1
: a group or set of 10
his prisoners were divided into decades—
William Godwin
: such as
William Godwin
a
: a period of 10 years
has been teaching for over a decade
the decade of the twenties
b
Roman Catholicism
: a division of the rosary that consists primarily of 10 Hail Marys
2
mathematics
: a ratio of 10 to 1 : order of magnitude
Examples of decade in a Sentence
The war lasted nearly a decade.
The bridge was built a decade ago.
The decade of the 1920s runs from January 1, 1920 to December 31, 1929.
the first decade of the 21st century
There have been a lot of changes during the past two decades.
Recent Examples on the Web
The dairy product has had a niche following that transcends partisanship for decades.
—Natalie Daher, Axios, 20 Nov. 2024
The seat was considered a tossup, even though the congressional district covering much of the region has been represented by Democrats for decades.
—Darcie Moran, Detroit Free Press, 20 Nov. 2024
Outdated technology, codenames, and paranoia have marked the better part of the last two decades at Google (GOOGL-2.04%).
—Rocio Fabbro, Quartz, 20 Nov. 2024
Gesaffelstein will play Ultra for the first time in a decade.
—Katie Bain, Billboard, 19 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for decade 
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Natalie Daher, Axios, 20 Nov. 2024
The seat was considered a tossup, even though the congressional district covering much of the region has been represented by Democrats for decades.
—Darcie Moran, Detroit Free Press, 20 Nov. 2024
Outdated technology, codenames, and paranoia have marked the better part of the last two decades at Google (GOOGL-2.04%).
—Rocio Fabbro, Quartz, 20 Nov. 2024
Gesaffelstein will play Ultra for the first time in a decade.
—Katie Bain, Billboard, 19 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for decade
Dictionary Entries Near decade
Cite this Entry
“Decade.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/decade. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
decade
noun
de·cade
ˈdek-ˌād 
-əd;
de-ˈkād;
sense 3 is usually ˈdek-əd
1
: a group or set of 10
2
: a period of 10 years
3
: a part of the rosary made up mainly of 10 Hail Marys
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