four

American  

[fawr, fohr] / fɔr, foʊr /

noun

1. a cardinal number, three plus one.

2. a symbol of this number, 4 or IV or IIII.

3. a set of this many persons or things.

4. a playing card, die face, or half of a domino face with four pips.

5. Jazz. fours, alternate four-bar passages, as played in sequence by different soloists.

   with guitar and piano trading fours.

6. Automotive.

   1. an automobile powered by a four-cylinder engine.

   2. the engine itself.

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adjective

1. amounting to four in number.

idioms

1. on all fours. all fours.

four British  

/ fɔː /

noun

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

2. a numeral, 4, IV, etc, representing this number

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

4. Also called: four o'clock.  four hours after noon or midnight

5. cricket

   1. a shot that crosses the boundary after hitting the ground

   2. the four runs scored for such a shot

6. rowing

   1. a racing shell propelled by four oarsmen pulling one oar each, with or without a cox

   2. the crew of such a shell

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determiner

1. 1. amounting to four

      four thousand eggs

      four times

   2. ( as pronoun )

      four are ready

four More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing four

• between you and me and (the four walls)
• on all fours

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Etymology

Origin of four

before 1000; Middle English four, fower, Old English fēower; cognate with Old High German fior ( German vier ), Gothic fidwor; akin to Latin quattuor, Greek tésseres ( Attic téttares )

Example Sentences

Guernsey Post, which runs the postal service in Alderney, has already begun moving to electric vehicles with four of its six vehicles in Alderney Post already electric.

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

May brought in four of Michigan’s five starters from other schools.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

TOI-5205 b is about the size of Jupiter but orbits a much smaller star, one that is roughly four times Jupiter's size and only about 40 percent as massive as the Sun.

From Science Daily • Apr. 6, 2026

The other four stocks were up an average of roughly 220% over the past 12 months.

From Barron's • Apr. 6, 2026

‘He’s just a cub, Renn. He’s not even four moons old.’

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver