Numeral Meaning
/ˈnjuːməɹəl/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounA symbol that is not a word and represents a number, such as the Arabic numerals 1, 2, 3 or the Roman numerals I, V, X, L.
nounA representation of a number composed of such symbols.
Sentence Examples
Indicate the applicable numeral, by holding up the corresponding number of fingers.
They are known to scientists as Brood X (Roman numeral 10) periodic cicadas.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The teacher wrote the Roman ____ for ten, which looks like an X.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ancient clock used a Roman ____ for each hour instead of standard digits.
Word Origin & History
As an adjective, from Middle English numeral, numerall, from Latin numerālis (“pertaining to a number”), from numerus (“a number”). As a noun, via Middle French numeral.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Compare the numeral for the product with the original decimal numeral."
— 1966, Robert Lee Morton, Modern Mathematics Through Discovery, page 97:
"We use the term numeral for linguistic expressions and number for meanings. For example, five is a numeral expressing the number "5" - and fifteen hundred and one thousand five hundred are different numerals expressing the same number, "1,500"."
— 2002, Laurie Bauer, Rodney Huddleston, “Lexical word-formation”, in The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, page 1715:
"A long train of numeral progressions."
— 1689 (indicated as 1690), [John Locke], An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding. […], London: […] Eliz[abeth] Holt, for Thomas Basset, […], →OCLC:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The teacher wrote the Roman ____ for ten, which looks like an X.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ancient clock used a Roman ____ for each hour instead of standard digits.