cement
Americannoun
-
cements
plural
-
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.
-
any of various soft, sticky substances that dry hard or stonelike, used especially for mending broken objects or for making things adhere.
-
Petrography. the compact groundmass surrounding and binding together the fragments of clastic rocks.
-
anything that binds or unites.
Time is the cement of friendship.
-
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)
-
cements,
present (3rd person singular)
-
cemented,
past participle, past
-
cementing
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
cements,
present (3rd person singular)
-
cemented,
past participle, past
-
cementing
present participle
noun
-
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
-
a binder, glue, or adhesive
-
something that unites or joins; bond
-
dentistry any of various materials used in filling teeth
-
mineral matter, such as silica and calcite, that binds together particles of rock, bones, etc, to form a solid mass of sedimentary rock
-
another word for cementum
verb
-
to reinforce or consolidate
once a friendship is cemented it will last for life
-
to join, bind, or glue together with or as if with cement
-
to coat or cover with cement
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
cementsimple
-
cementssimple
-
have cementedperfect
-
has cementedperfect
-
am cementingprogressive
-
are cementingprogressive
-
is cementingprogressive
-
have been cementingperfect progressive
-
has been cementingperfect progressive
Past
-
cementedsimple
-
had cementedperfect
-
was cementingprogressive
-
were cementingprogressive
-
had been cementingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of cement
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
Explanation
Cement is a material that's used to build very strong, hard surfaces and structures. Cement is an ingredient in both mortar, which holds bricks together, and concrete, with which dams and roads and buildings are constructed. Cement begins as a powder made of clay and limestone, and after it's mixed with water and, often, sand, it's used to strengthen and bind things — as the mixture dries, it becomes hard and solid. A version of cement has been around since the third century BCE, in Mesopotamia. The word comes from the Latin root cæmenta, "stone chips for making mortar," from caedere, "to cut or chop."
Vocabulary lists containing cement
Black and Gray
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Engineering - Introductory
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Civil Engineering
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Its three open-spandrel arches were made using Portland cement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
He allegedly slept on the cement floor of a cell and told reporters that he was “not doing well.”
From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026
Their approach targets a major environmental challenge: rising atmospheric CO2 levels driven in large part by fossil fuel use and cement production.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026
His company Dangote Cement is Africa's largest cement producer.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
It was a gesture so familiar, so routine for anyone who’d ever worn glasses, that my whole body locked up like cement, then went limp.
From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia
His landmark concert at Wembley further cements his status as a global star.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
“The data cements the now-consensus view that the ECB will hold fire this month,” Claus Vistesen, chief eurozone economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said in a note to clients.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
This comes at a time when Beijing is polishing its image abroad as it cements its role as a global power.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
BNP Paribas analyst Moses Sutton wrote after the deal that it cements “Nextpower as the all-around way for investors to play AI-supported solar + storage growth.”
From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026
Epic in scope, violence, and imagination, Deathstorm is a new benchmark in the fantasy genre and cements forever G. M. Pennington’s status as the American Tolkien.
From "The Serpent King" by Jeff Zentner
Both cemented their careers at the firm within its investment banking division.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
Appreciate a music legend’s legacy: Dolly Parton got her start in Nashville as a country star, but she cemented her status as a global icon by courting pop fans.
From Slate ● Sep. 24, 2026
The 19-track record is a stark departure from his first album, “Next,” which cemented his role as one of música mexicana’s rising teen heartthrobs — alongside the likes of DannyLux and Ivan Cornejo.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026
Completing the extreme 100-mile course with just one minute 39 seconds to spare of the 60-hour cut-off, Jasmin Paris from Midlothian made history and cemented her name in the ultra-running history books.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
The bond between Fischer and Hall had been cemented back in 1992, when they had bumped into each other on K2, the world’s second-highest mountain.
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
But the film merely gestures to its own unfortunate place in history, without ever cementing it as a tragedy.
From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026
Third-party agents still lack access to data on Amazon’s inventory, further cementing the e-commerce giant’s edge.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026
The Houthis have been cementing their hold on the Bab Al-Mandab strait, a vital shipping corridor linking Europe and Asia that has been used as an alternative to Hormuz.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
He is cementing his place as the greatest.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
Technically, they were still Witchlings until their circle was sealed, cementing them as a true coven.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
