nano
[nan-oh, ney-noh]
- Informal. nanotechnology.
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Origin of nano
by shortening
nano-
- a combining form with the meaning “very small, minute,” used in the formation of compound words (nanoplankton); in the names of units of measure it has the specific sense “one billionth” (10-9): nanomole; nanosecond.
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Origin of nano-
combining form representing Greek nânos, nánnos dwarf
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for nano
Contemporary Examples
In 2006, the Left Front government invited the magnate Ratan Tata to set up his Nano factory at Singur.
Historical Examples
Nano Amaldi's injuries proved far less serious than was at first believed.
Shadows of FlamesAmelie Rives
nano-
- denoting 10 –9nanosecond Symbol: n
- indicating extreme smallnessnanoplankton
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Word Origin
from Latin nānus dwarf, from Greek nanos
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
Word Origin and History for nano
nano-
introduced 1947 (at 14th conference of the Union Internationale de Chimie) as a prefix for units of one thousand-millionth part, from Greek nanos "a dwarf." According to Watkins, this is originally "little old man," from nannos "uncle," masc. of nanna "aunt" (see nana). Earlier it was used as a prefix to mean "dwarf, dwarfish," and still in a non-scientific sense of "very small."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
nano-
- Extremely small:nanoid.
- One-billionth (10-9):nanometer.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
nano-
- A prefix that means:
- Very small or at a microscopic level, as in nanotube. In this sense, this prefix is sometimes spelled nanno-, as in nannoplankton.
- One billionth, as in nanosecond, one billionth of a second.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.