonnyB

I'm sure I'm not the only person who has no idea what his glasses prescription is, not in terms of the actual figures -  which are a series of pluses and minuses.  A "lens number" isn't like a shoe size.


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## Copyright

ain'ttranslationfun? said:


> If you're asking about how strong their prescription is, we'd say "What's your eyesight?" [it's understood that a) this refers to their uncorrected visual acuity and b) this is over 20, with 20/20 being perfect - you can see from 20 feet away what someone with normal eyesight can at that distance; the person would answer, for example, "90/20"or 200/20"].


I believe you're always 20 (the number on the left) and the person with perfect vision is on the right. 

So 20/100 vision would mean that I have to be at 20 feet to see what someone with perfect vision can see at 100 feet.


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## Copyright

DonnyB said:


> I'm sure I'm not the only person who has no idea what his glasses prescription is, not in terms of the actual figures -  which are a series of pluses and minuses.  A "lens number" isn't like a shoe size.


Actually, it is, I think. You can ask what your correction is, or it may be written on your receipt, or you can hand your glasses to your friendly ophthalmologist and he or she will check it for you. 

If both eyes are nearly the same, you can go out and buy reading glasses, for example, off the shelf with your correction. They're sold with the numbers on them (which you peel off before using).


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## ain'ttranslationfun?

Copy (#5): I believe you're right (and not for the first (or nearly 50,000th! Wow...) time).


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## jokaec

How strong are your glasses?
What's the power of your glasses?
What's the strength of your  glasses?

2 diopters.


Are all those questions correct? Which one is most common? Thank you!


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## SwissPete

_How strong / how powerful_ is what I would use.
There may be some technical terms I am not aware of.


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## PaulQ

SwissPete said:


> There may be some technical terms


Yes - *dioptre*: 





> A *dioptre* (uk), or *diopter* (us), is a unit of measurement of the optical power of a lens or curved mirror,


Dioptre - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

However, I don't think I have heard the term used outside physics, opticians, and the lens/mirror-making industries


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## Dale Texas

SwissPete said:


> _How strong / how powerful_ is what I would use.
> There may be some technical terms I am not aware of.



I would use them too.


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## shop-englishx

This discussion has been added to a previous thread.  Cagey, moderator. 

Hello, native friends.

Can I ask one of my friends who wears glasses this:
_What number are you wearing?
What lens-number do you have?
What lens-number do your glasses have?_

Thank you!


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## Copyright

I would ask, "What diopter do you use?" or "What diopter are they?" Or "What's your prescription?" (Keeping in mind that there may be different diopters for the two lenses.)

I wouldn't use yours and it would take me a few moments to understand what you meant.


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## shop-englishx

Thanks, Copy.
As you're using 'diopter' (which is the unit of lens power) so can I say:

_Which lens power are you wearing?
Which lens power do your glasses have?_


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## Copyright

I wouldn't – I would use terms I believe are most often used in this context.


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## SwissPete

Threads merged. Thank you.  
 Cagey, moderator.


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## ain'ttranslationfun?

"What's your prescription?" (Copyright) -


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## Andygc

There's a fair bit of confusion in this thread. What you ask would depend on what you wanted to know. I'd think, as others have suggested, that the most likely questions in a social context would be "What's your prescription?" or "How strong are your glasses?" (Not that I've ever had such a conversation.)

Visual acuity - Snellen chart, based on an ability to discriminate a separation of 1 minute of arc.
US 20/20  Europe 6/6 - normal vision
US 20/40  Europe 6/12 - near-sighted/short-sighted

Left number - the distance at which the test is conducted (feet/metres).
Right number - the distance at which a person with normal vision could stand and still be able to read the relevant line.

Prescription - example distance correction required for a person who is short-sighted with astigmatism - in this case an uncorrected distant acuity of between 6/30 and 6/60. (Read in columns - the alignment will probably go adrift.)

*Dist       *Sph      Cyl      Axis
Right   -5.00    -1.50     88
Left    -4.00    -1.75     84

*Inter    *Add
Right    +1.50
Left     +1.50

*Near    *Add
Right   +2.50
Left    +2.50

Dist - correction for distant vision
Sph - the power of the spherical element of the lens, corrects for distance.
Cyl - the power of the cylindrical component of the lens, corrects for astigmatism.
Axis - the angle between the axis of the cylindrical component of the lens and the vertical axis of the spectacles
Inter - correction for, for example, computer use, adjusting the spherical distance correction.
Near - correction for reading, adjusting the spherical distance correction.


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## shop-englishx

Hello, Andyc.

What do you think whether the sentences (in #12 and #14) make sense for a BE speaker?


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## Andygc

shop-englishx said:


> What do you think whether the sentences (in #12 and #14) make sense for a BE speaker?


