NU'MERATOR, noun [Latin] 1. One that numbers. 2. In arithmetic, the number in vulgar fractions which shows how many parts of a unit are taken. Thus when a unit is divided into 9 parts, and we take 5, we express it thus, 5/9, that is, five ninths; 5 being the numerator and 9 the denominator.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI