Definition

1. Adjective:

   • Coming next after the fourth and just before the sixth in position or order. This describes the ordinal number for the position following four.

2. Noun:

   • Position five in a countable series of things. The rank or place identified as number five.
   • One part in five equal parts. A fraction equal to 1/5 of a whole.
   • A quantity of liquor equal to one fifth of a United States gallon. A unit of volume for spirits, approximately 757 milliliters.
   • The musical interval between one note and another five notes away from it in a diatonic scale. A specific harmonic distance in music theory.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:

  • She finished in fifth place in the race.
  • This is the fifth time I have called you today.

• Noun (Position):

  • He was the fifth to arrive at the meeting.
  • The team is ranked fifth in the league.

• Noun (Fraction):

  • A fifth of the profits will be donated to charity.
  • I only ate a fifth of the cake.

• Noun (Liquor Measure):

  • He bought a fifth of whiskey for the party.

• Noun (Music):

  • The melody jumps a perfect fifth from C to G.

Advanced Usage

• "To take/plead the Fifth": To invoke the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which protects against self-incrimination, often meaning to refuse to answer a question.

  • When asked about the scandal, the witness chose to plead the Fifth.

• "Fifth column": A group within a country who secretly sympathize with and work for its enemies.

  • The government was worried about a potential fifth column undermining the war effort.

Variants and Related Words

• Fifthly (adverb): Used to introduce a fifth point in a list or argument.
  • Fifthly, we must consider the long-term environmental impact.

Synonyms

• 5th (adj., n.): The numeric abbreviation.
• One-fifth (n.): The fraction (1/5).

Related Phrases

• Fifth wheel:
  • An extra wheel carried on some vehicles.
  • (Figurative) A person or thing that is superfluous or unnecessary.

Idioms

• To smite/beat under the fifth rib (Archaic): To kill or strike mortally, specifically in the heart or vital area.
  • The traitor was smitten under the fifth rib.

Adjective

1. coming next after the fourth and just before the sixth in position

Noun

1. the musical interval between one note and another five notes away from it
2. one part in five equal parts
3. position five in a countable series of things
   • he was fifth out of several hundred runners
4. a quantity of liquor equal to one fifth of a United States gallon