twelfth
pronunciation
How to pronounce twelfth in British English:
UK [twelfθ]
How to pronounce twelfth in American English:
US [twelfθ]
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- Noun:
- position 12 in a countable series of things
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- Adjective:
- coming next after the eleventh and just before the thirteenth in position
Word Origin
- twelfth (adj.)
- late 14c., with -th (1), altering Middle English twelfte, from Old English twelfta, from twelf ((see twelve). The earlier form is cognate with Old Norse tolfti, Danish tolvte, Old Frisian twelefta, Dutch twaalfde, Old High German zwelifto, German zwölfte . As a noun meaning "a twelfth part," from 1550s. Twelfth Night is Old English twelftan niht "Twelfth Night," the eve of Epiphany, which comes twelve days after Christmas, formerly an occasion of social rites and a time of merrymaking.
Example
- 1. Twelfth , take good advantage of the career centre .
- 2. The rate of incarceration is a fifth of america 's level in britain , a ninth in germany and a twelfth in japan .
- 3. Allianz is the twelfth largest financial services company in the world .
- 4. Deloitte , an auditing firm , reckons it will slip from sixth to twelfth in itsworld-competitiveness league by 2010 , in part due to regulation .
- 5. Most controversially of all , although he is a layman , mr mashai has let it be known that he is in direct contact with the occulted twelfth shia imam , the mahdi , and that , by extension , the government in which he serves enjoys divine favour .