deset

Deset is the word for the number ten in several South Slavic languages, including Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, and Slovenian, as well as in Czech. It functions as a cardinal numeral when counting objects, marking the quantity ten. In these languages, the form is typically pronounced and written as deset, with small variations in spelling or diacritics in related languages (for example, desať in Slovak).

Etymology and cognates: The term derives from Proto-Slavic and has recognizable cognates across Slavic languages, reflecting a common ancient root for the digit ten. The word’s basic meaning as ten has remained stable while pronunciation and orthography have diverged in the modern languages.

Morphology and usage: As the base cardinal for ten, deset also appears in the formation of related numbers and in ordinal forms in some languages. For instance, many Slavic languages create adjectives or ordinals such as “tenth” by combining or modifying the base word, yielding forms like deseti or desátý in appropriate languages. The precise inflection and spelling depend on the language’s grammar.

Cultural and numerical significance: Ten is a fundamental unit in the decimal numeral system, widely adopted around the world. The word for ten commonly appears in everyday counting, education, and mathematics, and features in expressions related to counting fingers, groups of ten, and base-10 concepts that underpin modern arithmetic.

See also: Numbers in Slavic languages; Decimal numeral system; Ordinal numerals.