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decade

 - 3 dictionary results

dec⋅ade

[dek-eyd; Brit. also duh-keyd]
–noun
1. a period of ten years: the three decades from 1776 to 1806.
2. a period of ten years beginning with a year whose last digit is zero: the decade of the 1980s.
3. a group, set, or series of ten.

Origin:
1425–75; late ME < MF < LL decad- (s. of decas) < Gk dekad- (s. of dekás) group of ten, equiv. to dék(a) ten + -ad- -ade 2
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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dec·ade   (děk'ād', dě-kād')   
n.  
  1. A period of ten years.

  2. A group or series of ten.


[Middle English, a group of ten, from Old French, from Late Latin decas, decad-, from Greek dekas, from deka, ten; see dek in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

decade 
c.1451, "ten parts" (of anything; originally in ref. to the books of Livy), from M.Fr. decade, from L.L. decadem (nom. decas), from Gk. dekas (acc. dekada) "group of ten." Meaning "ten years" is 1594 in Eng.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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