hermetic

American  

[hur-met-ik] / hɜrˈmɛt ɪk /

Also hermetical

adjective

1. made airtight by fusion or sealing.

2. not affected by outward influence or power; isolated.

3. (sometimes initial capital letter) of, relating to, or characteristic of occult science, especially alchemy.

4. (initial capital letter) of or relating to Hermes Trismegistus or the writings ascribed to him.

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Hermetic ¹ British  

/ hɜːˈmɛtɪk /

adjective

1. of or relating to Hermes Trismegistus or the writings and teachings ascribed to him

2. of or relating to ancient science, esp alchemy

3. esoteric or recondite

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hermetic ² British  

/ hɜːˈmɛtɪk /

adjective

1. sealed so as to be airtight

2. hidden or protected from the outside world

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Other Word Forms

• hermetically adverb
• unhermetic adjective

Etymology

Origin of hermetic

1630–40; < Medieval Latin hermēticus of, pertaining to Hermes Trismegistus, equivalent to Latin Hermē ( s ) Hermes + -ticus -tic

Example Sentences

The country had enjoyed a decade-long democratic experiment after a history of hermetic military rule.

From Barron's • Dec. 21, 2025

MIT is an enclave even within the hermetic world of Cambridge academia—a place where complex, bleeding-edge ideas spawn from sterile labs and filthy dorm rooms.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 22, 2025

Previous generations didn’t have the chance to taste some version of the hermetic bliss millions of us were exposed to over the past five years.

From Salon • Mar. 26, 2025

Courogen, a journalist and visual content director based in New York, reached out countless times to May’s “people,” a small clutch of confidants that keep a tight lid on 92-year-old May’s hermetic world.

From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2024

Both Gaston and his wife would have liked to incorporate him into the family life, but Aureliano was a hermetic man with a cloud of mystery that time was making denser.

From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez