DictionaryAI

eight

AYT/eɪt/

Noun pluraleights

6 meanings of eight

Practice

  1. 1
    numbernumeral
    The number 8, one more than seven; amounting to eight in number.

    The committee was made up of eight members.

    The recipe makes enough soup for eight people, with some left over.

  2. 2
    digitnouncountable
    The written digit or figure 8, used to represent the number eight.

    His handwritten eight looked more like an infinity sign.

    The house number ended in a faded brass eight.

  3. 3
    time of daynoununcountable
    The hour of eight o'clock, either in the morning or the evening.

    Their train leaves at eight sharp.

    We sat down to dinner a little after eight.

    UsageOften without o'clock: at eight, about eight, eight sharp. Add in the morning or at night when it matters.

    Note

    The short form is no modern shortcut, since Thomas Carlyle writes "about eight on the Saturday morning" in The French Revolution (1837).

    Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • Thomas Carlyle uses the quoted phrase in The French Revolution, demonstrating that this shortened clock-time expression predates modern usage. gutenberg.org
    • The French Revolution was first published in 1837. commons.wikimedia.org

Less common meanings

  1. 4
    playing cardnouncountable
    Any of the four playing cards in a standard deck bearing the value eight, one in each suit.

    He laid down the eight of clubs to take the trick.

    Two eights gave her a promising opening hand.

    Note

    Each suit holds one, ranking just below the nine and above the seven, and its face carries eight pips of its suit.

    Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • A standard deck contains one eight in each of its four suits. en.wikipedia.org
    • In the conventional card ranking, eight falls immediately below nine and above seven. pagat.com
    • An eight displays eight pips of its suit. en.wikipedia.org
  2. 5
    rowing boatnouncountable
    In rowing, a long, narrow racing boat for eight rowers and a cox, or the crew that rows it.

    Six people were needed to carry the long, narrow eight from the boathouse to the water.

    Their eight pulled ahead in the final stretch of the course.

    Note

    Rowing's flagship boat lends its name to the crew that rows it and to the race it takes part in. As a craft it is among the longest and fastest in the sport. It is a racing shell with a coxswain who steers and calls the rhythm from the stern.

    Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 5 facts

  3. 6
    boat racenoun
    A rowing race contested by eights: boats each crewed by eight rowers.

    Despite a slow start, the club came from behind to win the men's eight at the spring regatta.

    Spectators packed the towpath to watch the eights, always the showpiece of the regatta.

    UsageEvent names can use the singular: the men's eight. Say compete in the men's eight or win the men's eight.

    Note

    The eights are what crowds line the bank to watch, and they are often the showpiece of a regatta.

    Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of eight apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

From Middle English "eighte" (also "aught," "eahte"), from Old English "eahta," from Proto-West Germanic "*ahtō" and Proto-Germanic "*ahtōu," going back to Proto-Indo-European "*oḱtṓw." It is cognate with Dutch and German "acht," Swedish "åtta," Latin "octo," Ancient Greek "oktṓ," and Irish "ocht."

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 5 facts

  • Eight derives from Middle English eighte, also spelled aught and eahte. en.wiktionary.org
  • The ancestral sequence is Old English eahta, Proto-West Germanic *ahtō, Proto-Germanic *ahtōu, and Proto-Indo-European *oḱtṓw. en.wiktionary.org
  • Eight is cognate with Dutch acht, German acht, and Swedish åtta. en.wiktionary.org
  • Eight is cognate with Latin octo and Ancient Greek oktṓ. en.wiktionary.org
  • Eight is cognate with Irish ocht. en.wiktionary.org