B.C.E.

American  

abbreviation

1. Bachelor of Chemical Engineering.

2. Bachelor of Christian Education.

3. Bachelor of Civil Engineering.

4. before (the) Common Era.

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BCE British  

abbreviation

1. Before Common Era (used, esp by non-Christians, in numbering years _bc )

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BCE Scientific  

1. Abbreviation for before the Common Era.

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B.C.E. Cultural  

1. An abbreviation sometimes used in place of b.c. It means “before the Common Era.”

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Example Sentences

Instead, they display levels of complexity and information density similar to proto-cuneiform, the earliest known writing system, which appeared around 3,000 B.C.E., tens of thousands of years later.

From Science Daily • Feb. 25, 2026

B.C.E., when they suffered a resounding defeat at the hands of the Byzantine Empire—the Avars shifted away from their nomadic lifestyle and settled in villages and farmed cereal crops.

From Science Magazine • Apr. 24, 2024

The Grave Creek Mound itself was constructed by members of the mound-building Native American Adena culture, which existed from about 500 B.C.E. to 100 C.E.

From Slate • Nov. 11, 2023

The authors looked at a period of Middle Eastern history between 12,000 and 400 B.C.E. and drew from the skeletal remains of more than 3,500 individuals.

From Scientific American • Oct. 10, 2023

Strewn across the benches were old magazines: Highlights for Children, Autumn, 20 B.C.E.;

From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan