prism

[ priz-uhm ]
See synonyms for prism on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. Optics. a transparent solid body, often having triangular bases, used for dispersing light into a spectrum or for reflecting rays of light.

  2. Geometry. a solid having bases or ends that are parallel, congruent polygons and sides that are parallelograms.

  1. Crystallography. a form having faces parallel to the vertical axis and intersecting the horizontal axes.

Origin of prism

1
1560–70; <Late Latin prīsma<Greek prîsma literally, something sawed, akin to prī́zein to saw, prīstēs sawyer

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Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

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British Dictionary definitions for prism

prism

/ (ˈprɪzəm) /


noun
  1. a transparent polygonal solid, often having triangular ends and rectangular sides, for dispersing light into a spectrum or for reflecting and deviating light. They are used in spectroscopes, binoculars, periscopes, etc

  2. a form of crystal with faces parallel to the vertical axis

  1. maths a polyhedron having parallel, polygonal, and congruent bases and sides that are parallelograms

Origin of prism

1
C16: from Medieval Latin prisma, from Greek: something shaped by sawing, from prizein to saw

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 prism

prism

[ prĭzəm ]


  1. A geometric solid whose bases are congruent polygons lying in parallel planes and whose sides are parallelograms.

  2. A solid of this type, often made of glass with triangular ends, used to disperse light and break it up into a spectrum.

  1. A crystal form having 3, 4, 6, 8, or 12 faces parallel to the vertical axis and intersecting the horizontal axis.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for prism

prism

[ (priz-uhm) ]


A solid figure in geometry with bases or ends of the same size and shape and sides that have parallel edges. Also, an object that has this shape.

Notes for prism

A prism of glass (or a similar transparent material) can be used to bend different wavelengths of light by different amounts through refraction. This bending separates a beam of white light into a spectrum of colored light.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.