adj
Meaning 1
Of fourth rank or order.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
Examples
- the quaternary stress in a pronounced word
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
quaternary
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
-
UK: /kwəˈtɜː.nə.ɹi/
-
UK, rare: /ˈkwɔːt.ən.(ə.)ɹi/
-
US: /ˈkwɑ.tɚˌnɛɹ.i/
-
/ˈkwɑ.tɚˌnɛə.ɹi/
-
US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
-
Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
-
kwŏt′ər-nĕr′ē
-
kwə-tûr′nə-rē
-
General-American: /ˈkwɑt.əɹˌnɛɹ.i/
-
General-American: /kwəˈtɜɹ.nə.ɹi/
-
Received-Pronunciation, rare: /ˈkwɒt.əˌnɛɹ.iː/
-
Received-Pronunciation: /kwəˈtɜː.nə.ɹiː/
-
CMU ARPABET: K W AA1 T ER0 N EH2 R IY0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
adj
Meaning 2
Of a mathematical expression containing e.g. x4.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adj
Meaning 3
Relating to or in number base four.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adj
Meaning 4
quaternary ammonium.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
Topics: chemistry, natural-sciences, organic-chemistry, physical-sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adj
Meaning 5
Composed of four elements.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
Topics: chemistry, inorganic-chemistry, natural-sciences, physical-sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
name
Meaning 6
The geological period of the Cenozoic Era immediately following the Tertiary. It is subdivided into the Pleistocene and the Holocene Epochs.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: geography, geology, natural-sciences
Examples
- Meronyms: Pleistocene, Holocene, Anthropocene, assholocene
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: Age of Man
Antonyms: none provided
name
Meaning 7
Alternative letter-case form of quaternary.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: alt-of
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 8
A quaternary compound.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: chemistry, natural-sciences, physical-sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 9
The Quaternary period or the system of deposits laid down during it.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: geography, geology, natural-sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adjective satellite
Meaning 10
coming next after the third and just before the fifth in position or time or degree or magnitude
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- the quaternary period of geologic time extends from the end of the tertiary period to the present
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: fourth, 4th
Antonyms: none provided
adjective satellite
Meaning 11
consisting of or especially arranged in sets of four
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- quaternate leaves
- a quaternary compound
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: quaternate
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 12
the cardinal number that is the sum of three and one
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: four, 4, IV, tetrad, quatern, quaternion, quaternity, quartet, quadruplet, foursome, Little Joe
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: digit, figure
noun
Meaning 13
last 2 million years
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: Quaternary period, Age of Man
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: period, geological period
History
Etymology
Derived from Latin quaternārius (“containing or consisting of four”), from quaternī (“four each”, “four at a time”) + -ārius (whence the English suffix -ary); compare the French quaternaire.
From Latin quaternārius (“consisting of four”), from quaternī (“by fours”); in numerical sense via Middle English quaternary. Compare French quaternaire.
Across languages
Translations
38 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Bulgarian: четвъртичен (četvǎrtičen) — of fourth rank or order
- Catalan: quaternari — of fourth rank or order
- Catalan: quaternària — of fourth rank or order
- Estonian: neljas — of fourth rank or order
- Finnish: kvartäärinen — of fourth rank or order
- Finnish: kvaternaarinen — of fourth rank or order
- French: d'ordre quatre — of fourth rank or order
- French: quaternaire — of fourth rank or order
- Italian: quaternario — of fourth rank or order
- Malay: aras empat — of fourth rank or order
- Malay: kuaterner — of fourth rank or order
- Portuguese: quaternário — of fourth rank or order
- Russian: четвертичный (četvertičnyj) — of fourth rank or order
- Finnish: neljännen asteen — of mathematical expressions
- French: d'ordre quatre — of mathematical expressions
- Catalan: quaternari — geological period
- Czech: čtvrtohory — geological period
- Czech: kvartér — geological period
- Dutch: Kwartair — geological period
- Finnish: kvartäärikausi — geological period
- French: quaternaire — geological period
- Georgian: მეოთხეული (meotxeuli) — geological period
- Georgian: მეოთხეული სისტემა (meotxeuli sisṭema) — geological period
- Georgian: მეოთხეული პერიოდი (meotxeuli ṗeriodi) — geological period
- German: Quartär — geological period
- Hungarian: negyedidőszak — geological period
- Italian: quaternario — geological period
- Japanese: 第四紀 (daiyonki) — geological period
- Polish: czwartorzęd — geological period
- Portuguese: Quaternário — geological period
- Russian: Четвертичный пери́од (Četvertičnyj períod) — geological period
- Serbo-Croatian: Kvartar — geological period
- Slovak: Kvartér — geological period
- Slovene: Kvartar — geological period
- Spanish: Cuaternario — geological period
- Swedish: kvartär — geological period
- Ukrainian: Антропогенова система (Antropohenova systema) — geological period
- Vietnamese: kỉ Đệ Tứ — geological period