Four

Pronunciation without "horse-hoarse" merger with "horse-hoarse" merger

• RP enPR: fô, IPA: /fɔː(ɹ)/
• Scotland enPR: fōr, IPA: /foːr/
• US enPR: fôr, IPA: /foʊɹ/, /fɔːɹ/
• Rhymes: -əʊə(r), Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)
• Homophones: fore, for with "horse-hoarse" merger

Origin

Middle English fower, from Old English fēower, from Proto-Germanic *fedwōr, from previous pre-Grimm Proto-Germanic *petwṓr, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷetwṓr, the neuter form of Proto-Indo-European *kʷetwóres. Cognate with German vier, Gothic 𐍆𐌹𐌳𐍅𐍉𐍂, Ancient Greek τέσσαρες, Latin quattuor (French quatre, Portuguese quatro), Old Norse fjórir (Danish fire), Russian четыре, Sanskrit चतुर्.

Numeral

numeral

1. (cardinal) A numerical value equal to 4; the number after three and before five; two plus two. This many dots (••••)There are four seasons: winter, spring, summer and autumn.
• Grey Riders|8Venters began to count them—one—two—three—four—on up to sixteen.
2. Describing a set or group with four components.

Derived terms

Related terms

• fourth

Full definition of four

Noun

1. (countable) The digit or figure 4; an occurrence thereof.
2. (countable) Anything measuring four units, as length.Do you have any more fours? I want to make this a little taller.
3. A person who is four years old.I'll take the threes, fours and fives and go to the playground.
4. (cricket, countable) An event whereby a batsman hits a ball which bounces on the ground before passing over a boundary in the air, resulting in an award of 4 runs for the batting team. If the ball does not bounce before passing over the boundary, a six is awarded instead.
5. (rowing) Quadruple sculls.
6. (obsolete) A four-pennyworth of spirits.
• 1887, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet, IV:I was a-strollin' down, thinkin' between ourselves how uncommon handy a four of gin hot would be, when suddenly the glint of a light caught my eye in the window of that same house.