seventy

noun

sev·​en·​ty ˈse-vən-tē 

ˈse-bᵊm-,

-dē

plural seventies

1

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

2

seventies plural : the numbers 70 to 79

specifically : the years 70 to 79 in a lifetime or century

3

capitalized : a Mormon elder ordained for missionary work under the apostles

seventieth

ˈse-vən-tē-əth 

ˈse-bᵊm-

-dē-

adjective or noun

seventy adjective

seventy pronoun, plural in construction

Examples of seventy in a Sentence

She is in her seventies.

Recent Examples on the Web

She was named Kamala, in the seventies, after a similar-sounding form of funk dancing that her father liked. —Dan Greene, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024

The sport was very cruel in those decades, the sixties, the seventies and part of the eighties. —Jim Clash, Forbes, 18 Oct. 2024

Operation Match was an inspiration for Dateline in the seventies and eighties, before big business computer dating began in 1995 with the birth of Match.com. —Tacita Quinn, CNN, 29 Sep. 2024

Dusky pink velvet slipper chairs, brass bedside lamps, and oversized rounded bespoke headboards give the rooms a seventies feel. —Rooksana Hossenally, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

seventy, adjective, from Middle English, from Old English seofontig, short for hundseofontig, from hundseofontig, noun, group of seventy, from hund hundred + seofon seven + -tig group of ten; akin to Old English tīen ten

First Known Use

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing seventy

• seventy-eight

Kids Definition

seventy

noun

sev·​en·​ty ˈsev-ən-tē 

plural seventies

: a number equal to seven times 10 see number

seventieth

-tē-əth 

adjective or noun

seventy adjective or pronoun