hologram

American  

[hol-uh-gram, hoh-luh-] / ˈhɒl əˌgræm, ˈhoʊ lə- /

noun

Optics.

1. a negative produced by exposing a high-resolution photographic plate, without camera or lens, near a subject illuminated by monochromatic, coherent radiation, as from a laser: when it is placed in a beam of coherent light a true three-dimensional image of the subject is formed.

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hologram British  

/ ˈhɒləˌɡræm /

noun

1. a photographic record produced by illuminating the object with coherent light (as from a laser) and, without using lenses, exposing a film to light reflected from this object and to a direct beam of coherent light. When interference patterns on the film are illuminated by the coherent light a three-dimensional image is produced

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hologram Scientific  

/ hŏl′ə-grăm′,hō′lə- /

1. A three-dimensional image of an object made by holography.

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Closer Look

To produce a simple hologram, a beam of coherent, monochromatic light, such as that produced by a laser, is split into two beams. One part, the object or illumination beam, is directed onto the object and reflected onto a high-resolution photographic plate. The other part, the reference beam, is beamed directly onto the photographic plate. The interference pattern of the two light beams is recorded on the plate. When the developed hologram is illuminated from behind (in the same direction as the original reference beam) by a beam of coherent light, it projects a three-dimensional image of the original object in space, shifting in perspective when viewed from different angles. Appropriately enough, the word hologram comes from the Greek words holos, “whole,” and gramma, “message.” If a hologram is cut into pieces, each piece projects the entire image, but as if viewed from a smaller subset of angles. The large amount of information contained in holograms makes them harder to forge than two-dimensional images. Many credit cards, CDs, sports memorabilia, and other items include holographic stickers as indicators of authenticity. Holography is used in many fields, including medicine, data storage, architecture, engineering, and the arts.

Etymology

Origin of hologram

First recorded in 1945–50; holo- + -gram ¹

Explanation

If you've ever looked through a View-Master, you've seen a hologram — an image or photograph that appears to be three-dimensional. Holograms sometimes appear on credit cards, passports, and driver's licenses as security against forgery, and they are also occasionally used in art. The process of creating a hologram is complicated and scientific, usually involving a special kind of laser. The word hologram was invented by Dennis Gabor, the scientist who developed holography in 1949, by combining the Greek holos, "whole," and gramme, "line."

Example Sentences

Videogame-accessory maker Razer showed off Project AVA, a 5-inch hologram AI friend powered by xAI’s Grok.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 11, 2026

A man mourns the loss of his dead celebrity mom, who unexpectedly appears before him as a hologram in his childhood home, singing and strumming a guitar.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 4, 2025

Squibb, in fact, plays two characters, Marjorie and Marjorie Prime, a hologram double that has been uploaded with artificial intelligence full of information about Marjorie’s life.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 3, 2025

Watching the “Russian Doll” hologram, we hear green tendrils of Stravinsky’s “Le Sacre du printemps” in the musical mix.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 1, 2025

The hologram librarian appeared and advised Akimi that Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain was the book located right underneath the holographic image of Dr. Seuss and the Cat in the Hat.

From "Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library" by Chris Grabenstein