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I have been trying to google it for the past half-hour and I cannot come up with anything. I also don't know how to phrase my question properly.

Do we have words for other fractions analogous to 1=whole 1/2=half 1/4=quarter

1/3=? 1/8=?

If there are, I figure they are archaic, but I need to know.

El Sh
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    eighth, sixteenth, thirty-second,... – Drew Feb 23 '21 at 17:27
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    ...third, etc. No, they are not archaic. – Kate Bunting Feb 23 '21 at 17:32
  • Let's try to help with the question: you've noted that a fourth is called a quarter and one of two equal pieces is called a half, and you're wondering whether a fraction like ⅛ has a special name like octer or something? [That's just an example, as far as I know ⅛ is not also called that.] Is that right? – Andrew Leach Feb 23 '21 at 18:09
  • Yes @AndrewLeach exactly. – El Sh Feb 23 '21 at 19:43
  • @Drew no. 1/4= fourth, but I'm looking for words like quarter but for 1/8 or 1/5 etc – El Sh Feb 23 '21 at 19:44
  • No to your no. The words for 1/8th, 1/16th, etc. are just what I said. "A hundredth" or "one hundredth", etc. "Half", "third", "fourth" or "quarter", "fifth",.... And "three quarters" or "three fourths",... – Drew Feb 23 '21 at 21:14

1 Answers1

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Not in everyday standard English, no. The fractional numbering system has become standardized. Half, third, and quarter are exceptions; otherwise the -th suffix is applied to all simple numbers from fourth onward (OED).

There may be specialized words that are used to name fractions, but they're more limited. For instance, tithe (teinds in Scotland) is usually used to denote contributing one-tenth of one's income to a church, and seems odd outside of that context (OED). Moiety is used to denote a half, usually in legal uses (OED). If there are other terms, they will likely have similar limits.

TaliesinMerlin
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  • "Third" serves as both the head noun in names of fractions with 3 on the bottom, and as the ordinal 3rd. It is not an exception. – Rosie F Oct 26 '22 at 05:12