Jump To:

• fifteen
  fifteen

  noun

  a cardinal number, ten plus five.
• Fifteen
  Fifteen

  noun

  history the Jacobite rising of 1715

fifteen

American  

[fif-teen] / ˈfɪfˈtin /

noun

fifteens plural

1. a cardinal number, ten plus five.

2. a symbol for this number, as 15 or XV.

3. a set of this many persons or things.

---

adjective

1. amounting to 15 in number.

fifteen ¹ British  

/ ˈfɪfˈtiːn /

noun

1. the cardinal number that is the sum of ten and five

2. a numeral, 15, XV, etc, representing this number

3. something represented by, representing, or consisting of 15 units

4. a rugby union football team

---

determiner

1. 1. amounting to fifteen

      fifteen jokes

   2. ( as pronoun )

      fifteen of us danced

Fifteen ² British  

/ ˈfɪfˈtiːn /

noun

1. history the Jacobite rising of 1715

---

Usage

Spelling tips for fifteen The word fifteen is hard to spell because it doesn’t simply combine the spelling of the base number, five, with the suffix -teen, as is done in other easy-to-remember spellings like fourteen and sixteen.  How to spell fifteen: When five is combined with suffixes, the ve is turned into an f: fifteen (not fiveteen), fifty (not fivety), and fifth (not fiveth). Remember: there’s no v in fifteen.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• fifteens
  plural

Etymology

Origin of fifteen

before 900; Middle English, Old English fiftene. See five, -teen

Example Sentences

Fifteen of them were inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 9, 2026

Fifteen of them were people of color: 14 Black people and one Hispanic person.

From Slate • Jun. 8, 2026

Fifteen minutes after we broke the story, an email dropped into our inbox.

From BBC • May 22, 2026

Fifteen countries were competing in the first semi, with Bettan among the 10 who progressed to Saturday's grand final, following combined votes from the public and professional juries in participating countries.

From Barron's • May 13, 2026

Taking care of Alyah in the evenings fell mostly to Alex, the quiet defender for the Under Fifteen Fugees, who would hurry home after soccer practice in time for Generose to leave for work.

From "Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference" by Warren St. John