Words starting with C — 1,957 entries

The 1,957 dictionary words that begin with the letter C, in alphabetical order, each with its first definition. Accents do not affect filing: an accented initial is shelved under its base letter.

• cemetery1 senseA place where the dead are buried; a graveyard or memorial park.
• censorship2 sensesThe use of state or group power to control freedom of expression or press, such as passing laws to prevent undesirable media from being published or…
• cent6 sensesA subunit of currency equal to one-hundredth of the main unit of currency in many countries. Symbol: ¢.
• center28 sensesThe point in the interior of a circle that is equidistant from all points on the circumference.
• Center15 sensesA surname.
• central7 sensesBeing in the centre.
• Central7 sensesA former local government region in central Scotland, created in 1975 mainly from Stirlingshire, abolished in 1996 and divided into 3 council areas:…
• centre1 senseAustralia, UK, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, and South Africa standard spelling of center.
• Centre3 sensesA former administrative region of France, now named Centre-Val de Loire.
• century8 sensesA period of one hundred consecutive years; often specifically a numbered period with conventional start and end dates, e.g., the twentieth century,…
• Century1 senseA surname.
• CEO2 sensesInitialism of chief executive officer. A notional title for a leading partaker in, or advocate of something or someone.
• cereal4 sensesA type of grass (such as wheat, rice or oats) cultivated for its edible grains.
• Cereal2 sensesA village in Alberta, Canada.
• cerebral3 sensesOf or relating to the brain, cerebrum, or cerebral cortex.
• ceremonial4 sensesOf, relating to, consisting of, or used in a ceremony.
• ceremony7 sensesA ritual, with religious or cultural significance.
• certain12 sensesSure in one's mind, positive; absolutely confident in the truth of something.
• Certain1 senseA surname.
• certainly3 sensesIn a way which is certain; with certainty.
• certainty3 sensesThe state of being certain.
• certificate8 sensesA document containing a certified statement.
• certified2 sensesHaving met an official standard.
• Cesar1 senseA male given name from Spanish.
• Cesare1 senseA syllogism having a universal negative as its first premise, a universal affirmative as its second premise, and a universal negative as its…
• cha3 sensesTea, (sometimes dialect) specifically masala chai.
• Cha2 sensesA surname.
• chad3 sensesSmall pieces of paper punched out from the edges of continuous stationery, or from ballot papers, paper tape, punched cards, etc.
• Chad5 sensesA male given name from Old English; also a modern nickname for Charles, Chadwick and similar-sounding names.
• chai5 sensesA female Romani.
• Chai1 senseA surname.
• chain39 sensesA series of interconnected rings or links usually made of metal.
• Chain1 senseA surname.
• chained3 sensesBound with chains.
• chainsaw3 sensesA power saw that has a power-driven and fast-revolving chain of metal teeth, usually used to cut trees.
• chair12 sensesAn item of furniture used to sit on or in, comprising a seat, legs or wheels, back, and sometimes arm rests, for use by one person.
• Chair2 sensesChairperson.
• chairman4 sensesA person presiding over a meeting, sometimes especially a man. (Compare chairwoman, chairperson, chair.)
• chalk13 sensesA soft, white, powdery limestone (calcium carbonate, CaCO₃).
• Chalk2 sensesA surname.
• challenge23 sensesA confrontation; a dare. An antagonization or instigation intended to convince a person to perform an action they otherwise would not.
• challenged2 sensesDisabled; lacking some physical or mental attribute or skill; used after adverbs to make politically correct adjectives.
• challenger5 sensesOne who challenges.
• Challenger2 sensesA space shuttle, named after HMS Challenger (1858), destroyed on January 28, 1986 with loss of its seven-member crew.
• challenging2 sensesDifficult, hard to do.
• chamber19 sensesA room or set of rooms The private room of an individual, especially of someone wealthy or noble.
• Chamber1 senseA surname.
