forty-eighth
UK[ˈfɔːti eɪtθ]US[ˈfɔːrti eɪtθ]
adj
Constituting number forty-eight in a sequence; 48th.
n
The person or thing that is number forty-eight in a sequence.
n
One of forty-eight equal parts of a whole.
Morpheme Breakdown
forty
eighth
forty
40
eighth
ordinal of 8
Etymology
The word 'forty-eighth' is a modern English compound, transparently built from the cardinal number 'forty' and the ordinal suffix '-eighth'. 'Forty' itself descends from Old English 'feowertig', a compound of 'feower' (four) and 'tig' (a group of ten), a common Germanic decimal pattern. The ordinal element '-eighth' derives from Old English 'eahtoþa', related to the cardinal 'eahta' (eight) and the Proto-Germanic suffix '-thōn' used to form ordinals. The logic of the compound is purely arithmetic, combining the base value of forty with the sequential position indicated by eighth to denote the item following the forty-seventh in an ordered series. This systematic method of forming higher ordinals via hyphenation is a standard feature of Modern English numeration.
Analysis
Structure: forty (40) + eighth (ordinal of 8)
forty: From Old English 'feowertig', meaning "four tens". Its functional role is to denote the cardinal number 40.
eighth: From Old English 'eahtoþa', meaning "ordinal number following the seventh". Its functional role is to form the ordinal number corresponding to the cardinal 'eight'.
Examples
She celebrated her forty-eighth birthday with a quiet dinner.
He finished in forty-eighth place in the marathon.
Approximately one forty-eighth of the total revenue was allocated to research.