English

Noun

decennium ‎(plural decenniums or decennia)

1. A period of ten years.
   • 1998, soc.culture.netherlands, Usenet:

     G.B. still has to cope with the heritage of approx. 20 years of consecutive Conservative reigns, just as you guys are getting your act together after almost a decennium of Enlightened Ronnie.

   • 1996, soc.culture.usa, Usenet:

     Christian leaders refused even to *look* through Galileo's telescope (as a matter of fact, the Vatican cleared Galileo's name only as late as in the previous decennium).

Usage notes

Although decade may be taken as any group of ten years, it is commonly restricted to the informal ten-year periods of the calendar whose last digits run from 0 to 9. Decennium &c. has no such restriction.

Synonyms

• decenniad
• decennary
• (in some contexts): decade

Related terms

• (adj.): See decennial
• (adv.): See decennially
• (10-year anniversary): decennial
• millennium

Translations

Dutch

Pronunciation

Noun

decennium n ‎(plural decennia or decenniën, diminutive decenniumpje n)

1. a period of ten years

Synonyms

• jaartien, decade

Latin

Etymology

decem ‎(“ten”) + annus ‎(“year”)

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /deˈken.ni.um/

Noun

decennium n ‎(genitive decenniī); second declension

1. decennium; decade

Inflection

Second declension.

Derived terms

• duodecennium

Related terms

• biennium
• triennium
• quadriennium
• quinquennium
• sexennium
• septuennium
• octennium
• vicennium
• tricennium

See also

• biduum
• triduum
• trimenium

References

• decennium in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• Félix Gaffiot (1934), “decennium”, in Dictionnaire Illustré Latin-Français, Paris: Hachette.

Swedish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /dɛˈsɛnɪɵm/

Noun

decennium n

1. decade; a period of ten years

Declension