 I thought I had already answered that. No, they don't make any sense at all.


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## shop-englishx

Andygc said:


> No, they don't make any sense at all.



So what would you recommend asking about one's eye-sight-number?

(I think BE speakers have different views from those of AE speakers.)


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## Andygc

I have already answered that question in the first paragraph of #18


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## rjirtu

Another discussion added to the previous thread.  Cagey, moderator. 

I'm wondering how to ask somebody wearing glasses about their vision, asking for the glasses dioptries/eye defect. Should it be "How is your vision defect?" "How bad is your vision defect?" (expecting answer such as "-1,5 on both eyes"). What would be the question to get the answer "I'm short-sighted/long sighted"?


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## Copperknickers

Normally, you would ask someone 'are you short sighted or long sighted'? And then after that you can ask them 'How far can you see without glasses?' or something similar. You shouldn't need to know numbers unless you are an optician, but if you really want to know you can ask what their level of sight reduction is. You should not use the word 'defect', this is becoming an outdated word and is offensive in most contexts where it refers to humans.


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## Egmont

If you really need to know about this, you can ask "how strong is your prescription?" The context will probably make it clear that you mean their eyeglass prescription, not any other prescription they have. If you want to be even more specific, "what is your eyeglass correction?" will do.

Or, and this is a different question, "How good is your vision without glasses?" will get a response such as "20/80." That means that they see, from 20' (6m) away, what a person with "normal" vision sees from 80' (24m) away. Vision requirements are often given this way in the U.S. For example, a person who wants to drive in Massachusetts must have 20/40 vision or better in at least one eye. 

There are also cultural issues associated with asking this sort of question. Not using the word "defect" is one of them. A nearsighted person probably does not consider himself or herself "defective."


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## rjirtu

oh, then it seems that everyday measuring "sight reduction" (as you recommend) depends on the country. In Poland the regular way of describing it is using glasses dioptrics as -1,25, +3,5. I wouldn't have the slightest idea of one's vision hearing the "20/80" answer...


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## Rover_KE

Why do you want to know the details of a person's eyesight, rjirtu?

In my experience, nobody ever asks such questions. We neither know our own prescription nor care about anybody else's.

The nearest we get to asking conversationally about a friend's vision is 'Are your glasses just for reading or distance?' 'Did it take you long to get used to those varifocals?' 'Have you thought about contact lenses?'

My optician, Seymour Clearly, confirms that his prescriptions are incomprehensible to the layman.

I haven't a clue what all those numbers mean, and I don't need to know.


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## Loob

You might find these related threads interesting, rjirtu:
Talking about glasses
< --- >  




< --- >  The thread has been added to the second suggested thread. The first is also interesting.  Cagey, moderator


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## waltern

rjirtu said:


> In Poland the regular way of describing it is using glasses dioptrics as -1,25, +3,5.



Such diopter values are standard for eyeglass prescriptions in the US (and I would guess worldwide) as well, and I could roughly tell you what mine are without looking it up (since they're printed on my contact lens boxes, I've used them to order glasses online, etc.) - though I agree most people probably wouldn't know off the top of their heads, and one wouldn't normally ask about such specifics but would rather ask something like "Are you nearsighted or farsighted?", etc.


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## Parla

I agree with Rover. No one has ever asked me the ophthalmological details of the glasses I wear for reading, nor would I inquire about anyone else's vision measurements.


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## Copyright

Now that reading glasses are sold ready-made, it is helpful to know your prescription so you don't have to try on half a dozen pairs to get the ones you want (especially since some of them unfold like origami creations and are a nuisance to return to their case). You just look for +1.5, for example, and buy the style you want – makes for a cheap back-up or emergency pair of reading glasses.


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## rjirtu

Rover_KE said:


> Why do you want to know the details of a person's eyesight, rjirtu?



It sounds a bit weird for me. I wear both glasses and contact lenses and I have talked many times with my friends about them, especially when they saw me putting my contact lenses on or just without any certain reason. I don't consider it too intimate question as wearing glasses is not ashaming for me. And I know my lenses strenght just by going to a doctor for regular check-ups and buying contact lenses 

As I know how to express all these infos in Polish, I didn't have any idea how to say a word about it in English. That's the reason of this question.


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## rjirtu

Loob said:


> You might find these related threads interesting, rjirtu:
> Talking about glasses
> < --- >
> 
> 
> 
> 
> < --- >  The thread has been added to the second suggested thread. The first is also interesting.  Cagey, moderator






elroy said:


> -So what's your prescription?
> -Well, it's negative 2 in one eye, and negative 3 in the other.
> -Oh, that's nothing! Mine is negative 5.25 in one eye and negative 6 in the other.
> -Oh, wow, that's really bad. I bet you can't do anything without your glasses on.
> -That's right - I'm helpless without them!



Cheers!
That's what I was looking for! But will bear in mind that English people consider this topic confusing


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## Myridon

I know what my prescription is and I have a vague idea of what a "diopter" is scientifically, but I don't know what it is like for someone whose numbers are half or twice mine.  It's meaningless information to me as I have no experience of it.  I might as well ask "how many molecules are in your hand?"  I wouldn't know if the answer was right or wrong or what it means  to have that many molecules in your hand.


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## Packard

DonnyB said:


> I'm sure I'm not the only person who has no idea what his glasses prescription is, not in terms of the actual figures -  which are a series of pluses and minuses.  A "lens number" isn't like a shoe size.



Going back probably 25 years ago you had to have a prescription for corrective glasses.  The law changed (In New York) and you no longer had to have that prescription and they now sell "reading glasses" over the counter.  Most are listed as +1, +1½, +2, +2½, and +3.  I've never seen a stronger pair than +3 and most stores don't carry anything higher than +2½.

So basically if you only need readers then it is a simple matter to remember your "scrip" (which is what I hear more often nowadays)--there are only 4 or 5 standard options.

I know my full prescription because I order my glasses online.  (Cost savings of $200.00 to $300.00 per pair.)


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## JulianStuart

My prescription for (gradient) glasses looks as complex as the one in #18 above - possibly with even more info on astigmatism. Not a series of numbers I try to remember


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## Packard

Andygc said:


> There's a fair bit of confusion in this thread. What you ask would depend on what you wanted to know. I'd think, as others have suggested, that the most likely questions in a social context would be "What's your prescription?" or "How strong are your glasses?" (Not that I've ever had such a conversation.)
> 
> Visual acuity - Snellen chart, based on an ability to discriminate a separation of 1 minute of arc.
> US 20/20  Europe 6/6 - normal vision
> US 20/40  Europe 6/12 - near-sighted/short-sighted
> 
> Left number - the distance at which the test is conducted (feet/metres).
> Right number - the distance at which a person with normal vision could stand and still be able to read the relevant line.
> 
> Prescription - example distance correction required for a person who is short-sighted with astigmatism - in this case an uncorrected distant acuity of between 6/30 and 6/60. (Read in columns - the alignment will probably go adrift.)
> 
> *Dist       *Sph      Cyl      Axis
> Right   -5.00    -1.50     88
> Left    -4.00    -1.75     84
> 
> *Inter    *Add
> Right    +1.50
> Left     +1.50
> 
> *Near    *Add
> Right   +2.50
> Left    +2.50
> 
> Dist - correction for distant vision
> Sph - the power of the spherical element of the lens, corrects for distance.
> Cyl - the power of the cylindrical component of the lens, corrects for astigmatism.
> Axis - the angle between the axis of the cylindrical component of the lens and the vertical axis of the spectacles
> Inter - correction for, for example, computer use, adjusting the spherical distance correction.
> Near - correction for reading, adjusting the spherical distance correction.



You forgot to add "ocular distance" which I take it is the distance between the eyes.  I order my glasses online and with my astigmatism my scrip looks very much like the above (with different numbers).


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## 82riceballs

When you're saying your prescription, do you say 'positive' or 'negative'?

For example, if someone has a prescription of -4.75 in the left eye and +4.5 in the right eye, would these be read as

1.  "negative 4.75" and "positive 4.5"
or 
2. "minus 4.75" and "plus 4.5"
or both?


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## Uncle Jack

I use minus and plus, but I am merely shortsighted, not an optician


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## Copyright

Yes, plus/minus for me.


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## Andygc

Yes, minus and plus - I'm not an optician, but have had quite a lot of involvement in visual acuity and its correction. 
Somebody who needs more than 4 dioptres of negative correction in one eye and positive in the other would appear to have some significant problems!


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## Silver

[This question and the following posts have been added to a previous thread on the same topic.  DonnyB - moderator]

Hi.

My cousin wears a pair of glasses now. I asked her "How good is your eyesight?" and "What's your eye prescription?" I wonder if both question are idiomatic? These two ways of asking the question was said by a teacher of English teaches online.

I think the first is okay, but why not "What's your eyesight"? In order not to make a list, please enlighten.


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## owlman5

Silver said:


> I asked her "How good is your eyesight?"


This sounds like a normal question, Silver.



Silver said:


> "What's your eye prescription?"


  I have never heard this question in my life. I don't even know how to answer it sensibly.


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## Silver

owlman5 said:


> I have never heard this question in my life. I don't even know how to answer it sensibly.



