ENGLISH
REFERENCE

twelfth

num.
A2 Elementary US //ˈtwɛɫfθ// UK //twˈɛlfθ// twelfth

num. the position of number twelve in a series. You use it to describe the person or thing that comes after the eleventh.

num. constituting number twelve in a sequence; the ordinal form of the number twelve.


SIMPLE

He finished in twelfth place out of fifty runners.

CONTEXTUAL

The office is located on the twelfth floor of the building, right above the cafeteria.

COMPLEX

In music theory, a compound interval spanning an octave and a perfect fifth is referred to as a perfect twelfth, representing a frequency ratio of three to one.

Synonyms
Origin

From Middle English twelfthe, twelfte, from Old English twelfta (“twelfth”), from Proto-Germanic *twaliftô (“twelfth”), equivalent to twelve + -th (ordinal suffix). Cognate with Scots twalt (“twelfth”), Saterland Frisian tweelfte (“twelfth”), West Frisian tolfde (“twelfth”), Dutch twaalfde (“twelfth”), German Low German twalfde, twalvde (“twelfth”), German zwölfte (“twelfth”), Danish tolvte (“twelfth”), Swedish tolfte (“twelfth”), Icelandic tólfta (“twelfth”).

Usage

As an ordinal number, it is frequently preceded by the definite article 'the'.

Pitfall

twelvethtwelfthThe 'v' in 'twelve' changes to an 'f' and the 'e' is dropped when forming the ordinal number.

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