Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

numeral

American  
[noo-mer-uhl, nyoo-, noom-ruhl, nyoom-] / ˈnu mər əl, ˈnju-, ˈnum rəl, ˈnjum- /

noun

  • numerals
    plural
  1. a word, letter, symbol, or figure, etc., expressing a number; number.

    the Roman numerals.


adjective

  1. of, relating to, or consisting of numbers or numerals.

  2. expressing or noting a number or numbers.

numeral British  
/ ˈnjuːmərəl /

noun

  1. a symbol or group of symbols used to express a number: for example, 6 ( Arabic ), VI ( Roman ), 110 ( binary )

"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

adjective

  1. of, consisting of, or denoting a number

"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
numeral Scientific  
/ no̅o̅′mər-əl /
  1. A symbol or mark used to represent a number.


numeral Cultural  
  1. A word or symbol used to represent a number.


Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns


Etymology

Origin of numeral

1520–30; < Late Latin numerālis of, belonging to number, equivalent to Latin numer ( us ) number + -ālis -al 1


Explanation

A numeral is a symbol that stands for a number. When you set an online password, it's safest to use both numerals and letters. The actual symbol that represents a number is technically called a numeral, although many people use numeral and number interchangeably. You might have a watch with glow-in-the-dark numerals, or use the calculator on your smart phone to add up numerals. You can also use numeral as an adjective: "How many numeral cards are in the deck and how many face cards?" The Latin root is numerus, or "number."

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing numeral

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Their weights, or the numeral parameters that the model learns throughout the training process, can be downloaded directly and run locally.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026

The next sequence will be three numerals, followed by three letters and one numeral.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

The Saudi-backed circuit, whose name is derived from the Roman numeral for '54', had previously touted its three-round tournaments as a core distinction from traditional golf events.

From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2025

Expedition 33 is set in Lumiere, a fictional world overshadowed by a huge monolith bearing a glowing numeral on its face.

From BBC ● May 3, 2025

Or had she just embellished the numbers with her own namesake ivy trailing from every numeral?

From "The School for Whatnots" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Named after the Roman numerals of its rebellious 54-hole concept, LIV certainly managed to disrupt the status quo.

From BBC ● Apr. 16, 2026

A large digital clock appeared at the start of each episode, with bright numerals showing the current time in 24-hour format, as Bauer raced against the clock to avert disaster.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 16, 2026

"You might be feeling a familiar vexation at the sight of these two formerly innocuous numerals," Dictionary.com said, addressing parents as it announced the winner this week.

From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2025

Renaissance Italy’s creative explosion was fueled by trade with the Muslim world, where merchants learned about science, financial innovations and Hindu-Arabic numerals.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 29, 2025

My radio-alarm glowed 06:35 in numerals of Mekon green.

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

Get a word

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Join 14,000,000 vocabulary learners

Start learning new words today on VocabTrainer.
You'll remember them forever.

Start training