The teacher said that usually when you get a pair of glasses, you'll need a prescription from the doctor (perhaps to prove that you're near-sighted), then have your glasses fixed. You know, I haven't learned from non-native speakers for many years but I didn't know the right way to ask this question, in order to be safe, I asked here.

Thanks a lot, owlman5.


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## Packard

_Do you wear glasses?_


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## lingobingo

Glasses are custom-made to each person’s prescription (they contain prescription lenses, unless they’re just sunglasses), but it’s not normally called an “eye prescription”. I think most people would just refer to theirs as “the [latest] prescription for my glasses”.


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## Uncle Jack

"What is your eyesight like?" would be okay (but not "What is your eyesight?"). This is a pretty neutral way of asking. "How good is your eyesight?" sounds to me like you want the other person to have good eyesight so you can show them something, or ask them to see if they can see something that you are struggling to see. The similar "How bad is your eyesight", which in many situations is fine to ask someone who wears glasses or whom you know not to have perfect eyesight, might be taken unkindly by someone whose eyesight is only slightly impaired.

"What is your prescription?" is rather too technical a question, and most people wouldn't know it anyway. Prescriptions also become complicated with anything other than basic short- or long-sightedness.


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## jazyk

I think you'll like these discussions: prescription sight dipoter site:wordreference.com - Google Search


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## Packard

lingobingo said:


> Glasses are custom-made to each person’s prescription (they contain prescription lenses, unless they’re just sunglasses), but it’s not normally called an “eye prescription”. I think most people would just refer to theirs as “the [latest] prescription for my glasses”.


This is how I would expect a conversation to go.

_Do you wear glasses?
I do.
For driving or for reading?
Just for reading._


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## Silver

Packard said:


> _Do you wear glasses?_



Thanks a lot, Packard and everyone. She does because she wore a pair of glasses last time I met her but before that she didn't. So, it's obvious that she wears glasses but I don't know the "degree" or "diopter", technically.


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## Packard

Silver said:


> Thanks a lot, Packard and everyone. She does because she wore a pair of glasses last time I met her but before that she didn't. So, it's obvious that she wears glasses but I don't know the "degree" or "diopter", technically.


_
I see you are wearing glasses.  Are they new?
No.  My doctor wants me to stop using my contacts for a week or so.

I see you are wearing glasses.  Are they new?
Yes.  I went to the eye doctor the other day._

Ordinarily I would ask no further questions.  The eye glass wearer will volunteer more information if she wishes.  Any further questioning would seem intrusive (USA) in my opinion unless you were very close to her, in which case the eyeglasses would not have come as a surprise.


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## boozer

The default question in my language is 'What dioptre are your glasses?' Yes, it is technical, but I believe it works in English. How strong are those glasses? <-- I could ask this as well.


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## lingobingo

I’ve been wearing glasses since I was 11 and this is the first time I’ve ever come across the word dioptre!


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## boozer

lingobingo said:


> I’ve been wearing glasses since I was 11 and this is the first time I’ve ever come across the word dioptre!


 I'll be d....d...


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## Packard

lingobingo said:


> I’ve been wearing glasses since I was 11 and this is the first time I’ve ever come across the word dioptre!


I am familiar with the term because of my photography background.  We would not normally ask what is your diopter, we might ask, "Do you know your prescription?"


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## Myridon

If we were using "diopter", none of those would really be correct in a technical sense.  The other problem is that many people have a different prescription for each eye.   If you really want to know how bad my right eye is, I'd need to tell you about the correction in the lens in my eyeglasses and the correction in my intraocular lens (I had the lens in my eye replaced due to a cataract).


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## kentix

lingobingo said:


> and this is the first time I’ve ever come across the word dioptre!


Me, too. But I'm totally familiar with diopter. 

I don't think there's anything weird about asking what someone's prescription is in a conversation about eyeglasses with another person who wears eyeglasses. It's a normal question. I wouldn't pick someone at random and ask that, however. But that's true for many things.

I know my main diopter numbers (even though I don't use that word) which is usually called SPH (sphere) on the prescription. I just say the numbers. I've been dealing with them for decades. The astigmatism numbers (cylinder and axis) I don't have memorized but I know one of them is around 100. It's not a very complicated system, really. My right eye is -5.00 and my left is -7.50. - (minus) = myopia = near-sightedness (Yeah, pretty bad without being terrible.)

How to Read Your Prescription


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## natkretep

Like lingobingo I have never used _dioptre_ before. And like her, I've been wearing glasses since I was 11 (and I'm in my late 50s now). (Even my system puts a squiggly red line under it! Same for _diopter_.) I would ask, 'How strong are your glasses/spectacles?' The hearer can have the option to go into the details or not. 'Mildly short sighted', 'not very strong', 'around -5.5 on the right and -6.0 on the left'.

'Prescription' sounds rather nosey.


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