permanent magnet

American  

noun

1. a magnet that retains its magnetism after being removed from an external magnetic field.

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permanent magnet British  

noun

1. a magnet, often of steel, that retains its magnetization after the magnetic field producing it has been removed

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permanent magnet Scientific  

/ pûr′mə-nənt /

1. A piece of ferromagnetic material that retains its magnetism after it has been magnetized.

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Other Word Forms

• permanent magnetism
  noun

Etymology

Origin of permanent magnet

First recorded in 1820–30

Example Sentences

Breaking Beijing’s chokehold on rare-earth supply chains requires resolving three bottlenecks: the concentration of heavy rare-earth feedstock in Myanmar and China; catching up in rare-earth processing; and rapidly scaling permanent magnet production.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 22, 2025

Afterward, the researchers collected the robots with a permanent magnet and used ultrasound to detach the bacteria clinging to them.

From Science Daily • May 8, 2024

And, at present, China massively dominates global permanent magnet production, with more than 90% market share.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2024

There are three other small permanent magnet producers in Europe, while the United State has no such companies on a commercial scale, although one has a pilot project to produce magnets by recycling old ones.

From Reuters • Aug. 23, 2021

If a piece of hard steel is treated in the same way it becomes a permanent magnet.

From Autobiography of an Electron Wherein the Scientific Ideas of the Present Time Are Explained in an Interesting and Novel Fashion by Gibson, Charles R. (Charles Robert)