-fold

See also: fold, föld, and Föld

English

Etymology

From Middle English -fold, -fald, -fauld, from Old English -feald (“-fold”), from Proto-Germanic *-falþaz (“-fold”), from Proto-Indo-European *-poltos (“-fold”), from *pel- (“to fold”). Cognate with Dutch -voud, Swedish -faldig (“-fold”), Latin -plus, -plex, Ancient Greek -παλτος (-paltos), -πλος (-plos), -πλόος (-plóos). More at fold.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Suffix

-fold

1. Used to make adjectives meaning times.

   There has been a threefold increase in inflation ( = inflation is three times what it was before)

2. Used to make adverbs meaning times.

   Inflation has increased threefold ( = inflation is three times what it was before)

Derived terms

Note: -fold can be combined with the word for any positive integer. The words listed below are some of the most common combinations. These words are not hyphenated.

• onefold
• twofold
• threefold
• fourfold
• fivefold
• sixfold
• sevenfold
• eightfold
• ninefold
• tenfold
• elevenfold
• twelvefold
• twentyfold
• thirtyfold
• fortyfold
• fiftyfold
• sixtyfold
• seventyfold
• eightyfold
• ninetyfold
• hundredfold
• thousandfold
• millionfold
• manifold

English terms suffixed with -fold

Translations

used to make adjectives

• Armenian: -պատիկ (-patik)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 倍 (zh) (bèi)

• Cornish: -plek, -blek, -flek
• Dutch: -voudig (nl)
• Finnish: -kertainen
• French: fois (as a separate word: see example)

  a threefold increase - un accroissement de trois fois

• German: -fach (de), -fache f pl
• Gothic: -𐍆𐌰𐌻𐌸𐍃 (-falþs)
• Greek:

  Ancient: -πλασίων (-plasíōn)

• Hebrew: פִּי (pi) (as a separate word, before that of number), פַּעַם (he) (pá'am) (sg.) / פְּעָמִים (pe'amím) (pl.) (as a separate word, after another numeral + the word of modified number)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: -szoros, -szeres, -szörös

  a threefold increase - háromszoros növekedés

• Italian: volte (as a separate word: see example)

  a threefold increase - un aumento di tre volte

• Japanese: -倍 (ja) (-ばい, -bai)
• Korean: 배 (ko) (-bae)
• Manx: -filley, -illey
• Polish: -krotny
• Portuguese: vezes (as a separate word: see example)

  a threefold increase - um aumento de três vezes

• Russian: -кра́тный (-krátnyj)
• Slovak: -krát
• Spanish: veces (as a separate word: see example)

  a threefold increase - un aumento de tres veces

• Swedish: -faldig (sv)
• Welsh: -blyg, -phlyg

used to make adverbs

• Armenian: -պատիկ (-patik)
• Cornish: -plek, -blek, -flek
• Dutch: -voudig (nl)
• Finnish: -kertaisesti
• French: fois (as a separate word: see example)

  to increase threefold - accroitre trois fois

• German: -fach (de), -faltig
• Greek:

  Ancient: -πλασιόνως (-plasiónōs)

• Hebrew: פִּי (pi) (as a separate word, before that of number), פַּעַם (he) (pá'am) (sg.) / פְּעָמִים (pe'amím) (pl.) (as a separate word, after another numeral + the word of modified number)
• Hungarian: -szorosan, -szeresen, -szörösen, -szorosára, -szeresére, -szörösére (-szoros/-szeres/-szörös combined with -an (hu)/-en (hu) or -a (hu)+-ra (hu) / -e+-re (hu))

  to increase threefold - háromszorosára növekszik (or háromszorosan megnövekszik)

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Italian: volte (as a separate word: see example)

  to increase threefold - aumentare tre volte

• Manx: -filley, -illey
• Polish: -kroć, -krotnie
• Portuguese: em X vezes
• Russian: -кра́тно (-krátno)
• Slovak: -krát
• Spanish: veces (as a separate word: see example)

to increase threefold - aumentar tres veces

• Swedish: -faldigt, -falt (sv)
• Welsh: -blyg, -phlyg

Usage notes

• Some writers and speakers use misconstructions like "an increase by twofold," which they believe to mean the same thing as "a twofold increase." But these two things logically mean "an increase by 200% of the original amount" and "an increase to 200% of the original amount," respectively. This practice is not only ambiguous but grammatically poor; it misuses -fold by using it as a noun. -Fold takes no preposition.
• In scientific contexts, "-fold" is sometimes appended to numerals (with the same sense), as in a 2010 paper by M.C. Stone et al., which mentions "10-fold up-regulation of the number of growing microtubules" in its abstract.

Anagrams

• FLOD

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Danish

Suffix

-fold

1. (rare) Used to make adjectives meaning times.
2. Used to make adverbs meaning times.
   • 2010, Knud H. Thomsen, Knud H. Thomsen (Pichard), Klokken i Makedonien, Gyldendal A/S (→ISBN)

     Inde i den lød tonerne af „Lili Marlene“, og fra bjergene svarede ekkoet tifold tilbage.

     Inside it came the tones of "Lili Marlene", and from the mountains the echo replied tenfold.

Synonyms

• gange

References

• “-fold” in Ordbog over det danske Sprog
• “-fold” in Den Danske Ordbog

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Middle English

Alternative forms

• -fald, -falde, -feld, -folde, -vald
• (early) -feald

Etymology

Inherited from Old English -feald, from Proto-West Germanic *-falþ, from Proto-Germanic *-falþaz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /-fɔːld/
• (early) IPA^(key): /-fɑːld/

Suffix

-fold

1. Forms adjectives meaning "times" or "parts"; -fold.

Derived terms

Middle English terms suffixed with -fold

Descendants

• English: -fold
• Scots: -fauld, -faul, -fald

References

• “-fōld, suf.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.