ce

See also: Appendix:Variations of "ce"

Languages (32)

Translingual • English

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Catalan • Central Nahuatl • Champenois • Classical Nahuatl • Eastern Huasteca Nahuatl • French • Friulian • Gun • Ido • Indonesian • Italian • Italiot Greek • Latin • Mandarin • Mapudungun • Middle English • Middle French • Neapolitan • Occitan • Old Irish • Pochutec • Polish • Romanian • Spanish • Tagalog • Tarantino • Tocharian B • Turkish • Welsh • Zarma

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Page categories

Translingual

Symbol

ce

1. (international standards) ISO 639-1 language code for Chechen.

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: sē, IPA^(key): /siː/

• Rhymes: -iː

• Homophones: C, sea, see

Noun

ce (plural ces)

1. Alternative form of cee (“the letter C”)
   • 2003, David Sacks, The Alphabet: Unraveling the Mystery of the Alphabet from A to Z, page 89:

     [T]hat spelling, but not the pronunciation, supplies our own name for the letter: “ce” or “cee.”

Anagrams

• E.C., EC, ec.

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic, Valencia) [ˈse]
• Rhymes: -e

Noun

ce f (plural ces)

1. The name of the Latin-script letter C/c.

Derived terms

• ce trencada

Central Nahuatl

Central Nahuatl cardinal numbers

<  0	1	2  >
Cardinal : ce     Ordinal : inic ce

Etymology

Cognate to Classical Nahuatl ce

Numeral

ce

1. one.

Champenois

Alternative forms

• çu
• çte
• çtu

Etymology

Inherited from Old French cel, from Vulgar Latin *ecce ille.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /sə/

Determiner

ce

1. (Troyen) this, that

References

• Daunay, Jean (1998) Parlers de Champagne : Pour un classement thématique du vocabulaire des anciens parlers de Champagne (Aube - Marne - Haute-Marne)‎^[2] (in French), Rumilly-lés-Vaudes
• Baudoin, Alphonse (1885) Glossaire de la forêt de Clairvaux‎^[3] (in French), Troyes

Classical Nahuatl

Classical Nahuatl numbers ^(edit)

		10
		1	2  →	10  →
Cardinal: ce     Ordinal: ic ce     Adverbial: ceppa     Distributive: cēcen, cehcen

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [se]

Numeral

ce

1. (it is) one in number.
   • 1555, Alonso de Molina, Aqui comienca vn vocabulario en la lengua castellana y mexicana, f. 250r:

     ¶Vno o vna.Ce.

     ¶ One. Ce.

   • 1571, Alonso de Molina, Vocabulario en lengua castellana y mexicana y mexicana y castellana, f. 118v. col. 1:

     ¶ Vno o vna. Ce.

     ¶ One. Ce.

   • Idem, f. 15r. col. 1.

     C E.vno o vna, / vel,centetl.

     C E. one. also centetl.

Usage notes

• The combing form of ce is cen- (or cem- before m and p).

Derived terms

• cempantli
• cempōhualli
• centetl
• chicuace

References

• Alonso de Molina (1571) Vocabulario en lengua castellana y mexicana y mexicana y castellana, Editorial Porrúa, pages 118v, 15r

Eastern Huasteca Nahuatl

Eastern Huasteca Nahuatl cardinal numbers

<  0	1	2  >
Cardinal : ce     Ordinal : achtohui

Etymology

Cognate to Classical Nahuatl ce

Numeral

ce

1. one.

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sə/
• (Paris) IPA^(key): /sø/

• Audio (Paris):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ə
• Homophone: se

Etymology 1

Inherited from Middle French, from Old French cel, cil, from Vulgar Latin *ecce ille. See also celui, derived from the oblique cases of the same.

The inflected forms continue Old French cest, cist, from Vulgar Latin *ecce iste.

Determiner

ce m (before a vowel sound cet, feminine cette, plural ces)

1. this, that

Usage notes

To distinguish between the this and that senses, one may use the particles -ci and -là, respectively. See also celui-ci and celui-là, or ceci and cela.

Etymology 2

Inherited from Old French ço, from Late Latin ecce hoc.

Alternative forms

• c’ (before the vowels /ɛ/, /y/)
• ç’ (dated, before the vowel /a/)

Pronoun

ce m or f (plural ce)

1. (subject of être, with predicative adjectives or relative clauses, singular only) it, this, that (see § Usage notes, below)

   C’est beau ! ― It is beautiful!

   est-ce que...? ― forms yes–no questions (literally, “is it that...?”)

   ce dont je parlais ― that which I was speaking of

   C’eût été avec plaisir, mais... ― It would have been with pleasure, but...

   C’eût été dommage... ― It would have been a pity...

2. (subject of être, with predicate nouns) he, she, it, this, that

   C’est un/une célébrité. ― He/she is a celebrity.

   Ce sont des célébrités. ― These are celebrities.

   Ce sont des gens bien. ― These are good people.

   • 1897, Edmond Rostand, Cyrano de Bergerac :

     C'est un roc ! ... c'est un pic ! ... c'est un cap ! Que dis-je, c'est un cap ? ... C'est une péninsule !

     It's a rock! ... it's a peak! ... it's a cape! What am I saying, a cape? ... It's a peninsula!

3. (archaic, subject of verbs other than être) it, this, that

   ce semble ― it seems

   ce peuvent être... ― these may be...

   • 1866, Guérineau de Boisvillette, Ce qu'il a laissé!‎^[4], page 56:

     [...] ce paraissent être encore là des points à noter [...]

     […] these seem to be more points worth noting […]

Usage notes

(1): To convey the plural with a predicative adjective, one must use ils m or elles f (“they”):

Ils/Elles sont beaux/belles ! ― They are beautiful!

And to convey the plural with a relative clause, one must use ceux m or celles f (plural forms of celui m and celle f):

ceux/celles que... ― those which...

ceux/celles qui... ― those who/that...

ceux/celles dont je parlais... ― those which I was speaking of...

Derived terms

• ce à quoi
• ce disant
• ce faisant
• ce me semble
• ce nonobstant
• ce que
• ce qui
• ceci
• cela
• est-ce que
• et ce
• n’est-ce pas
• pour ce faire
• qu’est-ce que
• qu’est-ce qui
• si ce n’est
• sur ce

 

Related terms

French personal pronouns

Number	Person	Gender	Nominative (subject)	Accusative (direct complement)	Dative (indirect complement)	Locative (at)	Genitive (of)	Disjunctive (tonic)
Singular	First	—	je, j’	me, m’		—	—	moi
	Second	—	tu	te, t’		—	—	toi
	Third	Masculine	il	le, l’	lui	y	en	lui
		Feminine	elle	la, l’				elle
		Indeterminate	on1	—	—	—	—	—
		Reflexive	—	se, s’4		—	—	soi4
Plural	First	—	nous	nous		—	—	nous
	Second	—	vous2	vous2,3		—	—	vous2
	Third	Masculine	ils3	les	leur	y	en	eux3
		Feminine	elles					elles

¹ Also used as the first person plural.

² Also used as the polite singular form.

³ Also used when a group has both men and women.

⁴ Also used as third person plural reflexive.

Further reading

• “ce”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Friulian

Etymology

From Latin quid. Compare Italian che, Venetan ché, Romanian ce.

Pronoun

ce

1. what

See also

• che

Gun

Alternative forms

• ṣié, ṣé (Nigeria)

Etymology

Cognates include Fon cé

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t͡ʃé/

Determiner

cé (Benin)

1. my (first-person singular possessive adjective)

See also

Gungbe personal pronouns
Number	Person	Emphatic Pronoun	Subject Pronoun	Object Pronoun	Possessive Determiner
Singular	First	nyɛ́, yẹ́n	ùn, n	mi	cé, ṣié
	Second	jɛ̀, jẹ̀, yẹ̀, hiẹ̀	à	wè	tòwè
	Third	éɔ̀, úɔ̀, éwọ̀	é	è	étɔ̀n, étọ̀n
Plural	First	mílɛ́, mílẹ́	mí		mítɔ̀n, mítọ̀n
	Second	mìlɛ́, mìlẹ́	mì		mìtɔ̀n, mìtọ̀n
	Third	yélɛ́, yélẹ́	yé		yétɔ̀n, yétọ̀n

Ido

Etymology

From c +‎ -e.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t͡se/, /t͡sɛ/

Noun

ce (plural ce-i)

1. The name of the Latin script letter C/c.

See also

• (Latin script letter names) litero; a, be, ce, che, de, e, fe, ge, he, i, je, ke, le, me, ne, o, pe, que, re, se, she, te, u, ve, we, xe, ye, ze ^{(Category: io:Latin letter names)}

Indonesian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t͡ʃe/, [t͡ʃe]

Noun

cé

1. The name of the Latin-script letter C/c.

Synonyms

• si (Standard Malay)

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) huruf; a, be, ce, de, e, ef, ge, ha, i, je, ka, el, em, en, o, pe, ki, er, es, te, u, ve, we, eks, ye, zet

Further reading

• “ce” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈt͡ʃe/
• Rhymes: -e
• Hyphenation: cé

Etymology 1

Pronoun

ce

1. Alternative form of ci (“us”)

Usage notes

• Used when followed by a third-person direct object clitic (lo, la, li, le, or ne).

