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⇱ CENTIGRADE Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster

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: relating to, conforming to, or having a thermometric scale on which the interval between the freezing point of water and the boiling point of water is divided into 100 degrees with 0° representing the freezing point and 100° the boiling point
10° centigrade
—abbreviation C compare celsius
👁 Image

Did you know?

The centigrade scale is essentially identical to the Celsius scale, the standard scale by which temperature is measured in most of the world. Anders Celsius of Sweden first devised the centigrade scale in the early 18th century. But in his version, 100° marked the freezing point of water, and 0° its boiling point. Later users found it less confusing to reverse these two. To convert Fahrenheit degrees to centigrade, subtract 32 and multiply by 5/9. To convert centigrade to Fahrenheit, multiply by 9/5 and add 32.

Examples of centigrade in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The scientists found that planting trees in urban areas can lower pedestrian-height air temperature by up to 12 degrees centigrade (53.5 F). —👁 Image
Heather Farmbrough, Forbes.com, 24 July 2025 At the height of the fire, temperatures inside Bradford’s main stand peaked at around 900 degrees centigrade — the equivalent of a blast furnace. —👁 Image
Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 9 May 2025 This makes Earth freezing cold even during the summer, with farmland in Kansas cooling by about 20 degrees centigrade (about 40 degrees Fahrenheit), and other regions cooling almost twice as much. —👁 Image
Max Tegmark, Time, 29 June 2023 The ovens are in centigrade and the measuring cups are in the metric system. —👁 Image
Stephen Humphries, The Christian Science Monitor, 2 Dec. 2022 The deal calls for nations to keep global warming well below 2 degrees centigrade by the end of the century compared with the preindustrial era and strive to limit warming to 1.5 degrees. —👁 Image
Matthew Dalton, WSJ, 25 Oct. 2021 Individually, the odds of a global economic meltdown, a new pandemic, warming exceeding 4 degrees centigrade, or a third world war remain relatively low. —👁 Image
Zack Beauchamp, Vox, 7 Dec. 2018 An Italian mercury thermometer with a centigrade scale dates to the 18th century. —👁 Image
Douglas Fox, Discover Magazine, 4 Nov. 2016

Word History

Etymology

French, from Latin centi- hundred + French grade

First Known Use

1799, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of centigrade was in 1799

Rhymes for centigrade

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Centigrade.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/centigrade. Accessed 7 Apr. 2026.

Kids Definition

: relating to or having a thermometer scale on which the interval between the freezing point and the boiling point of water is divided into 100 degrees with 0° representing the freezing point and 100° the boiling point —abbreviation C compare celsius

Medical Definition

: relating to, conforming to, or having a thermometer scale on which the interval between the freezing and boiling points of water is divided into 100 degrees with 0° representing the freezing point and 100° the boiling point
10° centigrade
—abbreviation C compare celsius

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Merriam-Webster unabridged

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