On a cheque the number eight is written as 捌 to prevent tampering.
Tips
history
捌 is not a normal word. It survives almost only as the formal accountancy spelling of the number 八 (eight), used on cheques, contracts and ledgers so the figure cannot be altered. The bare-hand-splitting sense in old texts is now obsolete.
usage
Paired with the other formal numerals 壹贰叁 on financial documents; never used for counting in speech.
别 supplies the sound and reinforces the meaning, since 别 itself means to separate or part. The borrowed reading for the accountancy numeral has shifted to 八.
