nine

noun

ˈnīn 

1

: a number that is one more than eight see Table of Numbers

2

: the ninth in a set or series

wears a nine

3

: something having nine units or members: such as

a

capitalized : the nine Muses

b

: a baseball team

c

: the first or last nine holes of an 18-hole golf course

nine adjective

nine pronoun, plural in construction

Phrases

to the nines

1

: to perfection

2

: in a highly elaborate or showy manner

dressed to the nines

Examples of nine in a Sentence

The next card was the nine of diamonds.

She wears a size nine.

“What time is it?” “It's nine.”

He woke up at nine this morning.

Recent Examples on the Web

Head coach Diego Simeone has occasionally used that duo almost as two false nines. —Andy Jones, The Athletic, 25 Mar. 2025

The team earned straight nines across the board, and 27 points were added to each couple's total score. —Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 23 Oct. 2024

Joey Graziadei and his partner Jenna Johnson finished on top of the leaderboard for the second consecutive week, tied with Danny Amendola and Witney Carson, who also scored straight nines. —Monica Mercuri, Forbes, 21 Oct. 2024

First-time patrons should know that people come dressed to the nines here, which isn’t always the case in Boston. —Kim Foley MacKinnon, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from nyne, adjective, from Old English nigon; akin to Old High German niun nine, Latin novem, Greek ennea

First Known Use

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

Phrases Containing nine

• a stitch in time (saves nine)
• back nine
• cat-o'-nine-tails
• cloud nine
• front nine
• nine days' wonder
• nine times out of ten
• nine-to-five job
• nine-to-fiver
• ninety-nine times out of a hundred
• ninety/ninety-nine percent of the time
• on cloud nine
• sixty-nine
• the whole nine yards

Rhymes for nine

• brine
• cline
• dine
• fein
• fine
• gwine
• hine
• jain
• klein
• kline
• line
• mine

Kids Definition

nine

noun

ˈnīn 

1

: a number that is one more than eight see number

2

: the ninth in a set or series

3

: a baseball team

nine adjective or pronoun