baker's dozen
4
3.0
- noun
- /ˈbeɪkərz ˈdʌzən/
:
docena de panadero
- When ordering bagels, she always asks for a baker's dozen to share with friends.
- baker's dozen is 13
Examples
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So, how many can I put you down for, a baker's dozen to start?
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No, make that a baker's dozen, second.
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Let's see, more than a baker's dozen.
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A baker's dozen of cottages made a ring around the park.
Fiction book (1995) -
Perhaps a baker's dozen is the lower limit of traded objects.
Academic text (1994) -
Act like you're packing a baker's dozen.
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It's a baker's dozen.
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At the event, we received a baker's dozen of pastries instead of the usual dozen.
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The recipe calls for a baker's dozen of muffins, so don't forget to make thirteen.
Synonyms
195
1.0
A number one more than twelve
A set of thirteen items given instead of twelve as an extra
A group of thirteen items, one more than the usual twelve
Surface Forms
Morphology
baker's + dozen
Although the constituents 'baker' and 'dozen' (a group of twelve) are recognizable, the specific meaning 'thirteen' is not inferable from combining them; the extra one comes from a historical/cultural practice (bakers adding an extra item) rather than compositional logic. This reliance on cultural convention makes the expression idiomatic and unpredictable for a B1 learner who only knows the constituent words.
Etymology
Baker's dozen comes from old bakers who, to avoid trouble for selling less than a dozen, would put one extra loaf or roll into the bag. So, baker's dozen now means 'thirteen'.