semimetal

noun

semi·​met·​al ˌse-mē-ˈme-tᵊl How to pronounce semimetal (audio)
ˌse-ˌmī-,
-mi-
: an element (such as arsenic) possessing metallic properties in an inferior degree and not malleable
semimetallic
ˌse-mē-mə-ˈta-lik How to pronounce semimetal (audio)
ˌse-ˌmī-
-mi-
adjective

Examples of semimetal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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These imperfections are due to gravity driving changes in how the semimetals within the crystal settle and form. Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 20 Aug. 2025 The idea is to reduce the energy barrier between the semiconductor and the contact by using a semimetal as the contact material, explains Han Wang, manager for low-dimensional research at TSMC Corporate Research. IEEE Spectrum, 14 Dec. 2021 But something that behaves like the Weyl fermion did show up in 2015, in a topological material made of exotic elements known as a Weyl semimetal. Devin Powell, Discover Magazine, 20 Mar. 2019 Now physicists may finally observed this phenomenon, mixed axial-gravitational anomaly, in a class of exotic materials known as Weyl semimetals. Kenneth Chang, New York Times, 19 July 2017

Word History

First Known Use

1661, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of semimetal was in 1661

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Cite this Entry

“Semimetal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semimetal. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.

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