umpteenth
adjective
Bonnie SchiedelRedmond O'HanlonJane Fritsch
Did you know?
"I'll go to bed and I'll not get up for umpty-eleven months." You know the feeling. The speaker here is war-weary Bill, a character in Patrick MacGill's early 20th-century novel The Great Push. His "umpty" originated as military slang around 1905 and stood for an indefinite number, generally largish. (It was probably created by analogy to actual numbers such as "twenty.") Soon, there followed "umpteen," blending "umpty" and "-teen." "Umpteen" usually describes an indefinite and large number or amount, while the related "umpteenth" is used for the latest or last in an indefinitely numerous series. We only occasionally use "umpty" these days (and even more rarely "umptieth"), but you're bound to hear or read "umpteen" and "umpteenth" any number of times.
Examples of umpteenth in a Sentence
Evan Bell, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Sep. 2025
Many in Hollywood were dubious as to whether Universal and Amblin’s 2025 summer tentpole Jurassic World Rebirth — the umpteenth reboot of the franchise featuring a whole new cast — would work.
—Pamela McClintock, HollywoodReporter, 10 Aug. 2025
By 2013, Paramore were on their fourth album and umpteenth lineup change.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 3 Aug. 2025
So, instead of asking them for the umpteenth time or trying to subtly stalk their LinkedIn page, make a note of it in your phone.
—Cody Godwin, USA Today, 29 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for umpteenth
Cite this Entry
“Umpteenth.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/umpteenth. Accessed 19 Sep. 2025.
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