fifty

noun

fif·​ty ˈfif-tē 

plural fifties

1

: a number equal to five times 10 see Table of Numbers

2

fifties plural : the numbers 50 to 59

specifically : the years 50 to 59 in a lifetime or century

3

: a 50-dollar bill

fiftieth

ˈfif-tē-əth 

adjective or noun

fifty adjective

fifty pronoun, plural in construction

fiftyish

ˈfif-tē-ish 

adjective

Examples of fifty in a Sentence

She is in her fifties.

The bill for dinner came to $43, and she gave him a fifty.

Recent Examples on the Web

Here, the action takes place in nineteen-fifties England, Hedda (Tessa Thompson) is Black, and the scholar who was Hedda’s former lover is a woman (Nina Hoss). —Justin Chang, New Yorker, 5 Dec. 2025

Both in their fifties, Vivian and Malcolm bring wit, warmth and a refreshing maturity to a romance that reads like a modern fairytale. —Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 30 Nov. 2025

Both my dad and stepdad died of overdoses; my stepfather was in his mid-forties, and my biological father was in his early fifties. —Brontez Purnell, Harpers Magazine, 23 Nov. 2025

Carol, who now works as a counselor after a career shift in her fifties, isn’t interested in trying to gloss up the factors that led to her creatively brilliant and warmhearted son’s death. —Marissa R. Moss, Rolling Stone, 6 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from fifty, adjective, from Old English fīftig, from fīftig, noun, group of 50, from fīf five + -tig group of ten; akin to tīen ten

First Known Use

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

Phrases Containing fifty

• fifty-fifty

Rhymes for fifty

• nifty
• shifty
• thrifty
• unthrifty

Kids Definition

fifty

noun

fif·​ty ˈfif-tē 

plural fifties

: a number equal to five times 10 see number

fiftieth

-tē-əth 

adjective or noun

fifty adjective or pronoun