seventeenth

American  

[sev-uhn-teenth] / ˈsɛv ənˈtinθ /

adjective

1. next after the sixteenth; being the ordinal number for 17.

2. being one of 17 equal parts.

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noun

1. a seventeenth part, especially of one (1/17).

2. the seventeenth member of a series.

seventeenth British  

/ ˈsɛvənˈtiːnθ /

adjective

1. (usually prenominal)

   1. coming after the sixteenth in numbering or counting order, position, time, etc; being the ordinal number of seventeen: often written 17th

   2. ( as noun )

      the ship docks on the seventeenth

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noun

1. 1. one of 17 approximately equal parts of something

   2. ( as modifier )

      a seventeenth part

2. the fraction equal to one divided by 17 ( 1/ 17 )

Etymology

Origin of seventeenth

before 900; seventeen + -th ²; replacing Middle English seventethe, Old English seofontēotha. ( see seven, tithe)

Example Sentences

In the seventeenth season of “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” the gang is back and more gourmet than ever.

From Salon • Jul. 22, 2025

In the seventeenth century, Thomas Hobbes pegged laughter as the companion of scorn.

From Salon • Nov. 18, 2024

Ever since Antonie van Leeuwenhoek discovered the world of bacteria through a microscope in the late seventeenth century, humans have tried to look deeper into the world of the infinitesimally small.

From Science Daily • Oct. 18, 2023

Already by the seventeenth century, former prejudices against coal as dirty and distasteful had given way to the necessity of its use as a fuel source for heat.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2020

Similar clocks spread across Europe later in the seventeenth century following the independent work of Christiaan Huygens.

From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin