cento

[ sen-toh ]

/ ˈsɛn toʊ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR cento ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural cen·tos.

a piece of writing, especially a poem, composed wholly of quotations from the works of other authors.

anything composed of incongruous parts; conglomeration.

Obsolete. a patchwork.

Nearby words

centipede grass, centipoise, centistere, centistoke, centner, cento, centonical, centr-, centra, centrad, central

Origin of cento

First recorded in 1595–1605, cento is from the Latin word centō patchwork quilt or curtain

Related forms

cen·ton·i·cal

[sen-ton-i-kuh l] /sɛnˈtɒn ɪ kəl/, adjectivecen·to·nism

[sen-tn-iz-uh m] /ˈsɛn tnˌɪz əm/, cen·to·ni·za·tion

[sen-tn-uh-zey-shuh n] /ˌsɛn tn əˈzeɪ ʃən/, noun

Definition for cento (2 of 2)

CENTO

[ sen-toh ]

/ ˈsɛn toʊ /

noun

a former organization (1959–79) for economic and military cooperation, established as successor to the Baghdad Pact, and comprising Great Britain, Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey. The U.S. had affiliate status.

Origin of CENTO

Cen(tral) T(reaty) O(rganization)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for cento

The introduction to the Cento Novelle Antiche, which were put into their present shape before 1300, avow this object openly.
The Civilisation of the Renaissance in Italy|Jacob Burckhardt
Stanley also appended a list of Greek quotations justifying the cento.
Minor Poets of the Caroline Period, Vol III|John Cleveland
They have some other cause than the indolence or inefficiency of a cento—making undergraduate.
Homer and His Age|Andrew Lang
Tyrwhitt observes that the same story is told of a mule in Cento Novelle Antiche, no. 91.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 5 (of 7) -- Notes to the Canterbury Tales|Geoffrey Chaucer

Sifting and pruning are needed before a cento can be formed which would commend itself to modern taste.
Hymns of the Greek Church|John Brownlie

British Dictionary definitions for cento (1 of 2)

cento

/ (ˈsɛntəʊ) /

noun plural -tos

a piece of writing, esp a poem, composed of quotations from other authors

Word Origin for cento

C17: from Latin, literally: patchwork garment

British Dictionary definitions for cento (2 of 2)

CENTO

/ (ˈsɛntəʊ) /

n acronym for

Central Treaty Organization; an organization for military and economic cooperation formed in 1959 by the UK, Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey as a successor to the Baghdad Pact: disbanded 1979

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