different between class vs number

English

Etymology

From Middle French classe, from Latin classis (“a class or division of the people, assembly of people, the whole body of citizens called to arms, the army, the fleet, later a class or division in general”), from Proto-Indo-European *kelh?- (“to call, shout”). Doublet of classis.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, Ireland, New England) enPR: kläs, IPA^(key): /kl??s/
• (Northern England, Scotland) enPR: kl?s, IPA^(key): /klæs/, /klas/
• (General American, NYC) enPR: kl?s, IPA^(key): /klæs/, /kle?s/
• Rhymes: -??s, -æs
• Hyphenation: class

Noun

class (countable and uncountable, plural classes)

1. (countable) A group, collection, category or set sharing characteristics or attributes.
3. (sociology, countable) A social grouping, based on job, wealth, etc. In Britain, society is commonly split into three main classes; upper class, middle class and working class.
4. (uncountable) The division of society into classes.

5. (uncountable) Admirable behavior; elegance.

7. (education, countable and uncountable) A group of students in a regularly scheduled meeting with a teacher.

8. A series of lessons covering a single subject.

9. (countable) A group of students who commenced or completed their education during a particular year. A school class.

10. (countable) A category of seats in an airplane, train or other means of mass transportation.
12. (taxonomy, countable) A rank in the classification of organisms, below phylum and above order; a taxon of that rank.

13. Best of its kind.
14. (statistics) A grouping of data values in an interval, often used for computation of a frequency distribution.
16. (set theory) A collection of sets definable by a shared property.
    • 1973, Abraham Fraenkel, Yehoshua Bar-Hillel, Azriel Lévy, Foundations of Set Theory, Elsevier, 2nd Edition, page 119,

      In the present section we shall discuss the various systems of set theory which admit, beside sets, also classes. Classes are like sets, except that they can be very comprehensive; an extreme example of a class is the class which contains all sets. […] The main point which will, in our opinion, emerge from this analysis is that set theory with classes and set theory with sets only are not two separate theories; they are, essentially, different formulations of the same underlying theory.

17. (military) A group of people subject to be conscripted in the same military draft, or more narrowly those persons actually conscripted in a particular draft.
19. (object-oriented programming, countable) A set of objects having the same behavior (but typically differing in state), or a template defining such a set.

20. One of the sections into which a Methodist church or congregation is divided, supervised by a class leader.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:class

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Descendants

• ? Japanese: ??? (kurasu)

Translations

Verb

class (third-person singular simple present classes, present participle classing, simple past and past participle classed)

1. (transitive) To assign to a class; to classify.
2. (intransitive) To be grouped or classed.
   • 1790, Edward Tatham, The Chart and Scale of Truth

     the genus or family under which it classes

3. (transitive) To divide into classes, as students; to form into, or place in, a class or classes.

Derived terms

Translations

Adjective

class (not comparable)

1. (Ireland, Britain, slang) great; fabulous
   • 2009, Erik Qualman, Socialnomics

     To talented authors Tim Ash and Brian Reich for introducing me to John Wiley & Sons—a truly class outfit.

Related terms

References

• class in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• class in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• "class" in Raymond Williams, Keywords (revised), 1983, Fontana Press, page 60.
• class at OneLook Dictionary Search
• class in Keywords for Today: A 21st Century Vocabulary, edited by The Keywords Project, Colin MacCabe, Holly Yanacek, 2018.

Further reading

• Von Neumann–Bernays–Gödel set theory on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Old Irish

Verb

·class

1. passive singular preterite conjunct of claidid

Mutation

English

Alternative forms

• nummer (dialectal)
• numbre (obsolete)

Etymology 1

From Middle English number, nombre, numbre, noumbre, from Anglo-Norman noumbre, Old French nombre, from Latin numerus (“number”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *nem- (“to divide”). Compare Saterland Frisian Nummer, Nuumer, West Frisian nûmer, Dutch nummer (“number”), German Nummer (“number”), Danish nummer (“number”), Swedish nummer (“number”), Icelandic númer (“number”). Replaced Middle English ?etæl and rime, more at tell, tale and rhyme.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: n?m?b?r, IPA^(key): /?n?mb?/
• (General American) enPR: n?m?b?r, IPA^(key): /?n?mb?/
• Rhymes: -?mb?(?)
• Hyphenation: num?ber

Noun

number (plural numbers)

1. (countable) An abstract entity used to describe quantity.

2. (countable) A numeral: a symbol for a non-negative integer.

   Synonyms: scalar, (obsolete) rime

3. (countable, mathematics) An element of one of several sets: natural numbers, integers, rational numbers, real numbers, complex numbers, and sometimes extensions such as hypercomplex numbers, etc.

4. (Followed by a numeral; used attributively) Indicating the position of something in a list or sequence. Abbreviations: No or No., no or no. (in each case, sometimes written with a superscript "o", like Nº or ?). The symbol "#" is also used in this manner.

5. Quantity.
   • 1625, Francis Bacon, Of the True Greatness of Kingdoms and Estates

     Number itself importeth not much in armies where the people are of weak courage.

6. A sequence of digits and letters used to register people, automobiles, and various other items.

7. (countable, informal) A telephone number.
   • 2001, E. Forrest Hein, The Ruach Project, Xulon Press, page 86:

     “[...] I wonder if you could get hold of him and have him call me here at Interior. I’m in my office, do you have my number?”

   • 2007, Lindsey Nicole Isham, No Sex in the City: One Virgin's Confessions on Love, Lust, Dating, and Waiting, Kregel Publications, page 111:

     When I agreed to go surfing with him he said, “Great, can I have your number?” Well, I don’t give my number to guys I don’t know.

   • 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)

     Marsha's work number is 555-8986.

8. (grammar) Of a word or phrase, the state of being singular, dual or plural, shown by inflection.

   Synonym: numeral

9. (now rare, in the plural) Poetic metres; verses, rhymes.
10. (countable) A performance; especially, a single song or song and dance routine within a larger show.

11. (countable, informal) A person.
    • 1968, Janet Burroway, The dancer from the dance: a novel, Little, Brown, page 40:

      I laughed. "Don't doubt that. She's a saucy little number."

    • 1988, Erica Jong, Serenissima, Dell, page 214:

      "Signorina Jessica," says the maid, a saucy little number, "your father has gone to his prayers and demands that you come to the synagogue at once [...]"

    • 2005, Denise A. Agnew, Kate Hill & Arianna Hart, By Honor Bound, Ellora's Cave Publishing, page 207:

      He had to focus on the mission, staying alive and getting out, not on the sexy number rubbing up against him.

12. (countable, informal) An item of clothing, particularly a stylish one.
    • 2007, Cesca Martin, Agony Angel: So You Think You've Got Problems..., Troubador Publishing Ltd, page 134:

      The trouble was I was wearing my backless glittering number from the night before underneath, so unless I could persuade the office it was National Fancy Dress Day I was doomed to sweat profusely in bottle blue.

    • 2007, Lorelei James, Running with the Devil, Samhain Publishing, Ltd, page 46:

      "I doubt the sexy number you wore earlier tonight fell from the sky."

13. (slang, chiefly US) A marijuana cigarette, or joint; also, a quantity of marijuana bought form a dealer.
    • 2009, Thomas Pynchon, Inherent Vice, Vintage 2010, page 12:

      Back at his place again, Doc rolled a number, put on a late movie, found an old T-shirt, and sat tearing it up into short strips […]

14. (dated) An issue of a periodical publication.

    the latest number of a magazine

15. A large amount, in contrast to a smaller amount; numerical preponderance.
    • 1980, May 10, Al King "Braves travel to New England with reputation", The Indiana Gazette

      Despite last week's woes, the Braves still sport numbers that would make Christie Brinkley blush.

16. (informal, always indefinite) A large amount of damage

    • (Can we add an example for this sense?)

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Descendants

Translations

Verb

number (third-person singular simple present numbers, present participle numbering, simple past and past participle numbered)

1. (transitive) To label (items) with numbers; to assign numbers to (items).

   Number the baskets so that we can find them easily.

2. (intransitive) To total or count; to amount to.

   I don’t know how many books are in the library, but they must number in the thousands.

See also

• (grammatical numbers): singular, dual, trial, quadral, paucal, plural

References

• number on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Derived terms

• number among

Translations

See also

• Wiktionary’s Appendix of numbers

Etymology 2

From numb + -er.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: n?m'?, IPA^(key): /?n?m?/
• (US): enPR: n?m'?r, IPA^(key): /?n?m?/
• Hyphenation: num?ber

Adjective

number

1. comparative form of numb: more numb

Anagrams

• numbre, renumb

Estonian

Etymology

From German Nummer. The added -b- is analoguous to kamber and klamber.

Noun

number (genitive numbri, partitive numbrit)

1. number

Declension

Middle English

Noun

number

1. Alternative form of nombre

Papiamentu

Etymology

From English number.

An analogy of the Papiamentu word nòmber "name".

Noun

number

1. number