A centimetre (international spelling) or centimeter (American spelling) (SI symbol cm) is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one hundredth of a metre, centi being the SI prefix for a factor of 1/100. The centimetre was the base unit of length in the now deprecated centimetre–gram–second (CGS) system of units.
Though for many physical quantities, SI prefixes for factors of 103—like milli- and kilo-—are often preferred by technicians, the centimetre remains a practical unit of length for many everyday measurements. A centimetre is approximately the width of the fingernail of an average adult person.
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