Meaning & use
eighteen
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Meanings
number
The number 18, which is one more than seventeen and one less than nineteen.
Grammar: Used before a noun to give a quantity: eighteen students. It can also stand alone: I have eighteen.
Patterns
- eighteen + plural noun
- eighteen of + plural noun/pronoun
She bought eighteen eggs for the party.
The temperature is expected to reach eighteen degrees tomorrow.
Eighteen of the thirty students passed the exam.
noununcountable
The age of 18 years, especially the age at which someone legally becomes an adult in many countries.
Grammar: Used after a possessive or 'at': at eighteen, her eighteen. Not used with a/an.
Patterns
- at eighteen
- someone's eighteen
He left home at eighteen to go to university.
In the UK, you can vote when you're eighteen.
She celebrated her eighteenth birthday with a big party.
nouncountable
The number 18 itself, as a numeral or a score in a game.
Grammar: Often used in scores: eighteen to twelve, or after 'number': number eighteen.
Patterns
- number eighteen
- eighteen to + number
The final score was eighteen to twelve.
Write the number eighteen in the box.
He wore the number eighteen on his jersey.
Common combinations
- eighteen years old
- My sister is eighteen years old.
- eighteen months
- The project took eighteen months to complete.
- eighteen percent
- Eighteen percent of the population voted in the election.
- eighteen holes
- A standard round of golf has eighteen holes.
- eighteen-wheeler
- An eighteen-wheeler is a large truck with eighteen wheels.
- turn eighteen
- She will turn eighteen next month.
Word family
- eighteenth adjective
- Coming after the seventeenth and before the nineteenth; also used for one of eighteen equal parts.
- eighteen-year-old noun
- A person who is eighteen years old.
- eighteenfold adjective
- Eighteen times as much or as many; less common.
Commonly confused: eighteen or eightteen?
eighteen vs eightteen
This is a common misspelling. The correct spelling is eighteen, with only one 't' after 'eigh'.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence.
Choose one answer.
The correct spelling is eighteen (not eightteen), and we say 'years old' (plural) after a number. Option 1 has the wrong spelling, option 2 uses the singular 'year', and option 3 uses the plural 'olds' incorrectly.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “eighteen”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.