decade

[ dek-eyd; British also duh-keyd ]

/ ˈdɛk eɪd; British also dəˈkeɪd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR decade ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a period of ten years: the three decades from 1776 to 1806.

a period of ten years beginning with a year whose last digit is zero: the decade of the 1980s.

a group, set, or series of ten.

Nearby words

Origin of decade

1425–75; late Middle English < Middle French < Late Latin decad- (stem of decas) < Greek dekad- (stem of dekás) group of ten, equivalent to dék(a) ten + -ad- -ade²

Related formshalf-dec·ade, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for decade

Yet for a vivid decade or so, sleaze was, somewhat paradoxically, a force for literacy and empowerment.
How Pulp Fiction Saved Literature|Wendy Smith|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Who are some younger popular historians that you think will be a lot better known a decade from now?
Thank Congress, Not LBJ for Great Society|Julian Zelizer, Scott Porch|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Who knew that “we shall overcome” meant “we, the few, shall book covers every decade or so, maybe, sometimes, if we are in style.”
One Vogue Cover Doesn’t Solve Fashion’s Big Race Problem|Danielle Belton|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Beyoncé has, for close to a decade now, been a deity in entertainment: untouchable, successful, divine.
Bow Down, Bitches: How Beyoncé Turned an Elevator Brawl Into a Perfect Year|Kevin Fallon|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST

For over a decade, those trying to make better sunscreen found a roadblock at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Nazis, Sunscreen, and Sea Gull Eggs: Congress in 2014 Was Hella Productive|Ben Jacobs|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We have incidental references during the ensuing decade to the existence of sick wards in workhouses.
English Poor Law Policy|Sidney Webb
Only once in a decade a new well was wanted; and as to soap-making, it could occur only once during each moon at most.
Solomon Crow's Christmas Pockets and Other Tales|Ruth McEnery Stuart
In a decade of our time, we had pillaged Kygpton of every particle of Sthalreh.
Raiders of the Universes|Donald Wandrei
Careful watching, carried through a decade, has convinced us that in Philadelphia the species is single-brooded.
Nests and Eggs of Birds of The United States|Thomas G. Gentry
The decade of years he had existed in the water had changed his skin to a thick hide covered with a heavy growth of hair.
The Nameless Castle|Maurus Jkai

British Dictionary definitions for decade

decade

/ (ˈdɛkeɪd, dɪˈkeɪd) /

noun

a period of ten consecutive years

a group or series of ten

Derived Formsdecadal, adjective

Word Origin for decade

C15: from Old French, from Late Latin decad-, decas, from Greek dekas, from deka ten

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for decade

decade

mid-15c., "ten parts" (of anything; originally in reference to the books of Livy), from Middle French décade (14c.), from Late Latin decadem (nominative decas), from Greek dekas (genitive dekados) "group of ten," from deka "ten" (see ten). Meaning "period of ten years" is 1590s in English.