century

noun

cen·​tu·​ry ˈsen(t)-sh(ə-)rē 

plural centuries

1

: a period of 100 years

a company that has been in business for more than a century

specifically : one of the 100-year divisions of the Christian era or of the preceding period of human history

the third century A.D./B.C

the 18th century

2

: a group, sequence, or series of 100 like things

3

a

: a subdivision of the Roman legion

b

: a voting unit of ancient Rome constituted according to property qualifications

4

: a race over a hundred units (such as yards, miles, or meters)

Examples of century in a Sentence

It took more than a century to complete the cathedral.

The pottery dates back to the sixth century B.C.E.

When the prince got married, it was called the wedding of the century.

Recent Examples on the Web

What to do after writing some of this century’s most devastating songs about the torment of breaking up? —Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2026

The backstory The hotel, named after the town's most successful 19th-century silver mine, Mollie Gibson, opened its doors in December 2023. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 12 June 2026

Made with the unctuous 8-percent-fat milk of the water buffalo—animals that may have arrived in the area via the Normans by way of Sicily, or perhaps by the Goths coming from Central Asia—buffalo mozzarella has been produced at least since the twelfth century. —Literary Hub, 11 June 2026

In the early 1960s, one was a young first lady helping to usher in a new era of American optimism and the other was a young monarch carrying the weight of a centuries-old institution. —Simon Perry, PEOPLE, 11 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin centuria, irregular from centum hundred

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing century

• century plant
• the turn of the century

Rhymes for century

• penitentiary

Kids Definition

century

noun

cen·​tu·​ry ˈsench-(ə-)rē 

plural centuries

1

: a group of 100 things

2

: a period of 100 years