seventy
seventy
Pronunciation
The word "seventy" is a cardinal number.
Here's the IPA phonetic spelling and a breakdown of its syllables:
/ˈsevənti/
Sev: /sev/ - This syllable consists of a voiceless alveolar fricative /s/, a close-mid front unrounded vowel /e/, and a voiced labiodental fricative /v/.
en: /ən/ - This syllable contains a schwa /ə/ and a voiced alveolar nasal /n/.
ty: /ti/ - This syllable is made up of a voiceless alveolar stop /t/ and a high front unrounded vowel /i/.
Word Form Variations
"Seventy" primarily functions as a number and as such, does not have typical singular/plural or other inflectional variations in the same way nouns or verbs do.
Numeral: seventy (e.g., seventy cars)
Adjective: seventy (e.g., a seventy-year-old man)
Noun (referring to the number itself): seventy (e.g., The number seventy is even.)
Noun (referring to a group of seventy): seventies (e.g., He's in his seventies.)
Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms
Noun
Definition: The cardinal number equivalent to the product of seven and ten; one more than sixty-nine; the symbol representing this quantity (70).
Synonyms: seventy (as a numeral, there are no true synonyms, but it is often referred to as "the number 70")
Antonyms: None specific, as it refers to a distinct numerical value.
Definition: The decade of years from '70 to '79 in any given century, or a specific period of time characterized by the number seventy.
Synonyms: the seventies, the '70s
Antonyms: None specific.
Adjective
Definition: Being seventy in number.
Synonyms: 70, LX (Roman numeral, less common in general use)
Antonyms: None specific.
Examples of Use
Books: "It was an idyllic time, a childhood spent largely outdoors, unchaperoned, in a town of just over seventy thousand people." (Tara Westover, Educated, February 2018)
Newspapers: "The government announced plans to invest seventy million shillings in renewable energy projects across rural areas." (As reported in a Kenyan national newspaper)
Online Publications: "Over seventy percent of respondents indicated a preference for remote work options post-pandemic." (Forbes.com)
Entertainment Mediums (Film): In the movie Oppenheimer, there's dialogue referencing the destructive power of the atomic bomb, where one character might state something like, "The blast radius extended for seventy miles."
Entertainment Platforms (Music): A song might include a lyric such as, "She's got that look from the seventies," referring to the fashion or cultural trends of that decade. (Heard on a popular music streaming service)
General Public Discourse: During a community meeting, a resident might remark, "We've lived in this neighborhood for nearly seventy years, and we've seen a lot of changes." (Observed in a public forum)
General Public Discourse: A sports commentator might say, "He's just hit his seventieth career home run, a remarkable achievement." (Heard during a live sports broadcast)
10 Quotes Using Seventy
"Life begins at seventy." (Eleanor Roosevelt)
"At seventy, I would say the chief lesson I have learned is that one must remain open and interested." (Eleanor Roosevelt)
"The first seventy years are the hardest." (W. C. Fields)
"By the time you're seventy, you've learned to appreciate the smaller things in life." (Unknown)
"A man has seventy years to live, but not one year to spare." (Confucius)
"Some people are old at seventy, others young at ninety." (Golda Meir)
"I've been working since I was about seventy years old." (Vera Wang, Vogue, October 2012)
"My father started his business at seventy, and he's still working." (Rupert Murdoch, Financial Times, November 2014)
"It is true that I have been a member of the Communist Party for seventy years." (Harry Bridges, The New York Times, May 1974)
"The average human lifespan is seventy years, and we should make the most of every moment." (Attributed to various sources)
Etymology
The word "seventy" has a long and interesting history, tracing its roots back thousands of years.
Think of "seventy" as a combination of "seven" and "ten." That's essentially how it was formed.
Its earliest known form in English comes from Old English, where it was "hundseofontig" or "seofontig," appearing around the 12th century. The "seofon" part meant "seven," and "-tig" was a suffix related to "ten" or a "group of ten." So, it literally meant "seven tens."
If we go back even further, beyond Old English, we find its ancestors in Proto-Germanic (the language from which English and other Germanic languages developed) as something like "sebuntēhundą." This also broke down to "seven" and a form related to "hundred" or "ten."
And if we go back even further into the very ancient Proto-Indo-European language (the common ancestor of a huge family of languages including English, Latin, Greek, Sanskrit, and many more), the root for "seventy" would have been something like "septm̥dḱomth₂." Again, you can see the "seven" part (septm̥) and a "ten" part (dḱomt), showing that the idea of combining "seven" and "ten" to form "seventy" has been around for a very, very long time in human language.
Phrases + Idioms Containing Seventy
Seventy-something: Used to describe someone whose age is in the seventies (e.g., "She's a lively seventy-something.")
The Roaring Seventies: A less common phrase sometimes used to refer to the 1970s, though "the Roaring Twenties" is far more common.
Seventy-five percent: A common way to express a specific proportion (e.g., "Seventy-five percent of the work is complete.").
Hitting seventy: Often used in the context of speed (e.g., "The car was hitting seventy on the highway.")
Pushing seventy: Describes someone who is approaching the age of seventy (e.g., "He's pushing seventy now, but still sharp.").
A score of seventy: Refers to achieving that specific number in a test or game (e.g., "He got a score of seventy on the exam.").
In one's seventies: Referring to someone's age decade (e.g., "She's still very active in her seventies.").
Rule of Seventy: A lesser-known financial rule of thumb (e.g., "According to the Rule of Seventy, it will take ten years for the investment to double at a 7% interest rate.").
Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA
Source Information
Definition of seventy from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.
