fermi

[ fur-mee; Italian fer-mee ]

/ ˈfɜr mi; Italian ˈfɛr mi /

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noun Physics.

a unit of length, 10−15 m, used in measuring nuclear distances. Symbol: F

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Also called femtometer.

Origin of fermi

Named after E. Fermi

Words nearby fermi

Fermat's theorem, ferment, fermentation, fermentation lock, fermentative, fermi, Fermi-Dirac statistics, Fermi energy, Fermi, Enrico, fermion, fermium

Other definitions for fermi (2 of 2)

Fermi

[ fur-mee; Italian fer-mee ]

/ ˈfɜr mi; Italian ˈfɛr mi /

noun

En·ri·co

[en-ree-koh; Italian en-ree-kaw], /ɛnˈri koʊ; Italian ɛnˈri kɔ/, 1901–54, Italian physicist, in the U.S. after 1939: Nobel Prize 1938.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use fermi in a sentence

That will disappoint SETI searchers and explain the so-called Fermi Paradox—the surprise expressed by physicist Enrico Fermi over the absence of any signs for the existence of other intelligent civilizations in the Milky Way.
If Aliens Exist, Here’s How We’ll Find Them - Issue 97: Wonder|Martin Rees & Mario Livio|February 24, 2021|Nautilus
We cannot assess whether the Fermi paradox signifies their absence or simply their preference.
If Aliens Exist, Here’s How We’ll Find Them - Issue 97: Wonder|Martin Rees & Mario Livio|February 24, 2021|Nautilus
The Fermi bubbles, and now the eROSITA bubbles, suggest that the main difference may simply be the passage of time.
Galaxy-Size Bubbles Discovered Towering Over the Milky Way|Charlie Wood|January 6, 2021|Quanta Magazine
Then in 2010, the Fermi space telescope caught the faint gamma-ray glow of two humungous lobes, each extending roughly 20,000 light-years from the galaxy’s center.
Galaxy-Size Bubbles Discovered Towering Over the Milky Way|Charlie Wood|January 6, 2021|Quanta Magazine

What that can tell us is how, over time, the energy output from the Fermi bubbles has changed.
The Milky Way’s giant gas bubbles were seen in visible light for the first time|Emily Conover|June 8, 2020|Science News
It was, we were told, Fermi's atom-splitting feat in Chicago replicated at a scale of 200 million.
At the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, a Steady Drip of Toxic Trouble|Eric Nusbaum|February 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
But at that point the Marchesa Fermi, having discovered a small bell on the mantel-shelf, began ringing it, to obtain silence.
The Saint|Antonio Fogazzaro
As a matter of fact, the way out of the difficulty had been indicated soon after Fermi's original announcement.
A Brief History of Element Discovery, Synthesis, and Analysis|Glen W. Watson
Near Fermi they fell in with the enemy, about three thousand.
The Admiral|Douglas Sladen

British Dictionary definitions for fermi (1 of 2)

fermi

/ (ˈfɜːmɪ) /

noun

a unit of length used in nuclear physics equal to 10 –15 metre

Word Origin for fermi

C20: named after Enrico Fermi

British Dictionary definitions for fermi (2 of 2)

Fermi

/ (ˈfɜːmɪ, Italian ˈfɛrmi) /

noun

Enrico (enˈriːko). 1901-54, Italian nuclear physicist, in the US from 1939. He was awarded a Nobel prize for physics in 1938 for his work on radioactive substances and nuclear bombardment and headed the group that produced the first controlled nuclear reaction (1942)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for fermi

Fermi

[ fĕr′mē ]

Enrico 1901-1954

Italian-born American physicist who won a 1938 Nobel Prize for his research on neutrons. In 1942, with Leo Szilard, Fermi built the world's first nuclear reactor. He also discovered over 40 new isotopes, including the element fermium, which is named for him.