decade

noun

de·​cade ˈde-ˌkād 

de-ˈkād;

especially sense 1b ˈde-kəd

1

: a group or set of 10

It isn't to be done in a day of course, nor yet in a century, —nor in a decade of centuries …

—Anthony Trollope

: such as

a

: a period of 10 years

has been teaching for over a decade

the decade of the twenties

b

Roman Catholicism : a division of the rosary that consists primarily of 10 Hail Marys

2

mathematics : a ratio of 10 to 1 : order of magnitude

decadal

ˈde-kə-dᵊl 

adjective

Examples of decade in a Sentence

The war lasted nearly a decade.

The bridge was built a decade ago.

The decade of the 1920s runs from January 1, 1920 to December 31, 1929.

the first decade of the 21st century

There have been a lot of changes during the past two decades.

Recent Examples on the Web

The backstory The resort opened as The Nam Hai in 2006 and operated as such for about a decade before it was acquired by Four Seasons. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Mar. 2026

Both were sentenced to decades behind bars. —Zayd Ayers Dohrn, New Yorker, 28 Mar. 2026

Unable to secure a Miami venue in time to meet the MLS deadline, the Beckham-Mas group invested upwards of $100 million to build a stadium and training facility in Broward County, on the grounds of the former Lockhart Stadium, the very same place Horowitz resorted to three decades earlier. —Miami Herald, 28 Mar. 2026

This means more local exposure and helps vines that have been in the ground for decades continue to grow for generations. —Carmela Karcher, CBS News, 28 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Middle French décade, from Late Latin decad-, decas, from Greek dekad-, dekas, from deka — see deca-

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing decade

• decade-long

Rhymes for decade

• afraid
• allayed
• arcade
• arrayed
• assayed
• barmaid
• betrayed
• blockade
• bridesmaid
• brigade
• brocade
• buffeted

Kids Definition

decade

noun

de·​cade ˈdek-ˌād 

-əd;

de-ˈkād;

sense 3 is usually ˈdek-əd

1

: a group or set of 10

2

: a period of 10 years

3

: a part of the rosary made up mainly of 10 Hail Marys