cigarette

American  

[sig-uh-ret, sig-uh-ret] / ˌsɪg əˈrɛt, ˈsɪg əˌrɛt /

Or cigaret

noun

1. a cylindrical roll of finely cut tobacco cured for smoking, considerably smaller than most cigars and usually wrapped in thin white paper.

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cigarette British  

/ ˌsɪɡəˈrɛt /

noun

1. Shortened forms: cig.   ciggy.  a short tightly rolled cylinder of tobacco, wrapped in thin paper and often having a filter tip, for smoking

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Other Word Forms

• anticigarette
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of cigarette

1820–30; < French, equivalent to cigare cigar + -ette -ette

Explanation

A small tube of paper that's filled with tobacco and lit with a match is a cigarette. Because cigarettes take a terrible toll on smokers' health, the number of people who smoke them has declined recently. Most cigarettes come in packages, each cigarette a perfect slim cylinder topped with a filter. When a cigarette is smoked all the way to this filter, it becomes a "butt." The main chemical in cigarettes is called nicotine, and it's extremely addictive — other additives in cigarettes can cause various cancers and lung diseases. Because of these dangers, cigarettes are regulated and highly taxed. The word itself comes from the French, meaning "little cigar."

Example Sentences

Cigarette butts litter the floor, moldy food is left to decay on greasy dishes and the ceiling is stained with candle soot.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

The US was the first nation in the world to require health warnings on cigarette packages, passing its Federal Cigarette Labelling and Advertising Act in 1965.

From BBC • May 31, 2023

Cigarette companies, fast-food chains and oil producers are spending millions to try to halt laws that are in the public interest.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 2, 2023

Cigarette makers have already warned that the F.D.A. would be overstepping its authority to regulate cigarettes by requiring a product that’s impossible to produce or unacceptable to consumers.

From New York Times • Jun. 21, 2022

Cigarette brands and casserole recipes and the best way to get a Jell-O salad out of a mold.

From "Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Pérez

Related Words

• smoke