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Literary notes about Ordinal (AI summary)

In literature, the term “ordinal” is employed to denote order or sequence, functioning both as a grammatical descriptor and as a marker of classification or rank. In grammatical discussions, it is used to refer to numeral adjectives that indicate position within a series—for instance, converting cardinals into forms like “first” or “second” [1][2][3]. At the same time, various texts incorporate “ordinal” in liturgical, historical, and institutional contexts, where it serves to identify official orders or procedures, as in the designation of church services or official documents [4][5][6]. Furthermore, in scientific and taxonomic writings, “ordinal” functions as a formal label to classify organisms into distinct groups, reflecting its versatility in signifying ordered categorizations across diverse fields [7][8][9].
  1. The Relative Pronoun.—The Future Perfect Tense.—Ordinal Numerals.—
    — from A Complete Grammar of Esperanto by Ivy Kellerman Reed
  2. 2. Ordinal numeral adjectives ( first , second , third , etc.) denote the position or order of a person or thing in a series.
    — from An Advanced English Grammar with Exercises by Frank Edgar Farley and George Lyman Kittredge
  3. Ordinal numerals , 149; advs., 158; abbreviation of, p. 107, ftn.
    — from A Complete Grammar of Esperanto by Ivy Kellerman Reed
  4. The Ordinal does not belong to the Prayer Book proper, but has a separate identity of its own.
    — from A Short History of the Book of Common Prayer by William Reed Huntington
  5. John Norton, [758] an alchemist in the reign of Edward IV., wrote a poem entitled the “Ordinal,” or a manual of the chemical art.
    — from Folk-lore of Shakespeare by T. F. (Thomas Firminger) Thiselton-Dyer
  6. There is no proof of any ratification ever having been made by Rome of any ordinations according to the Anglican ordinal.
    — from The Catholic World, Vol. 03, April to September, 1866 by Various
  7. Vaginata : sheathed: an obsolete ordinal term for Coleoptera.
    — from Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology by John Bernhard Smith
  8. Dictyoptera : an ordinal term applied to the roaches: also more generally to the Orthoptera.
    — from Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology by John Bernhard Smith
  9. Paleodictyoptera : an ordinal name suggested by Scudder for Paleozoic insects which cannot be assigned to existing orders.
    — from Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology by John Bernhard Smith

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