semimetal

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noun

A solid of which the conduction and valence band overlap slightly in energy.

OriginEnglish metal ← Middle English metal ← Old French meta →
Scrabble 13
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Meanings

nounsemimetal (plural semimetals)

plural semimetals

  1. chemistryA solid of which the conduction and valence band overlap slightly in energy.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*sem-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*sēmi
  3. Latinsēmi-
  4. Englishsemi-
  5. Latinmetallum
  6. Old Frenchmeta
  7. Middle Englishmetal
  8. Englishmetal
  9. Englishsemimetal

From semi- + metal.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

semimetal. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/semimetal

MLA

“semimetal.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/semimetal. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “semimetal,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/semimetal.

Source: semimetal on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.