eighty

1 of 2

noun (1)

ˈā-tē 

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

ˈā-tē-əth 

adjective or noun

eighty adjective

eighty pronoun, plural in construction

eightieth

2 of 2

noun (2)

"

plural -s

1

: number 80 in a countable series

2

: the quotient of a unit divided by 80 : one of 80 equal parts of something

one eightieth of the total

Examples of eighty in a Sentence

Noun (1)

The temperature rose to the high eighties.

She is in her mid-eighties.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

When the song began, Donald—in his eighties, and then in his nineties—always stood and danced. —Anna Wintour, Vogue, 27 May 2026

The over-all effect is intimate, sultry, very eighties, very cokey, very Nagel painting. —Helen Rosner, New Yorker, 24 May 2026

In 2022, Dickinson County law enforcement received a report that $400,000 in gold and silver coins, along with other items, were stolen from a couple in their late eighties living in a central Kansas farmhouse, records say. —Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 14 May 2026

All this brewed a distinct Korean immigrant flavor that wasn’t compatible with white Canada in the eighties. —Jane Park, PEOPLE, 9 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

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

Noun (2)

Middle English eightetithe, eīghtithe

First Known Use

Noun (1)

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

Phrases Containing eighty

• eighty-six
• ten-eighty

Rhymes for eighty

• kati
• katy
• platy
• slaty
• weighty

Kids Definition

eighty

noun

ˈāt-ē 

plural eighties

: a number that is equal to eight times 10 see number

eightieth

-ē-əth 

adjective or noun

eighty adjective or pronoun