sixty

noun

six·​ty ˈsiks-tē 

plural sixties

1

: a number that is equal to six times 10 see Table of Numbers

2

sixties plural : the numbers 60 to 69

specifically : the years 60 to 69 in a lifetime or century

sixtieth

ˈsiks-tē-əth 

adjective or noun

sixty adjective

sixty pronoun, plural in construction

sixtyish

ˈsiks-tē-ish 

adjective

Examples of sixty in a Sentence

He retired when he was in his sixties.

Recent Examples on the Web

If the closet is old enough, its ties will show a whole social history of the pallid fifties turning into the ambivalent sixties turning into the florid seventies. —Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 6 July 2024

We were inspired by the social ethos of our parents who came of age in the sixties and were influenced by the Beat Generation writers like Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac. —Alena Botros, Fortune, 27 June 2024

Various reasons contributed to only six Copa Américas being held in the nineteen-forties, six in the fifties, and just two in the sixties, among them a waning interest in some countries before broadcasting rights made the sport hugely profitable. —Graciela Mochkofsky, The New Yorker, 20 June 2024

Ronald Reagan asked the right questions in 1984, when these men were in their sixties, and an American president traveled to the cliffs above Omaha Beach to pay them honor. —The Editors, National Review, 6 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from sixty, adjective, from Old English siextig, noun, group of sixty, from siex six + -tig group of ten; akin to Old English tīen ten

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing sixty

• sixty-fourth note
• sixty-fourth rest
• sixty-nine

Kids Definition

sixty

noun

six·​ty ˈsik-stē 

plural sixties

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

sixtieth

-stē-əth 

adjective or noun

sixty adjective or pronoun