eight

[ eyt ]

/ eɪt /

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Definition of eight

noun

a cardinal number, seven plus one.

a symbol for this number, as 8 or VIII.

a set of this many persons or things, as the crew of an eight-oared racing shell.

a playing card the face of which bears eight pips.

Informal.

an automobile powered by an eight-cylinder engine.
an eight-cylinder engine.

adjective

amounting to eight in number.

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Origin of eight

before 1000; Middle English eighte,Old English (e)ahta; cognate with Dutch acht,Old Saxon, Old High German ahto (German acht), Old Norse ātta,Gothic ahtau,Latin octō,Greek oktṓ,Old Irish ocht,Welsh wyth,Breton eiz,Tocharian B okt,Lithuanian aštuonì,Albanian tetë, Armenian uth,Persian hasht,Sanskrit aṣṭáu; apparently an old dual in form, but not clear of what

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH eight

ate, eight

Words nearby eight

eigenfunction, eigentone, eigenvalue, eigenvector, Eiger, eight, eightball, eighteen, eighteenmo, eighteenth, Eighteenth Amendment

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use eight in a sentence

That man was Xavier Cortada, a gay man who wrote of his frustration that he and his partner of eight years were unable to marry.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I could complain about how, two out of eight episodes in, Agent Carter is in no hurry to introduce its real villain.
Marvel’s ‘Agent Carter’ Stomps on the Patriarchy|Melissa Leon|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The Air Force has about seven pilots for every eight drone pilot slots, in other words.
Exclusive: U.S. Drone Fleet at ‘Breaking Point,’ Air Force Says|Dave Majumdar|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
One of the kids had a ball in his hand, and Cuomo took it and tossed it back and forth to an eight year old.
Mario Cuomo, Always Moving Us Toward the Light|Mike Barnicle|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST

If you answered nine or more, you may have won a SONY Betamax and an eight-track operating system.
The World’s Toughest Political Quiz|Jeff Greenfield|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When she arrived she made a regular entry into the city in a coach all gold and glass, drawn by eight superb plumed horses.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
After an eight weeks' siege, a breach having been made, the city surrendered, and a month later the fort followed the example.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
But what might have been very practicable for eight hundred and sixty men, was impossible for three hundred and sixty.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
At six o'clock I felt once more the welcome motion of a Railroad car, and at eight was in Venice.
Glances at Europe|Horace Greeley
The card table profitably occupies some six to eight hours daily of these old fellows' attention.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills

British Dictionary definitions for eight

eight

/ (eɪt) /

noun

the cardinal number that is the sum of one and seven and the product of two and fourSee also number (def. 1)

a numeral, 8, VIII, etc, representing this number

music the numeral 8 used as the lower figure in a time signature to indicate that the beat is measured in quavers

the amount or quantity that is one greater than seven

something representing, represented by, or consisting of eight units, such as a playing card with eight symbols on it

rowing

a racing shell propelled by eight oarsmen
the crew of such a shell

Also called: eight o'clock eight hours after noon or midnight

have one over the eight slang to be drunk

See figure of eight

determiner

amounting to eight
(as pronoun)I could only find eight

Other words from eight

Related prefixes: octa-, octo-

Word Origin for eight

Old English eahta; related to Old High German ahto, Old Norse ātta, Old Irish ocht, Latin octō, Greek okto, Sanskrit astau

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with eight

eight

see behind the eight ball.

eight

Definition of eight

Origin of eight

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH eight

Words nearby eight

Words related to eight

How to use eight in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for eight

Other words from eight

Word Origin for eight

Other Idioms and Phrases with eight