See also

Italian personal pronouns

Number	Person	Gender	Nominative	Reflexive	Accusative	Dative	Combined	Disjunctive	Locative	Partitive
Singular	first	—	io	mi, m', -mi			me	me	—
	second	—	tu	ti, t', -ti			te	te
	third	m	lui	si2, s', -si	lo, l', -lo	gli, -gli	glie, se2	lui, sé	ci, c', vi, v' (formal)	ne, n'
		f	lei, Lei1		la, La1, l', L'1, -la, -La1	le3, Le1, -le3, -Le1		lei, Lei1, sé
Plural	first	—	noi	ci, c', -ci			ce	noi	—
	second	—	voi, Voi4	vi, Vi4, v', V'4, -vi, -Vi4			ve	voi, Voi4
	third	m	loro, Loro1	si, s', -si	li, Li1, -li, -Li1	gli, -gli, loro (formal), Loro1	glie, se	loro, Loro1, sé	ci, c', vi, v' (formal)	ne, n'
		f			le, Le1, -le, -Le1
1	Third person pronominal forms used as formal terms of address to refer to second person subjects (with the first letter frequently capitalised as a sign of respect, and to distinguish them from third person subjects). Unlike the singular forms, the plural forms are mostly antiquated terms of formal address in the modern language, and second person plural pronouns are almost always used instead.
2	Also used as indefinite pronoun meaning “one”, and to form the passive.
3	Often replaced by gli, -gli in informal language.
4	Formal (capitalisation optional); in many regions, can refer to just one person (compare with French vous).

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Adverb

ce

1. here

Italiot Greek

Etymology

From Ancient Greek καί (kaí).

Conjunction

ce

1. and

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /keː/, [keː]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /t͡ʃe/, [t͡ʃɛː]

Noun

cē f (indeclinable)

1. The name of the letter C.

Coordinate terms

• (Latin-script letter names) littera; ā, bē, cē, dē, ē, ef, gē, hā / *acca, ī, kā, el, em, en, ō, pē, kū, er, es, tē, ū, ix / īx / ex, ȳ / ī graeca / ȳpsīlon, zēta

References

• “ce”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “ce”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• ce in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Arthur E. Gordon, The Letter Names of the Latin Alphabet (University of California Press, 1973; volume 9 of University of California Publications: Classical Studies), part III: “Summary of the Ancient Evidence”, page 32: "Clearly there is no question or doubt about the names of the vowels A, E, I, O, U. They are simply long A, long E, etc. (ā, ē, ī, ō, ū). Nor is there any uncertainty with respect to the six mutes B, C, D, G, P, T. Their names are bē, cē, dē, gē, pē, tē (each with a long E). Or about H, K, and Q: they are hā, kā, kū—each, again, with a long vowel sound."

Mandarin

Romanization

ce

1. Nonstandard spelling of cè.
2. Nonstandard spelling of cê̄.

Usage notes

• Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.

Mapudungun

Alternative forms

• che (Unified Alphabet)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈt͡ʃe/

Noun

ce (Raguileo spelling)

1. person
2. people

See also

• Mapuce

References

• Wixaleyiñ: Mapucezugun-wigkazugun pici hemvlcijka (Wixaleyiñ: Small Mapudungun-Spanish dictionary), Beretta, Marta; Cañumil, Dario; Cañumil, Tulio, 2008.

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Old English sǣ.

Noun

ce

1. Alternative form of see (“sea”)

Descendants

• English: sea

Etymology 2

From Old French sei.

