How do I tell the difference in compounding periods. Like do I pay attention to wording if I know to use months when it say 5 years or does it depend...

How do I tell the difference in compounding periods. Like do I pay attention to wording if I know to use months when it say 5 years or does it depend on the formula if i use 5 years or 60 months? sorry I dont have a problem available to show I just was reading notes and I was confused