Ceres

[ seer-eez ]

noun

1. Classical Mythology. a pre-Roman goddess of agriculture under whose name the Romans adopted the worship of the Greek goddess Demeter.
2. Astronomy. one of the brightest and by far the largest asteroid in our solar system, discovered in 1801 and located in the asteroid belt: the first asteroid to be discovered, Ceres is also classified as a dwarf planet. Hygieia ( def 2 ), Pallas ( def 2 ), Vesta ( def 2 ).
3. a town in central California.

Ceres

¹

/ ˈsɪəriːz /

noun

1. the smallest dwarf planet in the solar system, located in the asteroid belt. It has a diameter of 930 kilometres

Ceres

²

/ ˈsɪəriːz /

noun

1. the Roman goddess of agriculture Greek counterpartDemeter

Ceres

/ sîr′ēz /

1. The closest dwarf planet to the Sun , with an orbit in the asteroid belt. Ceres was the first object in the asteroid belt to be discovered (1801). Initially considered a planet, it was reclassified as an asteroid in the mid-1800s and as a dwarf planet in 2006. It has a diameter of about 960 km (595 mi).
2. See more at dwarf planet

Ceres

1. The Roman name for Demeter , the Greek and Roman goddess of agriculture.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Ceres¹

First recorded in 1570–80; from Latin Cerēs, the goddess of grain and mother of Persephone; as a common noun, “wheat, corn; bread, food”