fifty

noun

fif·​ty ˈfif-tē 

plural fifties

1

: a number equal to five times 10 see Table of Numbers

2

fifties plural : the numbers 50 to 59

specifically : the years 50 to 59 in a lifetime or century

3

: a 50-dollar bill

fiftieth

ˈfif-tē-əth 

adjective or noun

fifty adjective

fifty pronoun, plural in construction

fiftyish

ˈfif-tē-ish 

adjective

Examples of fifty in a Sentence

She is in her fifties.

The bill for dinner came to $43, and she gave him a fifty.

Recent Examples on the Web

In The Substance, Moore, in real life a fantastic-looking 62, is playing an equally fantastic-looking woman in her mid- to late fifties. —Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 24 Feb. 2025

The stone and beige brick structures that now span almost an entire block of Circle Park Boulevard were constructed in the early fifties. —Jaime Moore-Carrillo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 Feb. 2025

Another surprise awaited her: the shocking reality of dating men in their fifties and sixties and seventies. —Joseph O’Neill, The New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2025

There were merely four movies from the Eighties and Nineties, which met varying degrees of success, about karate in the Valley, a wise sensei who died 2005, and a group of teenagers who were now in their fifties. —Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 20 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from fifty, adjective, from Old English fīftig, from fīftig, noun, group of 50, from fīf five + -tig group of ten; akin to tīen ten

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing fifty

• fifty-fifty

Rhymes for fifty

• nifty
• shifty
• thrifty
• unthrifty

Kids Definition

fifty

noun

fif·​ty ˈfif-tē 

plural fifties

: a number equal to five times 10 see number

fiftieth

-tē-əth 

adjective or noun

fifty adjective or pronoun