pixel
[ pik-suh l, -sel ]
/ ˈpɪk səl, -sɛl /
noun Computers, Television.
the smallest element of an image that can be individually processed in a video display system.
RELATED CONTENT
The Original Memes (Before Memes)The word meme, coined in 1976 by the evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins, goes way beyond social-media pixels. Meme captures the concept of “cultural transmission” of ideas in general, where customs and ideas spread from brain to brain. Which means memes have been around longer than Success Kid or Kermit sipping tea. Wildfire ideas have been around as long as humans have—in fact, discovering fire is …
RELATED WORDS
Nearby words
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for pixel
Inevitably, this time next year we will see 2,880 x 1,800 pixel screens all over the place.
She lives in the same house as Pixel, our Italian Greyhound, who is something of a celebrity in Oaxaca.
Technical Note: The illustrations were scanned at 400ppi and scaled to 25% by pixel count.
Printers' Marks|William RobertsFor this e-text, Plates were rescaled to 25% by pixel count, while most Figures were rescaled to 33%.
British Dictionary definitions for pixel
pixel
/ (ˈpɪksəl) /
noun
any of a number of very small picture elements that make up a picture, as on a visual display unit
Word Origin for pixel
C20: from pix pictures + el (ement)
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 pixel
pixel
1969, coined to describe the photographic elements of a television image, from pix + first syllable of element.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Medicine definitions for pixel
pixel
[ pĭk′səl ]
n.
The smallest image-forming unit of a video display.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Science definitions for pixel
pixel
[ pĭk′səl ]
The most basic unit of an image displayed on a computer or television screen or on a printer. Pixels are generally arranged in rows and columns; a given combination among the pixels of various brightness and color values forms an image.♦ A subpixel is one of three components of a pixel used in the representation of a color image. Each subpixel represents the contribution of a single color-red, green, or blue-to the overall color and brightness of the pixel.
A Closer Look
The images on a computer screen are composed of tiny dots called pixels (short for picture element). The computer controls each pixel individually. Most monitors have hundreds of thousands, or often millions, of pixels that are lit or dimmed to create an image. Each pixel of a color screen is made out of one red, one blue, and one green subpixel, generally arranged in a triangle, adjusted individually to create the combined effect of a single color but treated as a unit pixel for determining resolution. Pixels vary in size according to the size and resolution of the monitor. Smaller pixels provide higher resolution, and therefore sharper images, but require more memory to store the color and intensity data of each pixel and more processing time to refresh the screen. Resolution is frequently referred to in terms of dpi, or dots per inch.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.