Meaning and background
The story behind Forty
Forty is the English number word for four times ten. Merriam-Webster traces it through Middle English fourty to an Old English formation combining four and a group-of-ten element. It also records tennis-score and decade-related uses. Those details offer several possible numerical stories behind a pet name, but a household’s particular date, age, or milestone is personal context rather than something the spelling itself reveals.
- Association
- Forty is the English number word for four times ten. Source
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About Forty
Recorded as a dog’s name
Forty appears in 2 dog licence records in the 2026 New York City dataset.
How to read this count
These records cover New York City and may count the same dog in more than one licence period. They are not a national popularity ranking.
Pronunciation and rhythm
/fɔɹti/
US English sound sequence, converted from the CMU dictionary. Stress marks are shown separately.
Stress on the first syllable in the recorded US readings.
View dictionary notation
/fɔɹti/ · primary stress on syllable 1F AO1 R T IY0
These are US dictionary readings. Personal, regional and other language pronunciations may differ.
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Sources and research notes (2)
- New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene NYC Dog Licensing Dataset — all seven available extract years, retrieved 24 October 2026 — Recorded name spellings in NYC licence-period rows, extract years 2016–2018, 2022–2024 and 2026. Evidence selects one stated year per name. Annual snapshots overlap; never sum them as unique dogs. No national popularity, etymology or owner naming-intent claim.
- Carnegie Mellon University / CMU Sphinx maintainers CMU US English Pronouncing Dictionary — US English dictionary readings; not owner-specific or exhaustive multilingual pronunciation
References support the individual facts shown. A source link does not mean the entire profile has been verified.