ENGLISH
REFERENCE

seventeenth

num.
A2 Elementary US //ˈsɛvənˈtinθ// UK //sˈɛvəntˌiːnθ// sev·en·teenth

num. the position of number 17 in a list or sequence. You use this when one thing comes after the sixteenth and before the eighteenth.

num. the ordinal number corresponding to the cardinal number seventeen. Typically functions as an ordinal indicator in dates, sequences, or rankings.


SIMPLE

Today is the seventeenth of May.

CONTEXTUAL

She finished in seventeenth place out of fifty runners in the local marathon.

COMPLEX

The seventeenth century was a period of significant scientific and philosophical transformation across the European continent.

Origin

Inherited from Middle English sevententhe, seventethe, from Old English seofontēoþa, equivalent to seventeen + -th.

Usage

Often functions as an adjective-like modifier before a noun or as a noun when referring to a date or a fraction.

Pitfall

seventeen of Mayseventeenth of MayEnglish uses ordinal numbers (first, second, seventeenth) for dates, not cardinal numbers (one, two, seventeen).

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