centavo
Americannoun
noun
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a monetary unit of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Cape Verde, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Honduras, Mexico, Mozambique, Nicaragua, and the Philippines. It is worth one hundredth of their respective standard units
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a former monetary unit of Ecuador, El Salvador, and Portugal, worth one hundredth of their former standard units
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of centavo
First recorded in 1880–85; from Spanish: “one 100th part,” equivalent to cent- “100” ( see cent) + -avo, from Latin -āvum as in octāvum “eighth”; see octavo
Explanation
One centavo, 1/100th of certain currencies, probably won't buy you very much at all, no matter whether it's in quetzales, pesos, bolivianos, or córdobas. Much like the cent is 1/100th of a dollar or Euro, a centavo is 1/100th of the basic currency in many countries, including but not limited to Argentina, the Philippines, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Columbia, and Brazil. It comes from a Spanish and Portuguese word meaning "one-hundredth," just as cent comes from the Latin word for "hundred." Most countries that use a centavo either have or used to have a lot of Spanish or Portuguese speakers in them.
Vocabulary lists containing centavo
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:
"The government is not spending a single centavo on these ads and TV stations are carrying them for free," Andanar told reporters at an event in a Manila hotel.
From Reuters ● Aug. 30, 2016
"I did not steal a single centavo from the government," said during his three hours of giving evidence.
From BBC ● May 22, 2012
Only gradually will the new 10, 20 and 50 centavo pieces, the new, uniform-size cruzeiro bills supplant the timeworn milreis.
From Time Magazine Archive
Every centavo that went into his pocket came right out again to support the "auxiliary commissions" he organized to provide food, clothes and lodging for the poor.
From Time Magazine Archive
It had not been easy for him to arrive at this decision, to convince his family, and to make the long trip to the capital alone and without a centavo to speak with the patron.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
The coupon cost 30 centavos in Spain but could be exchanged for a 5-10 cent US postal stamp.
From Fox News ● Dec. 17, 2021
Our Goya can piggy bank was down to its last centavos.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 22, 2020
When the mayor of São Paulo wanted to increase bus fare by 21 centavos in 2013, the country erupted in the largest mass protests in its history.
From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2016
Today, Vale’s stock gained 0.9 percent, or 42 centavos, reaching 46.27 reais in Sao Paulo trading.
From Forbes ● Jul. 29, 2011
Pale with frustration, he stood up and walked out of the Hotel Frances fifty centavos poorer, leaving a trail of Viennese coffee on the springy carpet.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
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.
