fourfold

American  

[fawr-fohld, fohr-] / ˈfɔrˌfoʊld, ˈfoʊr- /

adjective

1. comprising four parts or members.

2. four times as great or as much.

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adverb

1. in fourfold measure.

fourfold British  

/ ˈfɔːˌfəʊld /

adjective

1. equal to or having four times as many or as much

2. composed of four parts

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adverb

1. by or up to four times as many or as much

Etymology

Origin of fourfold

before 1000; Middle English foure fald, Old English feowerfealdum. See four, -fold

Explanation

If your salary increases fourfold when you get a new job, it means that your income is four times larger than it used to be. Use the adjective fourfold when something is four times as big, or when it's been multiplied by four. You're almost always going to see fourfold accompanied by the word increase. For example, making class sizes smaller and school days longer might result in a fourfold increase in test scores. Or sticking to your pledge of not buying fancy coffee drinks could lead to a fourfold increase in available pocket change each week.

Example Sentences

Revenue from overseas operations increased almost fourfold to 16.27 billion yuan, accounting for 44% of total revenue.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

It ended the quarter with $553 billion in remaining performance obligations, a more than fourfold increase from the year before.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 10, 2026

“Memory prices have skyrocketed way beyond our expectations,” Lee wrote, highlighting that Apple could see its memory-component costs increase more than fourfold.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 2, 2026

Wall Street expects MP Ebitda to rise roughly fourfold from $250 million to $1 billion between 2026 and 2030.

From Barron's • Jan. 13, 2026

He adopted the slang of the illegal trade, increasing his English vocabulary fourfold.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides