tenth

American  

[tenth] / tɛnθ /

adjective

1. next after ninth; being the ordinal number for ten.

2. being one of ten equal parts.

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noun

tenths plural

1. one of ten equal parts, especially of one (1/10).

2. the member of a series preceding the eleventh and following the ninth.

3. Music.

   1. a tone distant from another tone by an interval of an octave and a third.

   2. the interval between such tones.

   3. the harmonic combination of such tones.

4. Also called tenth's place.  (in decimal notation) the position of the first digit to the right of the decimal point.

adverb

1. in the tenth place; tenthly.

tenth British  

/ tɛnθ /

adjective

1. (usually prenominal)

   1. coming after the ninth in numbering or counting order, position, time, etc; being the ordinal number of ten: often written 10th

   2. ( as noun )

      see you on the tenth

      tenth in line

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noun

1. 1. one of 10 approximately equal parts of something

   2. ( as modifier )

      a tenth part

2. one of 10 equal divisions of a particular measurement, etc

   decibel

3. the fraction equal to one divided by ten ( 1/ 10 )

4. music

   1. an interval of one octave plus a third

   2. one of two notes constituting such an interval in relation to the other

adverb

1. Also: tenthly.  after the ninth person, position, event, etc

1. Also: tenthly.  as the 10th point: linking what follows with the previous statements, as in a speech or argument

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• tenths
  plural

Etymology

Origin of tenth

before 1150; Middle English tenthe, Old English. See ten, -th ², tithe

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tenth tenths

A tenth of home buyers indicated that saving for a down payment was the most difficult step in the process of buying a home, according to data from the National Association of Realtors.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 7, 2026

Six months on, they are hosting their sixth dinner - and I am the tenth guest at the table.

From BBC ● Jun. 21, 2026

Index funds and ETFs often charge a tenth of percentage point or less each year.

From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026

So far, some 3,666 people have been killed, Lebanon’s Health Ministry says, while a quarter of the population has been displaced and more than a tenth of the country occupied.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 10, 2026

I asked her for the tenth time, but she only cried, letting me carry her downstairs like a newborn calf.

From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron

"We normally expect the records broken by small amounts – tenths, maybe up to a degree or so," said Ed Hawkins, professor of climate science at the University of Reading.

From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026

Wednesday brings the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ consumer price index for May, which is expected to reflect a 4.2% year-over-year jump, four tenths of a percentage point more than April’s reading.

From Barron's ● Jun. 8, 2026

Johannes cut three tenths off his Division I winning time last week.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 24, 2026

In a market where a few tenths could make or break a car’s street cred, the auto-shifted versions soon became the only versions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 6, 2026

Twenty-four hours after the deed, my mother’s body temperature rose another two tenths, confirming ovulation.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides