centime

centime — noun

1. a small unit of money used in some countries, with one hundred centimes making o

1.nounC2
Definition

a small unit of money used in some countries, with one hundred centimes making one franc or another main currency unit such as a dirham or gourde.

Example

The old menu in Paris listed coffee at thirty-five centimes a cup.

price pattern: [number] centimes

Bank records from Port-au-Prince still showed the tax in centimes.

in centimes — unit of account

Common collocations
  • thirty-five centimes
  • in centimes
  • one hundred centimes
  • to the nearest centime
Synonyms
  • cent

    the closest English equivalent in currencies where the smaller unit is called a cent

  • penny

    a comparable small money unit or coin in British-related systems, not the French-based term

  • paisa

    the South Asian equivalent of a one-hundredth subunit in rupee-based systems

Antonyms
  • franc

    the larger main unit made up of one hundred centimes

Grammar Patterns

[number] centimes

in centimes

one hundred centimes to the franc

Usage Note

Usually appears after numbers or in price statements. Distinguish from sense 2: sense 1 names the value inside a currency system, while sense 2 is the physical coin.

Common Mistakes

One franc was worth ten centimes.
One franc was worth one hundred centimes.
a centime is one hundredth of the main unit, not one tenth.
The stamp cost fifty centime.
The stamp cost fifty centimes.
after numbers larger than one, the plural form is normally used.

2. a coin whose value is one centime.

2.nounC2
Definition

a coin whose value is one centime.

Example

Ada found a silver centime under the bakery counter in Lyon.

The collector paid extra for a fifty-centime coin from colonial Algeria.

a fifty-centime coin

Common collocations
  • silver centime
  • fifty-centime coin
  • drop a centime into the slot
  • worn centime
Synonyms
  • one-cent coin

    an explicit label for a coin of this low value in another currency system

  • cent

    the nearest everyday equivalent in dollar-based and euro-based systems

Grammar Patterns

a centime

a fifty-centime coin

drop a centime into [slot/container]

Usage Note

Use this sense when the centime is a physical object that someone can hold, collect, or spend. If the sentence is about a price or exchange rate rather than a coin, sense 1 is the better match.

Common Mistakes

She found a centimes in the drawer.
She found a centime in the drawer.
use the singular form for one coin.
He paid with a centime unit.
He paid with a centime coin.
this sense is the actual coin, not the value in the abstract.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Penny, cent, paisa, and centime all name very small money units, but each belongs to a different currency tradition. Centime is mainly the French-based term, used for the hundredth part of a franc and for similar subunits in some Arabic- and French-speaking countries. Cent is the regular English label in dollar and euro systems, so it feels more general to most learners. Penny usually refers to the British coin or, in North America, the coin worth one cent; it is more everyday and coin-focused. Paisa is the South Asian equivalent, tied to the rupee and related currencies. If a history text mentions prices in old France or Morocco, centime is the right word. In a US shop, however, you would say cent or penny, not centime.

centime ↗cent ↗penny ↗paisa ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • centime coin
  • centime value

Phrases

  • one hundred centimes to the franc
  • worth fifty centimes

Prepositions

  • in centimes

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Centime came into English from French, where it was formed from centieme, meaning 'hundredth'. That French word goes back to Latin centesimus, also meaning 'hundredth', from centum, 'hundred'. The name directly reflects the value: one centime is one of the hundred equal parts of a larger unit such as the franc.

First known use

1796

1796, in the meaning defined at sense 1