Noun

ce

1. Alternative form of see (“see”)

Descendants

• English: see

Middle French

Adjective

ce m (feminine singular ceste, masculine and feminine plural ces, masculine singular before a vowel cest)

1. this (the one in question)
   • 1571, Pedro Díaz, Dallier, Nouueaux advertissemens trescertains venus du paÿs des Indes Meridionales […] page 5

     Mais considerant que les Chrestiens nouvellement faits en ce pays, estoient en si grand nombre que nous ne les pouvions visiter

     But considering that the newly made Christians in this country were so numerous that we couldn't visit all of them

Neapolitan

Etymology

Akin to Italian ci; see there for more.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /(t)ʃe/
• Rhymes: -e

Pronoun

ce (adverbial)

1. there (at a place)

Occitan

Noun

ce f (plural ces)

1. cee (the letter c)

Old Irish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kʲe/

Pronoun

ce

1. Alternative form of cía

Conjunction

ce

1. Alternative form of cía
   • c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 10^c21

     Ba torad sa⟨í⟩thir dúun in chrud so ce du·melmis cech túari et ce du·gnemmis a ndu·gníat ar céli, act ní bad nertad na mbráithre et frescsiu fochricce as móo.

     It would be a fruit of our labor in this way if we consumed every food and if we did what our fellows do, but it would not be a strengthening of the brothers and a hope of a greater reward.

   • c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 33^a15

     Fomnid-si, a phopul núíednissi, ar ce dud·rónath ní di maith fri maccu Israhél…

     Take heed, O people of the New Testament, for although some good has been done to the children of Israel…

   • c. 800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 34^a4

     ɔrabad cech bráthair post alium .i. is huisse ce ru·samaltar fri Críst

     so that each brother should be after the other, i.e. it is right that he be compared to Christ

Pochutec

Etymology

C.f. Classical Nahuatl cē.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈse/

Numeral

ce

1. one

References

• Boas, Franz (1917 July) “El Dialecto mexicano de Pochutla, Oaxaca”, in International Journal of American Linguistics (in Spanish), volume 1, number 1, →DOI, →JSTOR, pages 9–44
• Knab, Tim (1980 July) “When is a language really dead: The case of Pochutec”, in International Journal of American Linguistics, volume 46, number 3, →DOI, →JSTOR, pages 230–233

Polish

Etymology

Onomatopoeic.

Pronunciation

• (Masovia):
  • (Near Masovian) IPA^(key): /ˈt͡sɛ/

Interjection

ce

1. (Near Masovian, often repeated) used to call

   Synonym: cieś

   Coordinate term: a ce

Derived terms

nouns

• ceśka

 

Further reading

• Władysław Matlakowski (1891) “ce”, in “Zbiór wyrazów ludowych dawnej ziemi czerskiej”, in Sprawozdania Komisyi Językowej Akademii Umiejętności, volume 4, Krakow: Drukarnia Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego, page 372

Romanian

Alternative forms

• че (ce) — post-1930s Cyrillic spelling

Etymology

Inherited from Latin quid, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷid, compare *kʷis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t͡ʃe/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -e

Pronoun

ce

1. what

   Ce vrei să faci?

   What do you want to do?

Related terms

• ci

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Spain) /ˈθe/ [ˈθe]
• IPA^(key): (Latin America, Philippines) /ˈse/ [ˈse]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -e
• Syllabification: ce
• Homophones: se, (Latin America) sé

Noun

ce f (plural ces)

1. The name of the Latin-script letter C/c.

Derived terms

• ce por be

 

Further reading

• “ce”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.7, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2023 November 28

Tagalog

Alternative forms

• se

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish ce, the Spanish name of the letter C/c.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈse/ [ˈsɛ]
• Rhymes: -e
• Syllabification: ce

Noun

ce (Baybayin spelling ᜐᜒ)

1. (historical) the name of the Latin-script letter C/c, in the Abecedario

   Synonym: (in the Filipino alphabet) si

Tarantino

Pronoun

ce (relative)

1. who

Conjunction

ce

1. if

Tocharian B

Etymology

Clipping of kuce, used colloquially and informally.

Pronoun

ce

1. (interrogative) who, what, which

Turkish

Noun

ce

1. The name of the Latin-script letter C/c.

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) harf; a, be, ce, çe, de, e, fe, ge, yumuşak ge, he, ı, i, je, ke, le, me, ne, o, ö, pe, re, se, şe, te, u, ü, ve, ye, ze

Welsh

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /keː/

Noun

ce f (plural ceau)

1. The name of the Latin-script letter K/k.

Mutation

This word cannot be mutated.

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) llythyren; a, bi, ec, èch, di, èdd, e, èf, èff, èg, eng, aetsh, i / i dot, je, ce, el, èll, em, en, o, pi, ffi, ciw, er, rhi, ès, ti, èth, u / u bedol / u gwpan, fi, w, ecs, y, sèd

Zarma

Etymology

Cognate with Koyraboro Senni cee (“foot”).

Noun

ce

1. foot, leg