eleven

American  

[ih-lev-uhn] / ɪˈlɛv ən /

noun

elevens plural

1. a cardinal number, ten plus one.

2. a symbol for this number, such as 11 or XI.

3. a set or group of 11 people or things, such as a football or soccer team.

   The new forward plays a pivotal role in the Manchester eleven.

4. Also called eleven lines.  Informal. none elevens or 11s. a pair of vertical wrinkles that commonly develop between the eyebrows; frown lines.

   My dermatologist said he could fix my elevens with no injections or plastic surgery.

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adjective

1. amounting to one more than ten in number.

eleven British  

/ ɪˈlɛvən /

noun

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

2. a numeral 11, XI, etc, representing this number

3. something representing, represented by, or consisting of 11 units

4. (functioning as singular or plural) a team of 11 players in football, cricket, hockey, etc

5. Also called: eleven o'clock.  eleven hours after noon or midnight

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determiner

1. 1. amounting to eleven

      eleven chances

   2. ( as pronoun )

      have another eleven today

Usage

Spelling tips for 11 The word eleven (11) is hard to spell because the word sounds as if it should include the letter i [ ih-lev-uhn ]. How to spell eleven: The easiest way to remember how to spell eleven is that every other letter is an e. There are no other vowels. You simply take all of the consonant sounds (l, v, and n), and add an e between all of them: eLeVeN.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• elevens
  plural

Etymology

Origin of eleven

First recorded before 900; Middle English elleven(e), Old English ellefne, endleofan; cognate with Old High German einlif ( German elf ), Old Norse ellifu, Gothic ainlib-, literally, one remaining (after counting ten). See one, leave ¹

Example Sentences

This was about eleven years ago and, frustratingly, I can no longer remember the restaurant’s name.

From Salon • Jun. 16, 2026

Across eleven districts, employment showed little to no change, while just one experienced modest growth.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 3, 2026

It is a risk to find herself at the bottom of the stairs at her age with eleven flights to climb with bags of shopping, Ana Rosa says.

From BBC • May 22, 2026

By day eleven, the insect looked identical to the typical green form.

From Science Daily • May 2, 2026

Finally, just when I thought I couldn’t lie there for one more second, the clock ticked to eleven p.m., and I snuck out of bed and out the door like a shadow.

From "Glitch" by Laura Martin