Ceres

[seer-eez]

noun

a pre-Roman goddess of agriculture under whose name the Romans adopted the worship of the Greek goddess Demeter.

Astronomy. the first asteroid to be discovered, being the largest and one of the brightest.

a town in central California.

cere

[seer]

noun Ornithology.

a fleshy, membranous covering of the base of the upper mandible of a bird, especially a bird of prey or a parrot, through which the nostrils open.

Origin of cere

1480–90; earlier sere, spelling variant of *cere < Medieval Latin cēra literally, wax < Latin

Related formscered, adjectivecere·less, adjective

cere

[seer]

verb (used with object), cered, cer·ing.

Archaic. to wrap in or as if in a cerecloth, especially a corpse.

Obsolete. to wax.

Origin of cere

1375–1425; late Middle English ceren < Latin cērāre to wax, verbal derivative of cēra wax

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

Examples from the Web for ceres

The new way of doing her hair changed her appearance considerably, made her less like a Ceres and more like a Puritan.
December Love|Robert Hichens
Ceres must have come down on purpose from the sky to give us wheat, rye, barley, etc.
Voltaire's Philosophical Dictionary|Voltaire
But when another hour had slipped by, and Proserpina was still not in sight, Ceres became greatly worried.
Beginner's Book in Language|H. Jeschke
She might or might not have her vac suit on; I knew she had several of them on Ceres.
A Spaceship Named McGuire|Gordon Randall Garrett

The gods restored Pelops to life, although he had been served up as a ragout, and Ceres had eaten one of his shoulders.
A Philosophical Dictionary, Volume 9 (of 10)|Franois-Marie Arouet (AKA Voltaire)

British Dictionary definitions for ceres

Ceres

noun

the Roman goddess of agricultureGreek counterpart: Demeter

Ceres

noun

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

cere

noun

a soft waxy swelling, containing the nostrils, at the base of the upper beak in such birds as the parrot

Word Origin for cere

C15: from Old French cire wax, from Latin cēra

cere

verb

(tr) to wrap (a corpse) in a cerecloth

Word Origin for cere

C15: from Latin cērāre, from cēra wax

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

Word Origin and History for ceres

Ceres

Roman goddess of agriculture (identified with Greek Demeter), also the name given to the first-found and largest asteroid (discovered 1801); see cereal. Her festival, Cerealia, was April 10.

cere

late 15c., from French cire "wax" (12c.), from Latin cera "wax, wax seal, wax writing tablet," related to Greek keros "beeswax," of unknown origin.

Science definitions for ceres

Ceres

[sîr′ēz]

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). See more at dwarf planet.

Culture definitions for ceres

Ceres

[(seer-eez)]

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