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twelve - 5 dictionary results

twelve

  [twelv] ,
Use twelve in a Sentence
–noun
1. a cardinal number, 10 plus 2.
2. a symbol for this number, as 12 or XII.
3. a set of this many persons or things.
4. the Twelve, the 12 apostles chosen by Christ.
–adjective
5. amounting to 12 in number.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME twelve, inflected form of twelf, OE twelfe lit., (ten and) two leave, i.e., two left over; c. OFris twelef, twelf, OHG zwelif, ON tōlf, Goth twalif; cf. Lith dvýlika; see two, leave 1 , eleven
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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twelve   (twělv)   
n.  
  1. The cardinal number equal to the sum of 11 + 1.
  2. The twelfth in a set or sequence.
  3. Twelve Bible
    1. The twelve original disciples of Jesus.
    2. The books of the Minor Prophets in the Hebrew Scriptures.

[Middle English, from Old English twelf; see dwo- in Indo-European roots.]
twelve adj. & pron.
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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Twelve

Twelve\, a. [OE. twelve, twelf, AS. twelf; akin to OFries. twelf, twelef, twilif, OS. twelif, D. twaalf, G. zw["o]lf, OHG. zwelif, Icel. t?lf, Sw. tolf, Dan. tolv, Goth. twalif, from the root of E. two + the same element as in the second part of E. eleven. See Two, and Eleven.] One more that eleven; two and ten; twice six; a dozen.

Twelve-men's morris. See the Note under Morris.

Twelve Tables. (Rom. Antiq.) See under Table.

Twelve

Twelve\, n. 1. The number next following eleven; the sum of ten and two, or of twice six; twelve units or objects; a dozen.

2. A symbol representing twelve units, as 12, or xii.

The Twelve (Script.), the twelve apostles. --Matt. xxvi. 20.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : twelve
Spanish: doce,
German: die Zwölf,
Japanese: 12
More Translations »

twelve 
O.E. twelf, lit. "two left" (over ten), from P.Gmc. *twa-lif-, a compound of the root of two + *lif-, root of the verb leave (see eleven). Cf. O.S. twelif, O.N. tolf, O.Fris. twelef, M.Du. twalef, Du. twaalf, O.H.G. zwelif, Ger. zwölf, Goth. twalif. Outside Gmc., an analogous formation is Lith. drylika, with second element -lika "left over."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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