cement

[ si-ment ]

/ sɪˈmɛnt /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: cement / cemented / cementing on Thesaurus.com

noun

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)

to unite by or as if by cement: to cement stones to form a wall; to cement a relationship.

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

verb (used without object)

to become cemented; join together or unite; cohere.

OTHER WORDS FOR cement

6 merge, join, bind, fuse, secure.

See synonyms for cement on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

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

OTHER WORDS FROM cement

ce·ment·a·ble, adjectivece·ment·er, nounce·ment·less, adjectivere·ce·ment, verb

well-ce·ment·ed, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH cement

cement , concrete, mortar

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use cement in a sentence

By capping a retired landfill with cement and capturing the methane produced by it, these offset programs can avoid the climate-warming contribution of that methane.
How to buy carbon offsets that actually make a difference|Ula Chrobak|December 3, 2020|Popular-Science
Ice within rock fissures acts like cement, keeping parts of the mountain together.
How Climate Change Is Making the Alps More Dangerous|Agostino Petroni|October 23, 2020|Outside Online
I use Ultracal 30, which is a gypsum cement to make a negative mold.
Making Halloween Masks That Don’t Suck|Eugene Robinson|October 16, 2020|Ozy
To reach the high temperatures required to produce steel and cement, coke — processed high-grade coal — is typically used.
China’s commitment to become carbon neutral by 2060, explained|Lili Pike|September 25, 2020|Vox

The problem is, China is just beginning to explore the use of hydrogen for steel and cement.
China’s commitment to become carbon neutral by 2060, explained|Lili Pike|September 25, 2020|Vox
The film also cemented its Rocky Horror status with a limited late-night theatrical run.
‘Sharknado 2’ in Winter: Has the Franchise Jumped the Shark?|Jason Lynch|July 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
These feats, among others, have cemented him as an artist whose talents continue to push the limits of effective storytelling.
Image is Everything: An Interview with Alejandro Zambra|Juan Vidal|February 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Trierweiler leaves the Elysée Palace having never cemented her place there with a leery French public.
Francois Hollande Announces Breakup with First Lady Valerie Trierweiler|Tracy McNicoll|January 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Court papers report, “Together, they packaged the remains and then re-cemented the area.”
A Goodfellas Sequel: A True-Life Lufthansa Figure Comes to Court|Michael Daly|January 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
His prominence was cemented by an appearance in a video of a tank ambush that killed hundreds of Russian soldiers in 1996.
Tsarnaev Brothers’ Impact on U.S.-Russian Counterterrorism Cooperation|Andrew S. Weiss|April 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
And the words, hitherto un-united, which are thus cemented together, are called Extremes.
Assimilative Memory|Marcus Dwight Larrowe (AKA Prof. A. Loisette)
You can then test yourself on the work by calling to mind whatever you have thus cemented together.
Assimilative Memory|Marcus Dwight Larrowe (AKA Prof. A. Loisette)
The rush up the Nile had not begun, and travellers had not yet cemented their travelling acquaintanceships.
Bella Donna|Robert Hichens
A concretion of rounded quartz pebbles, cemented by ferruginous matter, apparently of recent formation.
Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia] [Volume 2 of 2]|Phillip Parker King
Calcareous incrustations, including fragments of madrepores, and of shells, cemented by splintery carbonate of lime.
Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia] [Volume 2 of 2]|Phillip Parker King

British Dictionary definitions for cement

cement

/ (sɪˈmɛnt) /

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 (tr)

to reinforce or consolidateonce 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

Derived forms of cement

cementer, noun

Word Origin for cement

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

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

cement

OTHER WORDS FOR cement

Origin of cement

OTHER WORDS FROM cement

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH cement

Words related to cement

How to use cement in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cement

Derived forms of cement

Word Origin for cement