decade

[ dek-eyd; British also duh-keyd ]

/ ˈdɛk eɪd; British also dəˈkeɪd /

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noun

a period of ten years: the three decades from 1776 to 1806.

a period of ten years beginning with a year whose last digit is zero: the decade of the 1980s.

a group, set, or series of ten.

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Origin of decade

1425–75; late Middle English <Middle French <Late Latin decad- (stem of decas) <Greek dekad- (stem of dekás) group of ten, equivalent to dék(a) ten + -ad--ade²

OTHER WORDS FROM decade

half-decade, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use decade in a sentence

Eric Garcetti succeeded Villaraigosa and has received high marks in his first year and a half on the job.
The Golden State Preps for the ‘Red Wedding’ of Senate Races|David Freedlander|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Yet for a vivid decade or so, sleaze was, somewhat paradoxically, a force for literacy and empowerment.
How Pulp Fiction Saved Literature|Wendy Smith|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
My dad was a sailor, and all through my childhood he was away half of the time at sea, and to an extent I have a similar job.
Belle & Sebastian Aren’t So Shy Anymore|James Joiner|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
As a result, training squadrons—called Formal Training Units (FTU)—are being staffed with less than half the people they need.
Exclusive: U.S. Drone Fleet at ‘Breaking Point,’ Air Force Says|Dave Majumdar|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Travel Noire fellows earned about a half million travel miles in 2014.
‘We Out Here’: Inside the New Black Travel Movement|Charlise Ferguson|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It is the principal waste-product of metabolism, and constitutes about one-half of all the solids excreted—about 30 gm.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd
A small book, bound in full purple calf, lay half hidden in a nest of fine tissue paper on the dressing-table.
Hilda Lessways|Arnold Bennett
Hilda, trembling at the door, more than half expected Mr. Orgreave to say: "You mean, she's invited herself."
Hilda Lessways|Arnold Bennett
All changes are to be Rang either by walking them (as the term is) or else Whole-pulls, or Half-pulls.
Tintinnalogia, or, the Art of Ringing|Richard Duckworth and Fabian Stedman
The Vine is a universal favorite, and rarely out of view; while it often seems to cover half the ground in sight.
Glances at Europe|Horace Greeley

British Dictionary definitions for decade

decade

/ (ˈdɛkeɪd, dɪˈkeɪd) /

noun

a period of ten consecutive years

a group or series of ten

Derived forms of decade

decadal, adjective

Word Origin for decade

C15: from Old French, from Late Latin decad-, decas, from Greek dekas, from deka ten

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

decade

Origin of decade

OTHER WORDS FROM decade

Words related to decade

How to use decade in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for decade

Derived forms of decade

Word Origin for decade