numbered
numbered — verb
- numberedpresent simple I / you / we / they
- numbereds3rd person singular
- numbereding-ing form
- numberededpast simple
1. gave numbers to things in order, usually by writing the numbers on them so each
gave numbers to things in order, usually by writing the numbers on them so each one could be identified easily.
Layla numbered the exam papers before the students returned to class.
numbered + object for assigning labels
Feng carefully numbered each moving box so the kitchen items stayed together.
Amelia numbered the hotel rooms on the map before the tour began.
Kabir numbered the steps in the recipe to make the instructions easier.
numbered + steps in a process
Beatrix numbered the parking spaces after the new lines dried.
- numbered pages
- numbered boxes
- numbered seats
- numbered steps
- mix up
lose the ordered system that numbering creates
- leave unlabeled
keep items without any identifying mark
Grammar Patterns
numbered + noun phrase
Usage Note
Used for putting labels on separate items so people can find, sort, or follow them in order. Distinguish from verb/2, which is about a total rather than written labels.
2. reached a particular total, so that many people or things were in the group.
reached a particular total, so that many people or things were in the group.
By noon, the volunteers numbered more than two hundred across the city.
numbered + amount for reporting totals
Last summer the camp numbered only forty children because of the heat.
At its busiest, the bakery staff numbered nearly thirty people.
The lost files numbered just twelve, so the team recovered them quickly.
During the storm, emergency calls numbered in the thousands by evening.
numbered in the thousands
- numbered more than
- numbered only
- numbered nearly
- numbered in the thousands
- fall short of
stay below an expected or stated amount
- drop to
emphasizes a reduced total rather than a reported one
Grammar Patterns
numbered + amount
numbered in the thousands
Usage Note
Common in reports, news, and formal descriptions of group size. Distinguish from verb/1, where the subject gives labels to objects instead of stating how many there were.
numbered — adjective
- numberedpositive
- more numberedcomparative
- most numberedsuperlative
1. having a written number that shows its place in a line, list, or set.
having a written number that shows its place in a line, list, or set.
Noa picked up the numbered key that matched room 214 at the desk.
numbered + noun for labeled objects
Sora followed the numbered signs through the museum without asking for help.
Imani placed the numbered cards in order before the game started.
Evelyn sat in the numbered seat beside the window on the train.
Sirin checked the numbered lockers until the right one clicked open.
- numbered seats
- numbered pages
- numbered doors
- numbered cards
- unmarked
without any visible identifying sign
- unnumbered
without a number in a sequence or set
Grammar Patterns
numbered + noun
Usage Note
Usually comes before the noun it describes, especially for seats, doors, cards, pages, and other items arranged in a system.
2. likely to end, fail, or disappear soon, with little time left.
likely to end, fail, or disappear soon, with little time left.
With streaming growing fast, many people think cable TV's days are numbered.
fixed phrase: days are numbered
After the safety report, the old bridge's days seemed numbered.
Once the mayor lost party support, his days in office were numbered.
Rising rent made the corner bookstore feel that its days were numbered.
When electric buses arrived, the noisy diesel fleet's days were numbered.
- days are numbered
Grammar Patterns
someone's days are numbered
something's days are numbered
Usage Note
Almost always appears in the set phrase 'someone's or something's days are numbered'. It suggests an ending that now seems hard to avoid.
someone or something has only a short time left before an ending, failure, or loss of power.
After the election defeat, everyone knew the minister's days were numbered.
Once the leak became public, the unsafe factory's days were numbered.
The coach realized his days at the club were numbered after three straight losses.
Etymology
First known use
14th century
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1) Verb