electromagnetic
Americanadjective
adjective
-
of, containing, or operated by an electromagnet
an electromagnetic pump
-
of, relating to, or consisting of electromagnetism
electromagnetic moment
-
of or relating to electromagnetic radiation
the electromagnetic spectrum
Other Word Forms
- electromagnetically adverb
Etymology
Origin of electromagnetic
Explanation
The adjective electromagnetic describes a powerful natural force that's caused by an electrical charge. Objects that have an electromagnetic charge act like ordinary magnets, attracting and repelling other objects — but the source of their magnetism is an electric current flowing inside them. Electromagnetic, a combination of electric and magnetic, dates from the 1820s, soon after the force itself was discovered by a Danish scientist who noticed a magnetic compass needle moving when it was close to a live electric wire.
Vocabulary lists containing electromagnetic
Waves and Wave Properties - Introductory
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Waves and Wave Properties - Middle School
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Electricity and Magnetism - Introductory
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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.
And a person’s exposure to the electromagnetic field, or EMF, from a solar farm is roughly the same as what they would encounter from ordinary household appliances, according to researchers.
From Salon • Apr. 27, 2026
In 1886, the German physicist Heinrich Hertz demonstrated the existence of electromagnetic waves and discovered radio waves.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 26, 2026
This behavior comes from the atom's interaction with the quantum electromagnetic field.
From Science Daily • Apr. 10, 2026
And unlike classical bits, qubits are particularly sensitive to changes in their environment—anything from heat to electromagnetic interference—that can throw their fragile quantum states into disarray and cause a computer to malfunction.
From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026
They made a formal recommendation that we organize an international cooperative program, with new and immense radio telescopes, to probe the reaches of deep space for electromagnetic signals making sense.
From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas
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.
