Ceres

[seer-eez] /ˈsɪər iz/
noun
1.
a pre-Roman goddess of agriculture under whose name the Romans adopted the worship of the Greek goddess Demeter.
2.
Astronomy. the first asteroid to be discovered, being the largest and one of the brightest.
3.
a town in central California.

cere1

[seer] /sɪər/
noun, Ornithology
1.
a fleshy, membranous covering of the base of the upper mandible of a bird, especially a bird of prey or a parrot, through which the nostrils open.
Origin
1480-90; earlier sere, spelling variant of *cere < Medieval Latin cēra literally, wax < Latin
Related forms
cered, adjective
cereless, adjective

cere2

[seer] /sɪər/
verb (used with object), cered, cering.
1.
Archaic. to wrap in or as if in a cerecloth, especially a corpse.
2.
Obsolete. to wax.
Origin
1375-1425; late Middle English ceren < Latin cērāre to wax, verbal derivative of cēra wax
British Dictionary definitions for Ceres

Ceres1

/ˈsɪəriːz/
noun
1.
the Roman goddess of agriculture Greek counterpart Demeter

Ceres2

/ˈsɪəriːz/
noun
1.
the smallest dwarf planet in the solar system, located in the asteroid belt. It has a diameter of 930 kilometres

cere1

/sɪə/
noun
1.
a soft waxy swelling, containing the nostrils, at the base of the upper beak in such birds as the parrot
Word Origin
C15: from Old French cire wax, from Latin cēra

cere2

/sɪə/
verb
1.
(transitive) to wrap (a corpse) in a cerecloth
Word Origin
C15: from Latin cērāre, from cēra wax
Word Origin and History for Ceres

Roman goddess of agriculture (identified with Greek Demeter), also the name given to the first-found and largest asteroid (discovered 1801); see cereal. Her festival, Cerealia, was April 10.

cere

n.

late 15c., from French cire "wax" (12c.), from Latin cera "wax, wax seal, wax writing tablet," related to Greek keros "beeswax," of unknown origin.

Ceres in Science
Ceres
  (sîr'ēz)   
The largest asteroid and the first to be discovered, in 1801. Nearly spherical, it has a diameter of about 960 km (595 mi). The estimated total mass of all other asteroids in the asteroid belt is only about twice that of Ceres. See more at asteroid.
Ceres in Culture
Ceres [(seer-eez)]

The Roman name for Demeter, the Greek and Roman goddess of agriculture.

Related Abbreviations for Ceres

CERES

California Environmental Resources Evaluation System