• chamberlain3 sensesA senior royal official in charge of superintending the arrangement of domestic affairs and often charged with receiving and paying out money kept in…
• Chamberlain6 sensesA surname.
• chambers5 sensesChiefly in in chambers: a judge's private office which is used for hearings that do not need to be held in open court.
• Chambers5 sensesA surname.
• chameleon4 sensesA small to mid-size reptile, of the family Chamaeleonidae, and one of the best known lizard families able to change color and project its long tongue.
• champ9 sensesBuddy, sport, mate. (as a term of address)
• Champ1 senseA large aquatic creature, similar to the Loch Ness monster, which supposedly lives in Lake Champlain, located on the shared borders of the American…
• champagne9 sensesA sparkling white wine made from a blend of grapes, especially Chardonnay and pinot, produced in Champagne, France, by the méthode champenoise.
• Champagne2 sensesA cultural region and former province of France, the terroir of the wine champagne; now part of Grand Est region.
• champion10 sensesAn ongoing winner in a game or contest.
• Champion9 sensesA surname.
• championship3 sensesA competition to determine a champion, especially the final of a series of competitions.
• Championship2 sensesthe EFL Championship (the second-highest division of English football)
• chan4 sensesAn IRC channel.
• Chan4 sensesA Chinese surname from Cantonese.
• chance13 sensesAn opportunity or possibility.
• Chance7 sensesAn unincorporated community in Adair County, Kentucky, United States.
• chancellor7 sensesA senior secretary or official with administrative or legal duties, sometimes in charge of some area of government such as finance or justice.
• Chancellor6 sensesAn honorific for the head of state in various German-speaking states.
• chandelier5 sensesA branched, often ornate, light fixture suspended from a ceiling.
• Chandi1 senseA fierce form of the goddess Durga or Shakti
• chandler3 sensesA person who makes or sells candles.
• Chandler22 sensesAn English surname originating as an occupation for a chandler (“maker or seller of candles”).
• Chandra1 senseA unisex given name from Sanskrit.
• Chanel4 sensesA surname from French.
• chang1 senseA traditional harp of central and southwest Asia
• Chang7 sensesA surname from Mandarin.
• change19 sensesTo become something different.
• changed1 senseHaving undergone a change.
• changing1 senseChange; alteration.
• channel27 sensesThe hollow bed of running waters; (also) the bed of the sea or other body of water.
• Channel1 senseA former village and district of Channel-Port aux Basques, Newfoundland, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.
• channels1 senseFormal lines of command and procedure.
• Channing5 sensesA surname.
• chant9 sensesTo sing, especially without instruments, and as applied to monophonic and pre-modern music.
• Chant1 senseA surname from French.
• chanting1 senseSinging, especially as a chant is sung.
• Chao2 sensesA surname from Chinese.
• chaos6 sensesThe unordered state of matter in classical accounts of cosmogony.
• Chaos3 sensesIn Greek mythology, the primordial state of disorder that exists before the creation of the world, or the first being or deity to exist.
• chaotic5 sensesFilled with chaos.
• chap11 sensesA man, a fellow.
• Chap1 senseA surname from Khmer.
• chapel10 sensesA place of worship, smaller than or subordinate to a church.
• Chapel1 senseA surname.
• chaperone5 sensesAn older person who accompanies other younger people to ensure the propriety of their behaviour, often an older woman accompanying a young woman.
• chaplain2 sensesA member of a religious body (who is often, although not always, of the clergy) officially assigned to provide pastoral care at an institution,…
• Chaplain1 senseA surname.
• chaplin1 senseAny of a class of bacterial proteins that form fibrils instead of a coiled structure.
• Chaplin7 sensesA surname originating as an occupation.
• chapman2 sensesA dealer or merchant, especially an itinerant one.
• Chapman16 sensesAn English surname originating as an occupation for a merchant.
• chaps2 sensesProtective leather leggings attached at the waist.
