Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

cess

/sɛs/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.33 in modern English

Syllables
cess
IPA
/sɛs/
6
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
1
Syllables
3
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

An assessed tax, duty, or levy; billeting.

Indian usage; British usage

noun

Usually preceded by good or (more commonly) bad: luck or success.

British usage; Informal

noun

Bound; measure.

Obsolete

verb

To levy a cess.

British usage

noun

A bog, in particular a peat bog.

Obsolete

noun

A piece of peat, or a turf, particularly when dried for use as fuel.

Obsolete

verb

To cease; to neglect.

Obsolete

Example Sentences

Etymology

For the first meaning below, the writings of Edmund Spenser, published 1633, point to a borrowing from Irish cís (“tax, tribute, cess, rent”), likely from Latin census. Other senses: Uncertain. Occurs in print at least as early as 1831, when Samuel Lover used the expression as one already long-established. He unambiguously stated the derivation of cess in the malediction bad cess to be an abbreviation of success. The OED speculated that it either was from success or from assessment meaning a military or governmental exaction. The verb is attested in Middle English (cessen).

Origin

Word Breakdown

Usage

Inflected Forms

Derived Forms

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Rhymes With

Questions

How do you pronounce cess?
The recorded pronunciation is /sɛs/.
What does cess mean?
An assessed tax, duty, or levy; billeting.
Where does cess come from?
It is traced to Irish.

How to pronounce cess

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “cess”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/sɛs/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “cess”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “cess” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.