cista

See also: čista, čistá, циста, and чиста

Catalan

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin cista. Doublet of cesta.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Northern, Balearic, Central) [ˈsis.tə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia, Northwestern) [ˈsis.ta]

Noun

cista f (plural cistes)

1. (archaeology) cist
2. A cover woven from esparto.

Further reading

• “cista”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026

Czech

Etymology

Etymology tree

Ancient Greek κίστη (kístē)bor.

Latin cistabor.

Czech cista

Borrowed from Latin cista.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈt͡sɪsta]
• Hyphenation: cis‧ta

Noun

cista f

1. cist (container)

Declension

Declension of cista (hard feminine)

	singular	plural
nominative	cista	cisty
genitive	cisty	cist
dative	cistě	cistám
accusative	cistu	cisty
vocative	cisto	cisty
locative	cistě	cistách
instrumental	cistou	cistami

Further reading

• “cista”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
• “cista”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989

Italian

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cista. Doublet of cesta.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈt͡ʃis.ta/
• Rhymes: -ista
• Hyphenation: cì‧sta

Noun

cista f (plural ciste)

1. cist

Further reading

• “cista¹”, in Vocabolario Treccani on line (in Italian), Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana, 2026

Anagrams

• casti

Latin

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek κίστη (kístē).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈkɪs.ta]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈt͡ʃis.ta]

Noun

cista f (genitive cistae); first declension

1. a trunk, a chest, a casket

Declension

First-declension noun.

	singular	plural
nominative	cista	cistae
genitive	cistae	cistārum
dative	cistae	cistīs
accusative	cistam	cistās
ablative	cistā	cistīs
vocative	cista	cistae

Derived terms

• cistella
• cisterna
• cistifer
• cistophorus
• cistula

Descendants

• Asturian: cesta
• Catalan: cista
• → English: cist (learned)
• French: ciste
• Galician: cesta
• → German: Ziste
• Italian: cesta; → cista (learned)
• Portuguese: cesta → cista (learned)
• Romansh: cesta, chaista, chista
• Spanish: cesta
  • → Basque: zesta
    • → Catalan: cesta
• → Old Norse: kista (see there for further descendants)
• → Proto-West Germanic: *kistu (see there for further descendants)

References

• “cista”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “cista”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• "cista", in Charles du Fresne du Cange, Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• “cista”, in The Perseus Project (1999), Perseus Encyclopedia‎^[1]
• “cista”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper’s Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “cista”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology 1

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *cěsta.

Alternative forms

• cèsta (Ijekavian, Ekavian)

Noun

cista f (Cyrillic spelling циста)

1. (Chakavian, Ikavian) road
   • 1501, Marko Marulić, Judita:

     I da ljudi huste zaskoče na cistih,
     mače, ki to zuste tičući po mistih.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Etymology 2

From Ancient Greek κύστις (kústis).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t͡sîsta/
• Hyphenation: cis‧ta

Noun

cȉsta f (Cyrillic spelling ци̏ста)

1. cyst

Declension

Declension of cista

	singular	plural
nominative	cȉsta	ciste
genitive	ciste	cȋstā/cȋstī
dative	cisti	cistama
accusative	cistu	ciste
vocative	cisto	ciste
locative	cisti	cistama
instrumental	cistom	cistama

Further reading

• “cista”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2026

Etymology 3

From Latin cista, from Ancient Greek κίστη (kístē).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t͡sîsta/
• Hyphenation: cis‧ta

Noun

cȉsta f (Cyrillic spelling ци̏ста)

1. cist (container)

Declension

Declension of cista

	singular	plural
nominative	cȉsta	ciste
genitive	ciste	cȋstā / cȋstī
dative	cisti	cistama
accusative	cistu	ciste
vocative	cisto	ciste
locative	cisti	cistama
instrumental	cistom	cistama

Further reading

• “cista”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2026