English
Noun
en-noun|sg=ordinal number
- arithmetic A number used to denote position in a sequence.
#: "Third" is an ordinal number, while "three" is a cardinal number.
- mathematics A generalized kind of number to denote the size of a well-ordered set.
Translations
trans-top|number used to denote position in a sequence
Czech: poÅ�adové Ä�Ãslo n
trans-mid
trans-bottom
trans-top|generalized kind of number to denote the size of a well-ordered set
Czech: ordinálnà Ä�Ãslo n
trans-mid
trans-bottom
checktrans-top
Dutch: rangtelwoord n
Finnish: järjestysluku, ordinaaliluku
French: ordinal m
German: Ordinalzahl f, Ordnungszahl f
Hungarian: sorszám (1), rendszám (2)
Icelandic: raðtala f
Italian: numero ordinale m
trans-mid
Swedish: ordningstal, ordinaltal
trans-bottom
Usage notes
On ordinal number usage:
Ordinal numbers are general construed as adjectives followed by countable nouns in singular:
:eleventh day
Ordinal numbers are used for fractions as countable nouns, and for exponents usually followed by power:
:two fifths, <math>\textstyle\frac{2}{5}</math>
:two to the minus twenty-first power, <math>2^{-21}</math>
:six to the third, <math>6^3</math>
Ordinal numbers are generally considered to be ordered from high to low; so that first place is considered highest, and fifth is lower than second. Degree is an exception.
Ordinal numbers corresponding to numbers higher that 20 use cardinal numbers for all the places preceding the final ordinal part:
:twenty-first or 21st, occasionally XXI
:one hundred fifteenth or 115th , occasionally CXV
:thirty-three thousandth or 33,000th
If an ordinal is followed by a plural noun, the two word phrase refers to a set of items described by the phrase in singular. For example second homes refers to the a set of homes which are considered a "second home."
:Many households have third cars.
See also
cardinal number
zeroth
first
second
third (etc)
Category:Parts of speech
fr:ordinal number
it:ordinal number
ru:ordinal number
fi:ordinal number
tr:ordinal number
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