fifteen
- 01 A1 Beginner
num.the number 15.
num.the cardinal number following fourteen and preceding sixteen.
Simple“There are fifteen students in my English class this morning.”
In context“The research team spent fifteen months collecting data across three different continents before publishing their final report.”
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a group or set of fifteen people or things.
n.a set or group containing fifteen units, often used in the context of sports teams like rugby union.
Simple“The local fifteen played a great game of rugby on Saturday.”
In context“The national fifteen took to the field under heavy rain, determined to defend their title against the visiting side.”
- 03 C1 Advanced
n.a sweet snack from Ireland made with biscuits, marshmallows, and cherries.
n.a traditional Northern Irish traybake consisting of crushed biscuits, marshmallows, and glacé cherries bound with condensed milk.
Simple“We had tea and a couple of sweet fifteens at the café in Belfast.”
In context“The bakery is famous for its traditional fifteens, which are prepared daily using a family recipe that has remained unchanged for decades.”
UsageUsually used in the plural form 'fifteens' when referring to the individual pieces of the traybake.
PIE word *pénkʷe From Middle English fiftene, from Old English fīftīene, fīftēne, from Proto-Germanic *fimftehun. Cognate with West Frisian fyftjin, Dutch vijftien, German fünfzehn, Danish femten. Equivalent to five + -teen.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.