The fifth item in a series is the one that you count as number five.
Joe has recently returned from his fifth trip to Australia.
2. fraction
A fifth is one of five equal parts of something.
India spends over a fifth of its budget on defence.
fifth in British English
(fɪfθ)
adjective(usually prenominal)
1.
a.
coming after the fourth in order, position, time, etc. Often written: 5th
b.
(as noun)
he came on the fifth
noun
2.
a.
one of five equal or nearly equal parts of an object, quantity, measurement, etc
b.
(as modifier)
a fifth part
3.
the fraction equal to one divided by five (1⁄5)
4. music
a.
the interval between one note and another five notes away from it counting inclusively along the diatonic scale
b.
one of two notes constituting such an interval in relation to the other
See also perfect (sense 9), diminished (sense 2), interval (sense 5)
5.
an additional high gear fitted to some motor vehicles
adverb
6. Also: fifthly
after the fourth person, position, event, etc
sentence connector
7. Also: fifthly
as the fifth point: linking what follows with the previous statements, as in a speech or argument
Word origin
Old English fīfta
fifth in American English
(fɪfθ)
adjective
1.
preceded by four others in a series; 5th
2.
designating any of the five equal parts of something
noun
3.
the one following the fourth
4.
any of the five equal parts of something; 1⁄5
5. US
a.
a unit of liquid measure for alcoholic beverages, equal to a fifth of a gallon (0.757 liter)
b.
a bottle of alcohol with a capacity of one fifth of a gallon
6. Music
a.
the fifth tone of an ascending diatonic scale, or a tone four degrees above or below any given tone in such a scale; dominant
b.
the interval between two such tones, or a combination of them
7. US; [F-]; Informal
Fifth Amendment
adverb
8.
in the fifth place, rank, group, etc.
Derived forms
fifthly (ˈfifthly)
adverb
Word origin
ME fifte < OE fifta < fif, five
More idioms containing
fifth
a fifth wheel
Examples of 'fifth' in a sentence
fifth
The final trend is that your pick should have finished no worse than fifth last time out.
The Sun (2016)
He was fifth in the race last year but is open to bags of improvement this season.
The Sun (2016)
Yeovil were booed off after their fifth league defeat in a row.
The Sun (2016)
Almost two fifths of men and a third of women said that there was total or partial blame.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
You can play a really good season but be fifth or sixth and then no one is happy.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
He stayed until the end of this year's fifth series.
The Sun (2016)
Trouble is, two minutes of social chat means one fifth of your appointment has gone.
The Sun (2016)
It has, after all, lost four fifths of its value in the past decade.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
France has the fifth largest number of gun owners in the world.
The Sun (2012)
We have not been battling in fourth or fifth and all of a sudden come good.
The Sun (2012)
Reducing bureaucracy is the fifth point of the plan.
McKenzie, James F. & Pinger, Robert R. An Introduction to Community Health (1995)
This fifth series of the sketch show remains ingeniously daft.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
We were going to be led to a lift and taken to the fifth floor.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Services account for almost four fifths of national incomes.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
He failed to quicken and finished fifth.
The Sun (2012)
The study found that two fifths of dog owners now cook their pets dinners.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Another fifth commented on areas outside their expertise.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
This is the fifth time the fund has been named in the report.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
And this was only the fifth number.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
The bleak assessment of the economy was released the day before the fifth anniversary of the credit crunch.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
On this first outing he ran through all the gears up to fifth in ten seconds and disappeared out of sight.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
He now lies in fifth position.
The Sun (2015)
The home side were staring a fifth defeat in six games in the face and had effectively slipped into the bottom three.
The Sun (2011)
The prison population is at an all-time high for a fifth consecutive week.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Back then he didn't win until the fifth race of the season.
The Sun (2014)
The fifth and sixth officials are today's target of choice.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
And my fifth Budget objection is to some of those who oppose it.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Plus one fifth of the 33rd length.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
This was a fifth consecutive defeat for his side and a ninth in the past 11 matches.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
This will be only his fifth race of the year and he is fresh and ready to make decisive use of a superb draw.
The Sun (2009)
Furthermore, our margins are at the high end of this business and our client retention record is the fourth or fifth highest in the industry.
Corporate Research Foundation TOP MARKETING AND MEDIA COMPANIES IN THE UK (2002)
In other languages
fifth
British English: fifth /fɪfθ/ ADJECTIVE
The fifth item in a series is the one that you count as number five.
It was his fifth trip to Australia.
American English: fifth
Arabic: خامِس
Brazilian Portuguese: quinto
Chinese: 第五的
Croatian: peti
Czech: pátý
Danish: femte
Dutch: vijfde
European Spanish: quinto
Finnish: viides
French: cinquième
German: fünfter
Greek: πέμπτος
Italian: quinto
Japanese: 五番目の
Korean: 다섯 번째의
Norwegian: femte
Polish: piąty
European Portuguese: quinto
Romanian: al cincilea
Russian: пятый
Latin American Spanish: quinto
Swedish: femte
Thai: ลำดับที่ห้า
Turkish: beşinci
Ukrainian: п'ятий
Vietnamese: thứ năm thứ tự
All related terms of 'fifth'
fifth force
a hypothetical non-Newtonian repulsive component of the force of gravity , postulated as an addition to the four known fundamental forces ( gravitational , electromagnetic , strong, and weak )
fifth form
the fifth year of secondary school in England , Wales , or Northern Island
fifth grade
the fifth year of school , when children are ten or eleven years old
fifth wheel
a spare wheel for a four-wheeled vehicle
fifth column
(originally) a group of Falangist sympathizers in Madrid during the Spanish Civil War who were prepared to join the four columns of insurgents marching on the city
fifth disease
a mild infectious disease of childhood , caused by a virus , characterized by fever and a red rash spreading from the cheeks to the limbs and trunk
fifth-grader
a student in the fifth grade of the American education system
Fifth Amendment
an amendment to the US Constitution stating that people may not be compelled to testify against themselves and that no person may be tried for a second time on a charge for which he or she has already been acquitted
fifth columnist
A fifth columnist is someone who secretly supports and helps the enemies of the country or organization they are in.
fifth dimension
a theoretical dimension beyond or in addition to a fourth dimension
fifth position
a position similar to the first position, but with one foot in front , the heel and toe of the front foot adjacent to the toe and heel of the back foot
Fifth Republic
the French republic established in 1958 as the successor to the Fourth Republic. Its constitution is characterized by the strong position of the president
a fifth wheel
someone who is unwanted and unimportant in a situation
fifth-generation
denoting developments in computer design to produce machines with artificial intelligence
take the fifth
to refuse to answer a question on the grounds that it might incriminate oneself
slapped-cheek disease
a mild infectious disease of childhood , caused by a virus , characterized by fever and a red rash spreading from the cheeks to the limbs and trunk
Chinese translation of 'fifth'
fifth
(fɪfθ)
num
(in series) 第五 (dìwǔ)
(= fraction) 五分之一 (wǔ fēn zhī yī)
n
(Aut) (also fifth gear) 第五挡(檔) (dìwǔ dǎng)
adv
to come fifth (in race, competition) 名列第五名 (míngliè dìwǔ míng)
on July fifth, on the fifth of July在7月5日 (zài qīyuè wǔrì)