bionic
Americanadjective
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utilizing electronic devices and mechanical parts to assist humans in performing difficult, dangerous, or intricate tasks, as by supplementing or duplicating parts of the body.
The scientist used a bionic arm to examine the radioactive material.
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Informal. having superhuman strength or capacity.
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of or relating to bionics.
adjective
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of or relating to bionics
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(in science fiction) having certain physiological functions augmented or replaced by electronic equipment
the bionic man
Other Word Forms
- bionically adverb
Etymology
Origin of bionic
1955–60; bio- + (electro)nic; bionics
Explanation
Something that's bionic is artificial but made to work as if it were real. Some people with vision loss have had bionic eyes implanted to restore their sight. In medicine, bionic devices are used to replace missing or failing body parts. These are different from prostheses, or artificial limbs, because they copy exactly (or even exceed) the biology of the original part. Bionic body parts first entered popular culture in the 1970s, when the TV show The Six Million Dollar Man told the story of an injured astronaut whose bionic implants (a bionic eye, legs, and arm) gave him superhuman powers.
Vocabulary lists containing bionic
Words to Live By: Bio
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Portmanteaus: Vocab Mash-Ups
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bio
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Mr. Foster dismisses their preoccupations with bionic implants or humanoid robots as MacGuffins—Alfred Hitchcock’s term for a device that momentarily advances a movie plot but ultimately fails to develop into anything.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 30, 2025
Steel-cut or Irish oats, on the other hand, are practically bionic — too sturdy to surrender to mere soaking, and still pebble-firm come morning.
From Salon • Nov. 13, 2025
At almost 34 and with a partly bionic body, Stokes has realised he cannot push himself like he did in his younger days.
From BBC • May 23, 2025
Added coach Scott Altenberg: “He’s the bionic man.”
From Los Angeles Times • May 16, 2025
“Are you okay with your new bionic Lobot hearing aids?” the ear doctor asked, looking in the mirror at me.
From "Wonder" by R. J. Palacio
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
