Forth - fourth

These are two spellings that are sometimes confused. The word for 4th is spelled fourth – like the number 4, four.

The word forth is NOT a number. It is a slightly old-fashioned adverb, meaning roughly ‘forwards’ or ‘out’, both literally and figuratively. “The captain paced back and forth over the narrow deck, considering his plans”, “Back and forth they went, covering the same old ground, arguing over the same old disagreements”, or “the knight went forth to battle in a suit of armour”.

There is also a river Forth in Scotland. It ends in the wide estuary near which Edinburgh stands known as the Firth of Forth. The Firth is spanned by the famous Forth Bridge and the Forth Road Bridge.