centenarian

noun

cen·​te·​nar·​i·​an ˌsen-tə-ˈner-ē-ən How to pronounce centenarian (audio)
-ˈne-rē-
: one that is 100 years old or older
centenarian adjective

Did you know?

We can't say there are exactly 100 English words based on the Latin root centum, meaning "hundred," but there are certainly dozens. "Centenarian" isn't the oldest one; it only dates from the late 1700s. Far older is "centurion" (an ancient Roman military officer), which has been around since the 13th century. A younger "centum" offspring is "centisecond," a rare term for 1/100 of a second that dates from the 1950s. From colorful words such as "centicipitous" (which means "100-headed") to practical ones like "centgener" ("a device for planting 100 seeds"), "centum" descendants have enlivened our language for centuries.

Examples of centenarian in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Politics in Brief Carter the centenarian: Jimmy Carter turns 100 years old today — a feat that no other former U.S. president has reached. Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 1 Oct. 2024 And in 2010, more than 230,000 Japanese centenarians turned out to be missing, imaginary, dead, or the result of clerical errors, amounting to an error rate of 82 percent. Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 12 Sep. 2024 Go deeper: Kole shares longevity tips from centenarians. Carly Mallenbaum, Axios, 11 July 2024 Indeed, while the number of centenarians is increasing every year, the number of people living past 110 is not. João Medeiros, WIRED, 27 June 2024 See all Example Sentences for centenarian 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'centenarian.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1747, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of centenarian was in 1747

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Dictionary Entries Near centenarian

Cite this Entry

“Centenarian.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/centenarian. Accessed 21 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

centenarian

noun
cen·​te·​nar·​i·​an ˌsent-ᵊn-ˈer-ē-ən How to pronounce centenarian (audio)
: a person 100 years old or older
centenarian adjective

More from Merriam-Webster on centenarian

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