fifteen

[ fif-teen ]

/ ˈfɪfˈtin /

noun

a cardinal number, ten plus five.

a symbol for this number, as 15 or XV.

a set of this many persons or things.

adjective

amounting to 15 in number.

QUIZZES

DO YOU KNOW THIS VOCABULARY FROM "THE HANDMAID'S TALE"?

"The Handmaid's Tale" was required reading for many of us in school. Everyone else has probably watched the very popular and addictive TV show. Do you remember this vocabulary from the book, and do you know what these terms mean?

Question 1 of 10

decorum

the act of or need for making up one's mind.

dignified propriety of behavior, speech, dress, etc.

a company of singers, especially an organized group employed in church service.

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Origin of fifteen

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

Words nearby fifteen

fifa, fife, fife rail, fifi hook, fifo, fifteen, fifteen men on the dead man's chest — / yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!, fifteenth, fifteenth amendment, fifth, fifth amendment

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for fifteen

Bob Cratchit, the clerk who is the father of Tiny Tim and who meekly serves Scrooge, is paid fifteen shillings a week.
How Dickens and Scrooge Saved Christmas|Clive Irving|December 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Fifteen people were killed, more than 200 were injured, and more than 300 families lost their homes.
Heed the Warnings: Why We’re on the Brink of Mass Extinction|Sean B. Carroll|November 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Fifteen years later, the same communities had returned for the annual celebration, as most had year after year.
London’s Pagan Counterculture Kings|Justin Jones|October 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Fifteen years after its last execution, Pennsylvania is finding it difficult to fire up its death machine again.
Pennsylvania’s Lethal Injection Fiasco|Christopher Moraff|September 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Fifteen percent of all 911 calls involve a person with a physical or mental disability.
Police Brutality's Hidden Victims: The Disabled|Elizabeth Heideman|September 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
As resident physician for over fifteen years, I had learned patience in these matters.
Unbegotten Child|Winston Marks
It was thirty-five feet long by fifteen broad, and twenty-two feet high.
Kate Carnegie and Those Ministers|Ian Maclaren
You have fifteen rum-shops to meet before you get back to your wife and child.
A Singular Life|Elizabeth Stuart Phelps
Had a war over here not long ago, I understand—somethin' like ten or fifteen years ago.
Graustark|George Barr McCutcheon
Yes, I am proud of my dear daughter whom I have not seen in fifteen years.
The Girls at Mount Morris|Amanda Minnie Douglas

British Dictionary definitions for fifteen (1 of 2)

fifteen

/ (ˈfɪfˈtiːn) /

noun

the cardinal number that is the sum of ten and five

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

something represented by, representing, or consisting of 15 units

a rugby union football team

determiner

amounting to fifteenfifteen jokes
(as pronoun)fifteen of us danced

Word Origin for fifteen

Old English fīftēne

British Dictionary definitions for fifteen (2 of 2)

Fifteen

/ (ˈfɪfˈtiːn) /

noun

the Fifteen British history the Jacobite rising of 1715

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

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fifteen

noun

adjective

QUIZZES

DO YOU KNOW THIS VOCABULARY FROM "THE HANDMAID'S TALE"?

Origin of fifteen

Words nearby fifteen

Example sentences from the Web for fifteen

British Dictionary definitions for fifteen (1 of 2)

noun

determiner

Word Origin for fifteen

British Dictionary definitions for fifteen (2 of 2)

noun