fourth

noun

ˈfȯrth

plural fourths ˈfȯr(th)s

: one that is number four in a series

I was the fourth to arrive.

They arrive on the fourth. [=the fourth day of the month]

see Table of Numbers

: one of four equal parts of something : quarter entry 1

Cut the cake into fourths.

a fourth of the population

: a musical interval (see interval sense 2) embracing four tones of the diatonic scale

: a tone at this interval

specifically : subdominant sense 1

: the harmonic combination of two tones a fourth apart

: the fourth forward gear or speed of a motor vehicle

shifted into fourth

the Fourth : July 4 observed as a legal holiday in the U.S. in commemoration of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 : Fourth of July

watched fireworks on the Fourth

called also Independence Day

fourth adjective or adverb

the fourth edition of a book

the fourth tallest mountain

fourthly adverb

Fourthly, don't sing a whole opera through … —

Mark Twain

Examples of fourth in a Sentence

cut the cake into fourths She drank a fourth of the bottle.

Recent Examples on the Web The possibility of life around nearly three fourths of the Milky Way’s stars is simply too big to overlook. —

Kaitlin Rasmussen, Scientific American, 14 Sep. 2023 Vignarajah placed a distant fourth in his run for mayor in 2020. —

Emily Opilo, Baltimore Sun, 28 Aug. 2023 With a corner office that occupies a fourth of the 37th floor of 53 State Street, executives at Creatio knew the view of the red-brick buildings in North End, the wide expanse of Boston Harbor, and most of the Seaport, would leave an impression on their visitors. —

Aruni Soni, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Aug. 2023 Kevin Stefanski is entering his fourth for the Browns. —

Dave Clark, The Enquirer, 7 Sep. 2023 Two deaths in Connecticut, one in New York, and a potential fourth in New York are all linked to Vibrio vulnificus, a bacterium that grows in warm, brackish water and can live on raw shellfish. —

Tim Newcomb, Popular Mechanics, 6 Sep. 2023 The pair’s first collaboration marks Karol G’s fifth top 10 and Peso Pluma’s fourth on the tally. —

Gary Trust, Billboard, 5 Sep. 2023 By comparison, writers union members would get just one-seventh of what UPS union members and one fourth of what the pilots union received in the first year of their contracts. —

Bypaolo Confino, Fortune, 23 Aug. 2023 The first responders aren’t responding — nor are the seconds, thirds and fourths. —

San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Aug. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fourth.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.