twenty-one

noun

twen·​ty-one ˌtwen-tē-ˈwən How to pronounce twenty-one (audio)
ˌtwən-
1
: a number that is one more than 20 see Table of Numbers
2
[translation of French vingt-et-un] : blackjack sense 1
twenty-one adjective
twenty-one pronoun, plural in construction

Examples of twenty-one in a Sentence

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.
Now there were twenty-one hours till the train would pull into the station. Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 8 June 2026 In the Art Institute drawing, a woman savors a chunk of carrot cake while lounging topless amid twenty-one other figures performing semi-aerobic choreography across the wall. Jeremy Lybarger, Artforum, 2 June 2026 The beach club holds up to 194 people and will be open to both Caesars Guest and members of the public who are twenty-one and over. Michael Goldstein, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026 Anolik, who has spent over a decade researching and writing about Babitz, talks about the notorious photo of a nude Babitz, age twenty-one, playing chess with Marcel Duchamp; her relationship with Joan Didion, and her artistic legacy captured through letter writing. Lili Anolik, The New York Review of Books, 27 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for twenty-one

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of twenty-one was circa 1611

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Cite this Entry

“Twenty-one.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/twenty-one. Accessed 16 Jun. 2026.

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