cement

[ si-ment ]
See synonyms for: cementcementedcementing on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. any of various calcined mixtures of clay and limestone, usually mixed with water and sand, gravel, etc., to form concrete, that are used as a building material.

  2. any of various soft, sticky substances that dry hard or stonelike, used especially for mending broken objects or for making things adhere.

  1. Petrography. the compact groundmass surrounding and binding together the fragments of clastic rocks.

  2. anything that binds or unites: Time is the cement of friendship.

  3. Dentistry.

    • a hardening, adhesive, plastic substance, used in the repair of teeth for anchoring fillings or inlays, for filling, or for fastening crowns.

    • Informal. cementum.

verb (used with object)
  1. to unite by or as if by cement: to cement stones to form a wall; to cement a relationship.

  2. to coat or cover with cement: to cement a floor.

verb (used without object)
  1. to become cemented; join together or unite; cohere.

Origin of cement

1
1250–1300; <Latin cēmentum, variant of caementum (singular of caementa unprocessed cuttings from the quarry, i.e., rough stone and chips) <*caed-mentom, equivalent to caed(ere) to cut + -mentum-ment; replacing Middle English cyment<Old French ciment<Latin, as above

Other words for cement

Other words from cement

  • ce·ment·a·ble, adjective
  • ce·ment·er, noun
  • ce·ment·less, adjective
  • re·ce·ment, verb
  • well-ce·ment·ed, adjective

Words that may be confused with cement

Words Nearby cement

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use cement in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cement

cement

/ (sɪˈmɛnt) /


noun
  1. a fine grey powder made of a mixture of calcined limestone and clay, used with water and sand to make mortar, or with water, sand, and aggregate, to make concrete

  2. a binder, glue, or adhesive

  1. something that unites or joins; bond

  2. dentistry any of various materials used in filling teeth

  3. mineral matter, such as silica and calcite, that binds together particles of rock, bones, etc, to form a solid mass of sedimentary rock

  4. another word for cementum

verb(tr)
  1. to reinforce or consolidate: once a friendship is cemented it will last for life

  2. to join, bind, or glue together with or as if with cement

  1. to coat or cover with cement

Origin of cement

1
C13: from Old French ciment, from Latin caementum stone from the quarry, from caedere to hew

Derived forms of cement

  • cementer, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012