centenary
Americanadjective
-
of or relating to a period of 100 years.
-
recurring once in every 100 years.
a centenary celebration.
noun
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centenaries
plural
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a centennial.
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a period of 100 years; century.
adjective
-
of or relating to a period of 100 years
-
occurring once every 100 years
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of centenary
1600–10; < Latin centēnārius (adj.), equivalent to centēn ( ī ) a hundred each ( cent ( um ) 100 + -ēnī distributive suffix) + -ārius -ary
Explanation
A centenary is the hundredth anniversary of some event. When your great grandfather turns 100, his birthday party will be the centenary of his birth. If your town is celebrating its centenary, that means it's exactly 100 years old. You can also use this word as an adjective, to describe something that's been around for a hundred years: "The orchestra's centenary concert will happen next summer." Centenary comes from the Latin centum, "hundred," which is also the root of its synonym, centennial.
Vocabulary lists containing centenary
Perfect Ten: Dec, Cent, Mille
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dec, cent, mille
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2015 National Spelling Bee Words
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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:
England Netball formed in 1926, making 2026 the national body's centenary year.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
This year marks the centenary of AA Milne's books, first published in 1926 and later brought to the screen by Walt Disney.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
Qualification will be absurdly easy - Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay are already there as hosts, staging one game each as a gesture of celebration for the World Cup centenary.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
The choreographer’s troupe marked its centenary this spring at City Center, and an exhibition at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts and a photographic book offer further insight into her innovative artistry.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 10, 2026
A recent centenary conference and festival devoted to him in modern Hungary simply described him, correctly, as 'European'.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
The festival was bookended by two comedies celebrating their centenaries: Charlie Chaplin’s “The Gold Rush” and Buster Keaton’s “Go West.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 17, 2025
"This event is very much in keeping with the reconciliation efforts of successive Irish presidents and the Queen over recent years and the inclusive approach to marking the decade of centenaries," he said.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2021
With 2019 short on big musical centenaries, the 150th anniversary of the death of Berlioz features prominently.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 1, 2019
The company, led by the artistic director, Mikko Nissinen, opens its season with “Genius at Play,” a program developed in celebration of the centenaries of Jerome Robbins and Leonard Bernstein.
From New York Times ● Sep. 12, 2018
Old Kanuha was the senior of all these centenaries.
From Northern California, Oregon, and the Sandwich Islands by Nordhoff, Charles
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.
