Etymology Inherited from Middle English eightethe, from Old English eahtoþa, from Proto-Germanic *ahtudô; equivalent to eight + -th (ordinal suffix).
1
The ordinal form of the number eight.
Consequently, in the initial position the white pieces and pawns are placed on the first and second ranks; the black pieces and pawns on the eighth and seventh ranks.2022, “2023 Laws of Chess”, in FIDE, page 21:
In 2023, the birthrate fell for the eighth consecutive year to 0.72, the lowest in the world, from 1.24 in 2015, raising concerns over the economic shock to society from such a rapid pace.2025 February 25, “South Korea’s birth rate rose for the first time in 9 years. Is the world’s lowest fertility rate on the rebound?”, in CNN, sourced from Reuters, archived from the original on 06 Jul 2025:
Etymology Inherited from Middle English eightethe, from Old English eahtoþa, from Proto-Germanic *ahtudô; equivalent to eight + -th (ordinal suffix).
1
The person or thing in the eighth position.
2
One of eight equal parts of a whole.
Two bits equals two eighths of a dollar.
Scientists from the University of Pennsylvania have determined that the young skull is only an eighth as strong as an adult one.2000 October 3, Eric Nagourney, “VITAL SIGNS: PROTECTION; A Measure of an Infant Skull's Strength”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 19 Apr 2022:
3
Slang An eighth of an ounce, or approximately 3.5 grams, of marijuana or other drugs.
At midday he’d found an ageing eighth of hash in a drawer, a little bundle of cellophane.2000, Zadie Smith, White Teeth, London: Penguin Books, published 2001, →ISBN, page 499:
Etymology Inherited from Middle English eightethe, from Old English eahtoþa, from Proto-Germanic *ahtudô; equivalent to eight + -th (ordinal suffix).
1
To divide by eight.
The first step is to eighth the script out. See figure 3.6 overleaf. Eighthing a script is subjective.2013, Raindance Producers' Lab Lo-To-No Budget Filmmaking, page 31: