semi
Origin of semi
1Other definitions for semi- (2 of 2)
a combining form borrowed from Latin, meaning “half,” freely prefixed to English words of any origin, now sometimes with the senses “partially,” “incompletely,” “somewhat”: semiautomatic; semidetached; semimonthly; semisophisticated.
Origin of semi-
2confusables note For semi-
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use semi in a sentence
Here they are semi-touching at a grocery store; she likes kombucha.
All Your Internet Boyfriends Are Taken: Gosling, Cumberbatch, and now Joseph Gordon-Levitt | Melissa Leon | January 3, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTBrinsley stepped up to the passenger side of the patrol car, raised a silver Taurus semi-automatic pistol and began firing.
'Please Don't Die!': The Frantic Battle to Save Murdered Cops | Michael Daly | December 22, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTTiger Lily and her tribe, however, were outfitted in semi-realistic outfits (read: nearly naked).
‘Peter Pan Live!’ Review: No Amount of Clapping Brings It to Life | Kevin Fallon | December 5, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTFor the next hour and half I was the willing sex slave of a semi-professional Master I had met through a friend.
After curing the elderly of their semi-suicidal depression, winning the White House must seem like a snap.
Ben Carson’s Bizarrely Serious, Seriously Bizarre Campaign Crew | Olivia Nuzzi | November 12, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Our troops have done all that flesh and blood can do against semi-permanent works, and they are not able to carry them.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I | Ian HamiltonThe stop-keys will be seen arranged in an inclined semi-circle overhanging and just above the keyboards.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building | George Laing MillerThere are four types: bituminous (soft), anthracite (hard), semi-bituminous and semi-anthracite.
Hallowed Heritage: The Life of Virginia | Dorothy M. TorpeyThere were semi-savage native chiefs, and there were others, like Aguinaldo himself, with humane instincts.
The Philippine Islands | John ForemanThe brilliant light of a policeman's torch sliced through the semi-darkness and spotted him.
British Dictionary definitions for semi (1 of 2)
/ (ˈsɛmɪ) /
British a semidetached house
short for semifinal
US, Canadian, Australian and NZ short for semitrailer
British Dictionary definitions for semi- (2 of 2)
half: semicircle Compare demi- (def. 1), hemi-
partially, partly, not completely, or almost: semiprofessional; semifinal
occurring twice in a specified period of time: semiannual; semiweekly
Origin of semi-
2Collins 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 semi-
A prefix that means half, (as in semicircle, half a circle) or partly, somewhat, less than fully, (as in semiconscious, partly conscious).
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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