digit

digit — noun

1. Any of the ten single written symbols — 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 — that

1.nounA2
Definition

Any of the ten single written symbols — 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 — that are used to write numbers in the everyday decimal system.

Example

Eve wrote down the four-digit code on a small piece of paper.

four-digit code: noun preceded by number-range + digit

The last digit of the price was a 9, so the total came to thirty-nine dollars.

last digit: position + digit

Common collocations
  • single-digit / double-digit / three-digit / four-digit
  • last digit / final digit
  • first digit / leading digit
  • digit code / digit number / digit sequence
Synonyms
  • numeral

    more formal and less common in everyday speech; 'numeral' is the symbol itself while 'digit' emphasises its role in a larger number.

  • figure

    overlaps in meaning but 'figure' can also refer to a whole number or a statistical value, making it less precise.

  • character

    broader term that includes letters, punctuation, and symbols; not specific to numerical values.

Grammar Patterns

digit + [number]

digit of + [noun]

Usage Note

In everyday contexts, the term 'digit' is most commonly used with a number prefix (two-digit, three-digit, etc.) to describe how many symbols a number contains.

Common Mistakes

Please write the digit 42 on the form.
Please write the number 42 on the form.
'digit' refers to a single symbol (0–9), not a whole multi-digit number like 42.

2. A separate, movable part at the end of a person's hand or foot — covering each f

2.nounB2
Definition

A separate, movable part at the end of a person's hand or foot — covering each finger, the thumb, and all of the toes.

Example

The doctor carefully examined each digit on the patient's left hand.

digit on + body part: prepositional structure specifying location

Yuki accidentally caught her digit in the car door and let out a sharp cry.

Common collocations
  • five digits
  • each digit / every digit
  • digit on ... hand/foot
  • left-hand digits / right-hand digits
Synonyms
  • finger

    everyday term for the four long parts of the hand, excluding the thumb; less formal and more common in daily use.

  • toe

    specific to the foot; 'digit' can mean either a finger or a toe.

  • phalange

    technical term for an individual finger or toe bone rather than the whole digit.

Grammar Patterns

[number] + digits

digit on + [body part]

Usage Note

This sense is common in medical, biological, and forensic contexts. In everyday conversation, speakers almost always use the specific words 'finger', 'thumb', or 'toe' instead of 'digit'.

Common Mistakes

She has beautiful digits.
She has beautiful fingers.
Using 'digit' to refer to fingers in ordinary conversation sounds unnatural or clinical.

3. A single symbol used to represent a numerical value in a counting system that is

3.nounC1
Definition

A single symbol used to represent a numerical value in a counting system that is not based on ten, such as the binary system (using only 0 and 1) or the hexadecimal system (using 0 through 9 and A through F).

Example

Élise traced the computer error back to a single wrong binary digit in the memory chip.

binary digit: specific numeral-system prefix + digit

Devika learned that hexadecimal uses sixteen digits, including the letters A through F.

Common collocations
  • binary digit / octal digit / hexadecimal digit
  • digit value / digit position
  • single digit / multi-digit (in non-decimal contexts)
Synonyms
  • bit

    a binary digit specifically; does not apply to other numeral systems such as octal or hexadecimal.

  • symbol

    general term for any character representing a value; less precise than 'digit' because it includes non-numerical characters.

  • place

    refers to the position of a digit within a number rather than the digit itself.

Grammar Patterns

[base-name] + digit

digit in + [system]

Usage Note

In computing contexts, the number of possible values per digit is determined by the system's base: binary digits have 2 values, octal digits have 8, and hexadecimal digits have 16.

Common Mistakes

A decimal digit in binary can be 0, 1, or 2.
A binary digit can only be 0 or 1.
Each numeral system defines its own digit set; decimal digits go 0–9, binary digits go only 0–1.

Word family

  • digital
    adjectiveA2
  • digitally
    adverbB1
  • digitize
    verbB2
  • digitization
    nounC1
  • digitus
    noun

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

While 'digit', 'numeral', 'figure', 'character', and 'number' all relate to written symbols representing quantities, they differ in scope and use. A 'digit' is specifically one of the ten single symbols 0–9 used in the decimal system — the building blocks of a larger written number. A 'numeral' is any written representation of a number (e.g., '5', 'V', 'five'), making it broader than 'digit'. A 'figure' can mean a number or a statistical value (e.g., 'unemployment figures'), so its use is less precise. 'Character' is broader still, covering letters, punctuation, and symbols of any kind. 'Number' is the whole quantity or its written form, not a single component. For example, in 'the number 345 has three digits', 'number' refers to the whole, while 'digit' names each part.

numeralfigure ↗characternumber ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • digit code
  • digit number
  • digit sequence
  • digit value
  • digit position

Phrases

  • single-digit
  • double-digit
  • three-digit
  • four-digit
  • multi-digit

Prepositions

  • digit in
  • digit of
  • digit on

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

The word 'digit' entered English around the 15th century from Latin 'digitus', meaning 'finger' or 'toe'. The meaning extended to numerals because people throughout history have used their fingers to count. The number-related sense first appeared in late Middle English, while the anatomical sense was adopted through French in the same period. The computing sense (binary digit, hexadecimal digit) emerged in the mid-20th century alongside the development of digital computers.