-fold

suffix

Used to make adjectives meaning "times".

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

OriginMiddle English -fold ← Old English -feald ← Proto-West Germanic *-falþ →
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Meanings

suffix-fold (adjective-forming suffix, not comparable)
  1. not comparableUsed to make adjectives meaning "times".

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

    3 more examples

    The cancer tissue in two of the ... specimens ... exhibited a dramatic 23-fold increase in the laminin-receptor-mRNA levels.

    1991, Vittoria Cioce; Vince Castronovo; Barry M. Shmookler; et. al, Journal of the National Cancer Institute, "Increased Expression of the Laminin Receptor in Human Colon Cancer" [1]

    "[Use] of a decimal without a zero to the left of the decimal (ie .5 instead of 0.5) has resulted in 10-fold error[.]

    2011, Joel. E. Houghlum, Principles of Pharmacology for Athletic Trainers

    Ezekiel outlines the harlotry of Judah followed by a thirty-two-fold judgment.

    2013, Jerome Strong, Spiritual Musings II: Sermons, Musings & Exegesis
  2. not comparableUsed to make adverbs meaning "times".

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

    4 more examples

    A publication ... entitled "The Sixth Financial and Economical Annual of Japan" ... issued in 1906 ... says: ¶ "...[O]ur export trade had in ... thirty-two years increased thirty-four-fold with Asia, twenty-three-fold with America, and five-fold with Europe[.]

    c. 1906, Silk Association of America, XXXV Annual Meeting of the Silk Association of America

    His potatoes yielded forty-onefold in 1816 and his barley thirty-twofold in 1818.

    2011, James R. Gibson, Farming the Frontier

    In contrast, the number of Asian foreign born would increase twenty-two-fold to more than 11 million, and the number of Latin American foreign born would increase twenty-three-fold to 22 million.

    2014, Thomas R. Oliver, Guide to U.S. Health and Health Care Policy

    BP (BP) has also promised to increase its low carbon investments 10-fold by 2030 as part of its bid to get to net zero emissions by 2050.

    2020 August 18, Matt Egan, “It’s a bizarre time for Trump to open Alaska’s Arctic refuge up to oil drilling”, in CNN Business, archived from the original on 07 Sep 2023

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*-poltos“-fold”
  2. Proto-Germanic*-falþaz“-fold”
  3. Proto-West Germanic*-falþ
  4. Old English-feald“-fold”
  5. Middle English-fold
  6. English-fold

From Middle English -fold, -fald, -fauld, from Old English -feald (“-fold”), from Proto-West Germanic *-falþ, 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.

More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-West Germanic

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Ancient Greek -πλασίων, -πλάσιος
  • -πλασίων (-plasíōn)used to make adjectives
  • -πλάσιος (-plásios)used to make adjectives
  • -πλασιόνως (-plasiónōs)used to make adverbs
Chinese Mandarin 倍
  • 倍 (bèi)used to make adjectives
Dutch -voudig, -voudig
  • -voudigused to make adjectives
  • -voudigused to make adverbs
Esperanto -obla, -oble
  • -oblaused to make adjectives
  • -obleused to make adverbs
Finnish -kertainen, -kertaisesti
  • -kertainenused to make adjectives
  • -kertaisestiused to make adverbs
French see example), see example)
  • see example)used to make adjectives
  • see example)used to make adverbs
German -fach, -fache
  • -fachused to make adjectives
  • -facheused to make adjectives
  • -fachused to make adverbs
  • -faltigused to make adverbs
Greek -πλάσιος
  • -πλάσιος (-plásios)used to make adjectives
Hebrew פִּי, פַּעַם
  • פִּי (pi)used to make adjectives
  • פַּעַם (pá'am)used to make adjectives
  • פִּי (pi)used to make adverbs
  • פַּעַם (pá'am)used to make adverbs
Hungarian -szoros, -szeres
  • -szorosused to make adjectives
  • -szeresused to make adjectives
  • -szörösused to make adjectives
  • -szorosanused to make adverbs
  • -szeresenused to make adverbs
  • -szörösenused to make adverbs
  • -szorosáraused to make adverbs
  • -szereséreused to make adverbs
  • -szöröséreused to make adverbs
Italian see example), see example)
  • see example)used to make adjectives
  • see example)used to make adverbs
Japanese -倍
  • -倍 (-bai)used to make adjectives
Korean -배
  • -배 (-bae)used to make adjectives
Latin -fārius
  • -fāriusused to make adjectives
Polish -krotny, -kroć
  • -krotnyused to make adjectives
  • -kroćused to make adverbs
  • -krotnieused to make adverbs
Portuguese see example), em X vezes
  • see example)used to make adjectives
  • em X vezesused to make adverbs
Russian -кра́тный, -кра́тно
  • -кра́тный (-krátnyj)used to make adjectives
  • -кра́тно (-krátno)used to make adverbs
Slovak -krát, -krát
  • -krátused to make adjectives
  • -krátused to make adverbs
Spanish see example), see example)
  • see example)used to make adjectives
  • see example)used to make adverbs
Swedish -faldig, -faldigt
  • -faldigused to make adjectives
  • -faldigtused to make adverbs
  • -faltused to make adverbs
Vietnamese gấp, lần
  • gấpused to make adjectives
  • lầnused to make adjectives
  • gấp ... lần (circumfixal)used to make adjectives
Welsh -blyg, -phlyg
  • -blygused to make adjectives
  • -phlygused to make adjectives
  • -blygused to make adverbs
  • -phlygused to make adverbs
Cite this entry
APA

-fold. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/-fold

MLA

“-fold.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/-fold. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “-fold,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/-fold.

Source: -fold on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.