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definitions

ten

[ten]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR ten ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

adjective

amounting to ten in number.

Idioms

    take ten, Informal. to rest from what one is doing, especially for ten minutes.

Origin of ten

before 900; Middle English ten(e), tenn(e), Old English tēn(e), tīen(e); cognate with Dutch tien, German zehn, Old Norse tīu, Gothic taihun, Latin decem, Greek déka, Sanskrit daśa

ten.

tenor.
Music. tenuto.

10

the upper end of a rating scale, with 10 indicating the best or a perfect score: That new novel is wonderful—I'd rate it a 10.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for ten

decimal, decennary, decennium, decagon, decade, decapod, decennial, decuple, denary, tenfold, decemvir, decemvirate

Examples from the Web for ten

Contemporary Examples of ten

Historical Examples of ten

  • I would rather gain one prize from the Choragus, than ten from the Gymnasiarch.

    Philothea

    Lydia Maria Child

  • Rather gain one prize from the Choragus than ten from the Gymnasiarch.

    Philothea

    Lydia Maria Child

  • When he came out ten minutes later Uncle Peter was waiting for him alone.

    The Spenders

    Harry Leon Wilson

  • In ten minutes the fund had reached over six hundred dollars.

    Brave and Bold

    Horatio Alger

  • "There is not one chance in ten that he is living," he said.

    Brave and Bold

    Horatio Alger

British Dictionary definitions for ten

ten

noun

the cardinal number that is the sum of nine and one. It is the base of the decimal number system and the base of the common logarithmSee also number (def. 1)
a numeral, 10, X, etc, representing this number
something representing, represented by, or consisting of ten units, such as a playing card with ten symbols on it
Also called: ten o'clock ten hours after noon or midnight

determiner

  1. amounting to tenten tigers
  2. (as pronoun)to sell only ten
Related formsRelated adjective: decimalRelated prefixes: deca-, deci-

Word Origin for ten

Old English tēn; related to Old Saxon tehan, Old High German zehan, Gothic taihun, Latin decem, Greek deka, Sanskrit dasa
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
Word Origin and History for ten
n.

Old English ten (Mercian), tien (West Saxon), from Proto-Germanic *tekhan (cf. Old Saxon tehan, Old Norse tiu, Danish ti, Old Frisian tian, Old Dutch ten, Dutch tien, Old High German zehan, German zehn, Gothic taihun "ten").

The Germanic words are from PIE *dekm (cf. Sanskrit dasa, Avestan dasa, Armenian tasn, Greek deka, Latin decem, Old Church Slavonic deseti, Lithuanian desimt, Old Irish deich, Breton dek, Welsh deg, Albanian djetu "ten").

Tenner "ten-pound note" is slang first recorded 1861; as "ten-dollar bill," 1887 (ten-spot in this sense dates from 1848). The ten-foot pole that you wouldn't touch something with (1909) was originally a 40-foot pole; the idea is the same as the advice to use a long spoon when you dine with the devil. Ten-four "I understand, message received," is attested in popular jargon from 1962, from use in CB and police radio 10-code (in use in U.S. by 1950).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
ten in Medicine

TEN

abbr.

toxic epidermal necrolysis
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Idioms and Phrases with ten

ten

see count to ten; not touch with a ten-foot pole.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.