• chapter16 sensesOne of the main sections into which a published work is divided, especially a book.
• char15 sensesTo burn something to charcoal; to be burnt to charcoal.
• Char3 sensesA nickname for Charlotte
• character16 sensesA being involved in the action of a story; a persona.
• characteristic6 sensesIndicating a distinguishing feature of a person or thing; typical.
• charade6 sensesA single round of the game charades, an acted form of the earlier riddles.
• charcoal8 sensesimpure carbon obtained by destructive distillation of wood or other organic matter, that is, heating it in the absence of oxygen.
• charge43 sensesThe amount of money levied for a service.
• charged4 sensesArousing strong emotion.
• charger8 sensesA device that charges or recharges.
• Charger1 senseA member of the Los Angeles Chargers.
• charging2 sensesAn act or process of charging (as of a battery).
• chariot5 sensesA two-wheeled horse-drawn cart, used in Bronze Age and Early Iron Age warfare.
• charisma3 sensesA gift or power of leadership or authority.
• Charisma1 senseA female given name from Ancient Greek.
• charismatic3 sensesOf, related to, or having charisma: having a form of compelling charm which inspires devotion in others due to their strength of character and being…
• Charismatic1 senseA member of the Charismatic Movement.
• charitable3 sensesPertaining to charity.
• charity6 sensesAn organization, the objective of which is to carry out a charitable purpose.
• Charity2 sensesA female given name from English.
• Charlene1 senseA female given name from the Germanic languages; most used in the U.S. in the 1940s.
• Charles5 sensesA male given name from the Germanic languages.
• charleston1 senseTo dance the Charleston.
• Charleston19 sensesA number of places in the United States: A city in Arkansas, and one of the two county seats of Franklin County.
• Charley2 sensesA unisex given name. Alternative form of Charlie. A diminutive of the male given name Charles.
• Charlie11 sensesA unisex given name. A diminutive of the male given name Charles; also used as a formal given name.
• charlotte1 senseA dessert consisting of sponge cake filled with fruit, and cream or custard.
• Charlotte8 sensesA female given name from French.
• Charly2 sensesA unisex given name. A diminutive of the male given name Charles, variant of Charlie.
• charm14 sensesAn object, act or words believed to have magic power (usually carries a positive connotation).
• charmed4 sensesUnder a magic spell (cast by a charm); bewitched.
• charmer3 sensesA charming person; one who charms or seduces; a smoothie.
• charming4 sensesPleasant, charismatic.
• chart15 sensesA map. A map illustrating the geography of a specific phenomenon.
• charter11 sensesA document issued by some authority, creating a public or private institution, and defining its purposes and privileges.
• Charter1 senseA surname.
• chase30 sensesThe act of one who chases another; a pursuit.
• Chase12 sensesA surname transferred from the nickname from a Middle English nickname for a hunter.
• chased2 sensesPursued.
• chaser18 sensesSomething or someone who chases.
• chasing1 senseEngraved or embossed decoration.
• chastity1 senseThe quality of being chaste: the state of abstaining from any sexual activity considered immoral; avoidance of sexual sins.
• Chastity1 senseA female given name from English from the virtue chastity.
• chat16 sensesTo be engaged in informal conversation.
• Chat1 senseChatGPT.
• chatter14 sensesTalk, especially meaningless or unimportant talk.
• chattering3 sensesThat chatters
• chatting1 senseTalk; chatter.
• chatty4 sensesOf a person, chatting a lot or fond of chatting.
• chauffeur4 sensesA person employed to drive a private motor car or a hired car of executive or luxury class (like a limousine).
• Chauffeur1 senseA brigand belonging to the bands who, around 1793, pillaged, burned, and killed in parts of France.
• Chavez2 sensesA surname from Spanish.
• Chaz2 sensesA diminutive of the male given name Charles.
• che2 sensesThe letter Ч, ч.
