micrometer

[ mahy-krom-i-ter ]

noun

any of various devices for measuring minute distances, angles, etc., as in connection with a telescope or microscope.
Also called mike. micrometer caliper . a precision instrument with a spindle moved by a finely threaded screw, for the measurement of thicknesses and short lengths, commonly used by machinists for turning shafts or boring holes.

Origin of micrometer

First recorded in 1660–70; micro- + -meter

Also especially British, mi·crom·e·tre .

Words Nearby micrometer

Other definitions for micrometer (2 of 2)

micrometer²

[ mahy-kroh-mee-ter ]

noun

micron (def. 1).

Origin of micrometer

micro- + meter¹

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

How to use micrometer in a sentence

These bursts could propel grains with diameters from 20 micrometers to 1 centimeter in size, the team estimates.
Lava and frost may form the mysterious lumps on Jupiter’s moon Io | Nikk Ogasa | May 3, 2022 | Science News
Last year, the Human Brain Project released a 3D digital map that integrates different aspects of human brain organization at the millimeter and micrometer level.
How big science failed to unlock the mysteries of the human brain | Emily Mullin | August 25, 2021 | MIT Technology Review
These nanoparticles help the underpinnings of the teeth vary in hardness and stiffness by at least a factor of two over distances of just several hundred micrometers — a few times the average width of a human hair.
The teeth of ‘wandering meatloaf’ contain a rare mineral found only in rocks | Charles Q. Choi | May 31, 2021 | Science News
That’s enough resolution to recognize biologically assembled clumps of molecules, but not sufficient to see fossils of actual microbial bodies, which might be as small as a single micrometer.
Was there ever life on Mars? Perseverance’s SHERLOC laser sniffs for microscopic clues | Charlie Wood | March 11, 2021 | Popular-Science
The new process also only achieved a CNT density of about 45 CNTs per micrometer, which is still significantly below the optimum of 200 predicted by previous research.
Carbon Nanotube Transistors May Soon Give Waning Moore’s Law a Boost | Edd Gent | June 1, 2020 | Singularity Hub

A one-half inch eye-piece, a micrometer eye-piece, and an attachable mechanical stage are very useful additions.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell Todd
Focus the scale of each micrometer accurately, and make the lines on them parallel.
The Elements of Bacteriological Technique | John William Henry Eyre
Place a stage micrometer divided into hundredths of a millimetre on the microscope stage and focus accurately.
The Elements of Bacteriological Technique | John William Henry Eyre
Rotate the head of the micrometer screw until the movable line has transversed one division of the stage micrometer.
The Elements of Bacteriological Technique | John William Henry Eyre
Note the optical combination employed in this experiment and record it with the calculated micrometer value.
The Elements of Bacteriological Technique | John William Henry Eyre

British Dictionary definitions for micrometer

micrometer

/ (maɪˈkrɒmɪtə) /

noun

any of various instruments or devices for the accurate measurement of distances or angles
Also called: micrometer gauge, micrometer calliper a type of gauge for the accurate measurement of small distances, thicknesses, diameters, etc. The gap between its measuring faces is adjusted by a fine screw, the rotation of the screw giving a sensitive measure of the distance moved by the face

Derived forms of micrometer

micrometry, noun
micrometric (ˌmaɪkrəʊˈmɛtrɪk) or micrometrical, adjective

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 micrometer (1 of 2)

micrometer¹

[ mī-krŏm′ĭ-tər ]

A device for measuring very small distances, angles, or objects, especially one based on the rotation of a finely threaded screw, as in relation to a microscope.

Scientific definitions for micrometer (2 of 2)

micrometer²

[ mī′krō-mē′tər ]

A unit of length in the metric system equal to one millionth (10-6) of a meter. Also called micron

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