eighty

noun

plural eighties
1
: a number that is equal to eight times 10 see Table of Numbers
2
eighties plural : the numbers 80 to 89
specifically : the years 80 to 89 in a lifetime or century
eightieth adjective or noun
eighty adjective
eighty pronoun, plural in construction

Examples of eighty in a Sentence

The temperature rose to the high eighties. She is in her mid-eighties.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The sitting President, in his eighties and visibly declining, had to be pressured into leaving the ticket; the Party no longer offers a signature policy at the scale of Obamacare or even a Green New Deal. The New Yorker, 5 Nov. 2024 The book also explains how trade between Ireland and MENA (Middle East and North Africa) has reportedly gone from almost nothing in the early eighties to €5.3 billion in 2021. Kevin Rozario, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024 Lewis, who even in his late eighties never shook the habit of working from the office, had asked me to grab him lunch. Christopher Carroll, Harper's Magazine, 23 Sep. 2024 Fethullah Gülen was in his eighties and had long been in ill health. CBS News, 21 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for eighty 

Word History

Etymology

Middle English eighty, adjective, from Old English eahtatig, short for hundeahtatig, noun, group of eighty, from hund-, literally, hundred + eahta eight + -tig group of ten; akin to Old English tīen ten

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of eighty was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near eighty

Cite this Entry

“Eighty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/eighty. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

eighty

noun
plural eighties
: a number that is equal to eight times 10 see number
eightieth adjective or noun
eighty adjective or pronoun

More from Merriam-Webster on eighty

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!