thirteen

American  

[thur-teen] / ˈθɜrˈtin /

noun

thirteens plural

1. a cardinal number, 10 plus 3.

2. a symbol for this number, as 13 or XIII.

3. a set of this many persons or things.

---

adjective

1. amounting to 13 in number.

thirteen British  

/ ˈθɜːˈtiːn /

noun

1. the cardinal number that is the sum of ten and three and is a prime number See also number

2. a numeral, 13, XIII, etc, representing this number

3. the amount or quantity that is three more than ten; baker's dozen

4. something represented by, representing, or consisting of 13 units

---

determiner

1. 1. amounting to thirteen

      thirteen buses

   2. ( as pronoun )

      thirteen of them fell

Usage

Spelling tips for 13 The word thirteen (13) is hard to spell because it doesn’t simply combine the spelling of the base number (three) with the suffix -teen, as is done in other easy-to-remember spellings like fourteen and sixteen.  How to spell thirteen: When three is combined with suffixes, it transforms from three (a cardinal number) to third (an ordinal number). Then, the d is dropped: thirteen (not thirdteen); thirty (not thirdty). Remember: there's no d in thirteen.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• thirteens
  plural

Etymology

Origin of thirteen

before 900; late Middle English thirttene, variant of Middle English thrittene, Old English thrēotēne; cognate with Dutch dertien, German dreizehn, Old Norse threttān. See three, -teen

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

thirteen thirteens

The stock has been higher ten of the last thirteen weeks but still trades 9% below its annual peak.

From Barron's ● May 26, 2026

"This comeback, after so many years, means a lot to me," said Golnar Taheri, who has been a fan since the debut of BTS thirteen years ago.

From BBC ● Mar. 21, 2026

The cuts, totaling billions of dollars, affect states such as California, New York and Minnesota, as well as thirteen others.

From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2025

Nevada also joined the group this week, bringing the total number of members to thirteen.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2025

“She’s coming here, and she’s not going to get Coal. The only thing you did was give her exactly what she’s been waiting for, for thirteen years.”

From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste

Six seeds are 86-50 against the elevens, fives are 89-47 against twelves, and once you get to fours vs. thirteens, you're in never gonna happen territory.

From Golf Digest ● Mar. 18, 2019

I do not know, he adds, what the occult almanac makers predict, but out of curiosity I have looked back at some other thirteens.

From The Guardian ● Jan. 1, 2013

Whenever I have been wrecked, we had sailed as cheerily as you please—no thirteens, no Fridays, no dead men in the hold.

From Man Overboard! by Crawford, F. Marion (Francis Marion)

"There's five thirteens for you, and I wish to God, my good fellow, that you would allow yourself to be put in better feathers."

From Willy Reilly The Works of William Carleton, Volume One by Carleton, William

Well, honies, I'll give ye a hint, And let ivery one do it who can; When the bag of thirteens is all spint, Set up for a Parliament man.

From Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 104, March 18, 1893 by Burnand, F. C. (Francis Cowley), Sir