thirteen

[thur-teen]

noun

a cardinal number, 10 plus 3.
a symbol for this number, as 13 or XIII.
a set of this many persons or things.

adjective

amounting to 13 in number.

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

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for thirteen

Contemporary Examples of thirteen

She began her career as a model at the age of thirteen, modeling for Dolce & Gabbana and Dior.
‘Spectre’ Casts 50-Year-Old Bond Girl For 007 to Do Sex To
Amy Zimmerman
December 5, 2014
At thirteen years old, de Forest speaks with the confidence and the knowledge of someone much older.
Blessed or Cursed? Child Prodigies Reveal All
Justin Jones
November 17, 2014
Last year, I went to India with my daughter who was thirteen at the time to meet some artisans.
Q&A With Designer Rachel Roy
Cynthia Allum
November 3, 2014
For him to get killed in action thirteen years after the war began.
Beast Fiction: They Killed Our Brothers
J.F. Quinn
September 14, 2014
Thirteen years after 9/11, the World Trade Center is undergoing a massive transformation.
The Daily Beast’s Best Longreads, Sept 8-14
John Boot
September 14, 2014

Historical Examples of thirteen

They proved to be Cheyennes--two men, and a boy of thirteen.
The Exploring Expedition to the Rocky Mountains, Oregon and California
Brevet Col. J.C. Fremont
I have thirteen arrows yet, and if one of them fly unfleshed, then, by the twang of string!
The White Company
Arthur Conan Doyle
Out of every dozen packets, perhaps, I fixed one that had thirteen.
K
Mary Roberts Rinehart
Cost me thirteen dollars to repair one; vulcanize the tire, y'see.
The Bacillus of Beauty
Harriet Stark
Ah, there was Diablo, the very number Allis had said carried no dread for her, thirteen.
Thoroughbreds
W. A. Fraser

British Dictionary definitions for thirteen

thirteen

noun

the cardinal number that is the sum of ten and three and is a prime numberSee also number (def. 1)
a numeral, 13, XIII, etc, representing this number
the amount or quantity that is three more than ten; baker's dozen
something represented by, representing, or consisting of 13 units

determiner

1. amounting to thirteenthirteen buses
2. (as pronoun)thirteen of them fell

Word Origin for thirteen

Old English threotēne; see three, -teen

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 thirteen

early 15c., metathesis of Old English þreotene (Mercian), þreotiene (West Saxon), from þreo "three" (see three) + -tene (see -teen). Cf. Old Frisian thretten, Dutch dertien, German dreizehn.

Not an unlucky number in medieval England, but associated rather with the customary "extra item" (e.g. baker's dozen). Superstitions began with association with the Last Supper, and the unluckiness of 13 sitting down together to dine (attested from 1690s). Most of the modern superstitions (buildings with floor "12-A," etc.) have developed since 1890.