permanent magnet

American  

noun

1. a magnet that retains its magnetism after being removed from an external magnetic field.

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permanent magnet British  

noun

1. a magnet, often of steel, that retains its magnetization after the magnetic field producing it has been removed

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permanent magnet Scientific  

/ pûr′mə-nənt /

1. A piece of ferromagnetic material that retains its magnetism after it has been magnetized.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• permanent magnetism
  noun

Etymology

Origin of permanent magnet

First recorded in 1820–30

Example Sentences

Despite the large number of known magnetic compounds, no entirely new permanent magnet has been identified from this pool.

From Science Daily • Feb. 19, 2026

Breaking Beijing’s chokehold on rare-earth supply chains requires resolving three bottlenecks: the concentration of heavy rare-earth feedstock in Myanmar and China; catching up in rare-earth processing; and rapidly scaling permanent magnet production.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 22, 2025

And, at present, China massively dominates global permanent magnet production, with more than 90% market share.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2024

Toyota is working on a permanent magnet with a 50% reduction in neodymium, a heavy rare earth.

From Reuters • Nov. 14, 2023

The simplest is to let the current, or part of it, flow through a coil which is pivoted between the N and S poles of a strong permanent magnet.

From Letters of a Radio-Engineer to His Son by Mills, John