• cheap17 sensesLow or reduced in price.
• cheat11 sensesTo violate rules in order to gain, or attempt to gain, advantage from a situation.
• cheated2 sensesHaving been tricked or deceived.
• cheater5 sensesSomeone who cheats; something that cheats.
• cheating4 sensesAn act of deception, fraud, trickery, imposture, imposition or infidelity.
• check41 sensesAn inspection or examination.
• Check1 senseA surname.
• checked7 sensesMarked with a check mark.
• checkers1 senseA game for two players played on a chessboard; the players have 12 pieces each, and the object is to capture all the opponent’s pieces by jumping…
• checking4 sensesThe act of physically keeping an opposing player in check.
• checkmate6 sensesWord called out by the victor when making a move that wins the game.
• checkpoint5 sensesA point or place where a check is performed, especially a point along a road or on a frontier where travellers are stopped for inspection.
• Checkpoint1 senseA sub-sitio in the sitio of Hilltop, barangay of Ambuclao, Bokod, Benguet, Philippines.
• checkup2 sensesA routine visit to the doctor, dentist, or the like.
• cheddar3 sensesA cheese styled after the Cheddar cheese made in Cheddar.
• Cheddar3 sensesA large village and civil parish, previously in Sedgemoor district, Somerset, England, famous for its cheese, and also for its gorge, caves and…
• cheek12 sensesThe soft skin on each side of the face, below the eyes; the outer surface of the sides of the oral cavity.
• Cheek3 sensesA pre-Norman surname.
• cheeks3 sensesAss; sex.
• cheeky4 sensesImpudent; impertinent; impertinently bold, often in a way that is regarded as endearing or amusing.
• cheer12 sensesA cheerful attitude; happiness; a good, happy, or positive mood.
• cheerful2 sensesNoticeably happy and optimistic.
• cheering1 senseA cheer.
• cheerio3 sensesGoodbye, an interjection said upon parting.
• Cheerio1 senseAn individual piece of the Cheerios breakfast cereal.
• cheerleader2 sensesA person, usually a young, attractive female, who encourages applause and cheers at a sports event, and wearing a specially-designed uniform in the…
• cheerleading2 sensesA physical activity and sport in which cheerleaders organize elements of dance, gymnastics, and tumbling for judgment or to cheer on a team.
• cheers4 sensesTo say "cheers" as a toast (to someone).
• cheese26 sensesA dairy product made from curdled or cultured milk.
• Cheese1 senseA surname.
• cheeseburger3 sensesA hamburger containing cheese (usually one or more slices of processed cheese).
• cheesecake3 sensesA pie made of sweetened and flavoured cottage cheese or cream cheese, eggs and milk on a crunchy base.
• cheesy6 sensesOf or relating to cheese.
• cheetah1 senseA distinctive member (Acinonyx jubatus) of the cat family, slightly smaller than the leopard, but with proportionately longer limbs and a smaller…
• chef8 sensesThe presiding cook in the kitchen of a large household.
• Chelsea10 sensesAn urban area in west London, on the north bank of the river Thames in the borough of Kensington and Chelsea, Greater London (OS grid ref TQ2778).
• chemical6 sensesOf or relating to chemistry.
• chemicals1 senseThe chemical industry.
• chemist4 sensesA person who specializes in the science of chemistry, especially at a professional level.
• chemistry5 sensesThe branch of natural science that deals with the composition and constitution of substances and the changes that they undergo as a consequence of…
• chemo1 senseTo treat with chemotherapy.
• chemotherapy2 sensesAny chemical treatment intended to be therapeutic with respect to a disease state.
• Chen2 sensesA Chinese person whose name is not known to the speaker.
• Cheng6 sensesA Chinese surname from Mandarin.
• Chennai2 sensesThe capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, India, formerly known as Madras.
• cheque2 sensesA written order directing a bank to pay money to a person or entity.