nine

American  

[nahyn] / naɪn /

noun

1. a cardinal number, eight plus one.

2. a symbol for this number, as 9 or IX.

3. a set of this many persons or things.

4. a baseball team.

5. a playing card with nine pips.

6. the Nine, the Muses.

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adjective

1. amounting to nine in number.

idioms

1. dressed to the nines, looking one's best; dressed smartly, splendidly, etc..

   All the girls were dressed to the nines for the party.

nine British  

/ naɪn /

noun

1. the cardinal number that is the sum of one and eight See also number

2. a numeral, 9, IX, etc, representing this number

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

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

   the play starts at nine

5. informal elaborately dressed

6. (in Britain) the telephone number of the emergency services

7. normal office hours

   he works nine to five

   a nine-to-five job

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determiner

1. 1. amounting to nine

      nine days

   2. ( as pronoun )

      nine of the ten are ready

nine More Idioms  

1. see dressed to kill (to the nines); on cloud nine; possession is nine points of the law; whole nine yards.

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Etymology

Origin of nine

before 900; Middle English; Old English nigan, nigon, cognate with Dutch negen, akin to German neun, Old Norse nīu, Gothic niun, Latin novem, Greek ennéa, Sanskrit náva

Example Sentences

Over the past two campaigns, eight of nine English teams have been knocked out by one of the Deloitte Money League's big four.

From BBC • May 28, 2026

Keep in mind that Caesars has reported losses per share that were much wider than expected for five straight quarters and for nine of the past 10 quarters, according to FactSet data.

From MarketWatch • May 28, 2026

The Southern Section will hold nine baseball championship games this weekend, led by the Division 1 final at 7 p.m.

From Los Angeles Times • May 28, 2026

It typically takes place every two to seven years and lasts around nine to 12 months.

From Barron's • May 28, 2026

By the age of nine, she’d learned to glide to a gentle stop.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell